Saba Ismail | |
---|---|
Born | 1987 or 1988 Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan |
Alma mater | Josef Korbel School of International Studies |
Organization | Aware Girls |
Family | Gulalai Ismail (sister) |
Awards | Democracy Award, National Endowment for Democracy (2013) |
Saba Ismail (born 1987 or 1988) is a Pakistani human-rights activist who co-founded Aware Girls with her sister Gulalai Ismail in 2002.
She is the 2013 winner of the National Endowment for Democracy's Democracy Award.
Saba Ismail was born in 1987or1988 in Northwest Pakistan to father Muhammad Ismail, an activist and teacher with progressive values. She grew up with her several siblings including her sister Gulalai who is two years older. [1] In 2017, Saba spoke about peace-building on a panel with Melinda Gates at the White House. [1]
Saba co-founded the women's rights organisation Aware Girls with Gulalai in 2002, [1] when both sisters were teenagers, [2] Saba then being 15. [3] The organisation supports Pakistani women facing gender-based violence and promotes peace-building and gender equity in politics. [1] Specific activities also include advocacy against honour killings, acid attacks, and modern slavery. [2] Saba also helped set up Dignity Project, an initiative that amplifies the voices of women from South Asia. [4]
In 2018, Saba lived in Brooklyn, New York City. [1] In 2023, she was studying for a master's degree in international human rights at the University of Denver's Josef Korbel School of International Studies. [4]
Saba was featured in Foreign Policy's list of "Leading Global Thinkers", and in 2013, she received the National Endowment for Democracy's Democracy Award. [2]
Saba won the Fondation Chirac's Chirac Prize for Conflict Prevention. [5] The award was given at a November 2016 ceremony in the Quai Branly Museum by Christine Albanel. [6]
Asma Jilani Jahangir was a Pakistani human rights lawyer and social activist who co-founded and chaired the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and AGHS Legal Aid Cell. Jahangir was known for playing a prominent role in the Lawyers' Movement and served as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief and as a trustee at the International Crisis Group.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) is an independent, democratic non-profit organisation. Founded in 1987, it is one of the oldest human rights organisations in the country.
Humanists International is an international non-governmental organisation championing secularism and human rights, motivated by secular humanist values. Founded in Amsterdam in 1952, it is an umbrella organisation made up of more than 160 secular humanist, atheist, rationalist, agnostic, skeptic, freethought and Ethical Culture organisations from over 80 countries.
The situation of human rights in Pakistan is complex as a result of the country's diversity, large population, its status as a developing country and a sovereign Islamic democracy with a mixture of both Islamic and secular law.
Honour killings in Pakistan are known locally as karo-kari. According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, over 470 cases of honour killings were reported in Pakistan in 2021. But human rights defenders estimate that around 1,000 women are murdered in the name of honour every year. An honour killing is the murder of a member of a family or social group by other members, due to the belief the victim has brought dishonour upon the family or community. The death of the victim is viewed as a way to restore the reputation and honour of the family.
Ayesha Gulalai Wazir is a Pakistani politician who was a former Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from 2013 to May 2018.
Gulalai Ismail is a Pakistani human rights activist from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. She is the chairperson of Aware Girls, a global ambassador for Humanists International, and a leading member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM). She speaks on the subject of promoting peace and women's empowerment at conferences internationally, and is the recipient of the International Humanist of the Year Award, the Chirac Prize for Conflict Prevention, and the Anna Politkovskaya Award.
Amira Yahyaoui is a Tunisian entrepreneur, blogger and human rights activist. She was previously the Founder and President of Al Bawsala, a multi-awarded transparency and accountability NGO.
Nighat Dad is a Pakistani lawyer and Internet activist who runs the not-for-profit organisation Digital Rights Foundation. Her work in the field of IT security has earned her many international awards.
Rabiya Javeri Agha is the Chairperson of the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) in Pakistan, and a retired civil servant officer who served in the Government of Pakistan in BPS-22 grade as Federal Secretary. She was the first unanimously elected female President of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) Officers Association, and she has had an extensive career ranging from human rights, women's development, sustainable tourism, energy, finance and trade.
Feminism in Pakistan refers to the set of movements which aim to define, establish, and defend the rights of women in Pakistan.This may involve the pursuit of equal political, economic, and social rights, alongside equal opportunity. These movements have historically been shaped in response to national and global reconfiguration of power, including colonialism, nationalism, Islamization, dictatorship, democracy, and the War on Terror. The relationship between the women's movement and the Pakistani state has undergone significant shifts from mutual accommodation to confrontation and conflict.
Malala Fund is an international, non-profit organization that advocates for girls' education. It was co-founded by Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest Nobel Prize laureate, and her father, Ziauddin. The stated goal of the organization is to ensure 12 years of free, safe and quality education for every girl. As of July 2020, the organization has 48 staff and supports 58 advocates working across Afghanistan, Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Lebanon, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.
Aware Girls is a non-governmental organization in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Established in 2002, it aims to address violence and discrimination against women and young girls in Pakistan. Their mission is to advocate for women's rights, education, and access to sexual and reproductive health resources. They state their objective as "to strengthen the leadership capacity of young women enabling them to act as agents of social change and women empowerment in their communities."
Wanjeri Nderu is a human rights activist from Kenya.
Sanna Ejaz or Sana Ijaz, is a Pakistani journalist and human rights activist from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. She is a leading member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), as well as a founding member of the Waak Movement, which aims to bring political awareness among Pashtun women. She focuses on advocacy to promote women's role in peacebuilding, reconciliation, and social activism. She was formerly the vice-president of the youth wing of Awami National Party (ANP).
Wranga Loni is a Pakistani human rights activist and writer from Sanjawi in northern Balochistan, Pakistan. She is a member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), and of the Waak Movement, which aims to bring political awareness among Pashtun women.
Asha Ismail is a Kenyan human rights activist. She is the founder and president of Save a Girl, Save a Generation, an organisation whose mission is to end female genital mutilation, the dowry system, forced marriage and other abuses against women in Africa and Asia.
Glanis Changachirere is a Zimbabwean women's rights activist. She is the founding Director of the Institute for Young Women Development (IYWD) and the founding Coordinator of the African Women Leaders Forum. She is also a member of the Steering Committee of the Zimbabwean chapter of the UN Women-supported African Women Leaders Network as of March 2022.
Right Side NGO is the first transgender rights organization in Armenia and the first trans-led organization in the South Caucasus region. Right Side NGO was founded in 2016 as a non-governmental organization and is headquartered in Yerevan. Its mission is to serve and support the needs of transgender individuals and sex workers in Armenia, to promote their human rights protection, and to advocate for the change of public policy around transgender and sex work issues.