Leila Sheikh

Leila Sheikh
Died	2023
Citizenship	Tanzania
Occupation	Journalist

Leila Sheikh or Sheikh-Hashim (died 2023) was a Tanzanian journalist, women's rights activist and blogger. She was a founder member of Tanzania Media Women's Association (TAMWA) and became TAMWA's Executive Director in 1996. ^[1]

Life

Leila Sheikh was one of the founder members of TAMWA in 1987, ^[2] and later documented TAMWA's history. ^[3] She was editor of TAMWA's magazine, Sauti ya Siti [Women's Voice]. In 1992, she oversaw a special issue on violence against women, with funding from the Swedish International Development Agency. ^[4]

Sheikh was a TEDxDar speaker in November 2011. ^[5] Though no longer Executive Director of TAMWA, she remained active as a women's rights activist in Dar es Salaam. ^{[6] [7]} She owned a consultancy firm, Studio Calabash Ltd, which designed lobbying strategies and public education programmes. She also worked as a media producer and scriptwriter. ^[2]

Leila Sheikh died on 11 June 2023. ^[8]

Works

• (with Anna Gabba) Ukatili dhidi ya wanawake mkoani Dar es Salaam : ushahidi katika wilaya tatu, Ilala, Temeke na Kinondoni [Violence against women in Dar es Salaam region: evidence from three districts, Ilala, Temeke and Kinondoni]. Dar es Salaam, Tanzania : Chama cha Waandishi wa Habari Wanawake Tanzania, 1990.
• A survey of sexual harassment in Dar es Salaam, [Dar-es-Salaam] : The Association, 1990.
• 'Violence against Women is a Violation of Human Rights', Sauti ya Siti (November 1992), pp. 3–10
• The rights of women in Islam. Dar es Salaam: Tanzania Media Women's Association, 1996.
• 'TAMWA: Leila's Song – Supporting Women in Tanzania, in Hope Bagyendera Chigudu, ed. (2002). Composing a New Song: Stories of Empowerment from Africa. Commonwealth Secretariat. pp. 95–. ISBN   978-1-77922-015-8.

References

1. Hope Bagyendera Chigudu (2002). Composing a New Song: Stories of Empowerment from Africa. Commonwealth Secretariat. p. 10. ISBN   978-1-77922-015-8.
2. Aili Mari Tripp (2017). "The women's movement in Tanzania". In Balghis Badri; Aili Mari Tripp (eds.). Women's Activism in Africa: Struggles for Rights and Representation. Zed Books Ltd. p. 121,131. ISBN   978-1-78360-911-6.
3. Kathleen E. Sheldon (2005). "Tanzania Media Women's Association (TAMWA)". Historical Dictionary of Women in Sub-Saharan Africa. Scarecrow Press. p. 241. ISBN   978-0-8108-5331-7.
4. Sauti ya Siti : a Tanzanian women's magazine : a special issue on violence against women
5. TEDxDar | TED
6. Kizito Makoye, Tanzania launches crackdown on child marriage with 30-year jail terms, Reuters, July 4, 2016.
7. Kizito Makoye, African Governments Join Activists to Fight Sextortion Archived 2021-08-18 at the Wayback Machine , www.indepthnews.net.
8. Takwa, Esther (13 June 2023). "Tamwa's founder Leyla Sheikh dies aged 65". Daily News. Retrieved 20 January 2024.

External links

• Leila Sheikh at IMDb
• Leila Sheikh at African Feminist Forum
• Leila's Cafe