‘Aware Girls’ working in the face of terrorism

The following are extracts from an article by Billy Briggs in February 2016 on the website of Positive News.

It’s a cold morning in the village of Shah Mansoor, Pakistan. Wearing a black burqa, through which only her brown eyes are visible, a young woman addresses a group in the courtyard of her family home. “I am a daughter of your village,” she says softly to her audience of 30 older men, who sit on rows of white plastic chairs. “I am really glad you came today.”

She is 18-year-old Bakhtawar Khalid, and the men listen in silence as she continues. “Women are often limited to the home, but there is nothing wrong if a woman goes outside. I would like all of you to support women, to educate women and to encourage them to take part in politics,” Khalid says.

This is a closed meeting and the invitees were chosen from the local area after being identified as liberal-minded. She speaks to them with conviction and courage, aiming to challenge entrenched views, but to do so sensitively. A young woman addressing men about women’s rights in this fashion would be unheard of in most parts of this province, where conservative Islam prevails. Indeed, locals tell us the village is a Taliban stronghold, with two extremist madrasas (colleges for Islamic instruction) nearby. But Khalid is unfazed.

As Khalid speaks in Pashto, her words are translated into English for me by Gulalai Ismail, who organised our trip to Shah Mansoor. Ismail runs an organisation called Aware Girls, which is based in Peshawar, about 70 miles away. She co-founded it in 2002 with her sister, Saba, when they were 16 and 15 years old. They were driven by the suffering of women that they witnessed around them; from rape to slavery, acid attacks, murder and the lack of access to the justice system.

In the last decade, Aware Girls has grown from a small women’s rights group into an internationally renowned organisation that promotes human rights across Pakistan and beyond. Last year, they helped 851 women participate in sessions in which they were informed of potential routes into politics. They have also organised monitoring of polling stations to encourage women to go out and vote without fear….

 

Read the full article: http://peacedirect.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f4f59d34151861a7e1d207db2&id=894b0c26b6&e=e5c8f9c89a

Aware Girls: http://www.awaregirls.org/