Pakistani activist gets US’ Women of Courage Award
The recipients
were honored at a ceremony in Washington led by first lady Michelle Obama and
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Clinton said
each of the honored women had persisted in their work “in the face of
adversity, often under the threat of violence.”
“They come from
diverse and distant places, but in one important way, they all walk the same
path,” Clinton said. “They, too, are working tirelessly for justice. They are
working for accountability. They are working for freedom and they are working
tirelessly to improve the lives of women and girls.”
This year’s
honorees include five Muslim women, from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan,
Sudan, and Libya, and women from Turkey, Brazil, Colombia, the Maldives, and
Burma.
Maryam Durani
of Afghanistan is a member of the Kandahar Provincial Council and the owner of
a radio station that broadcasts information about women’s rights. Clinton said
Durani, who has survived attempts on her life for speaking out, ensures that
“the message of equality and inclusion is heard loudly and clearly” in her
community.
Shad Begum from Pakistan is regularly threatened for her work, which tries to engage women in political participation. Clinton praised Begum for “fearlessly championing Pakistani women’s political and economic rights, and working to empower the disadvantaged and oppressed.”
Shad Begum from Pakistan is regularly threatened for her work, which tries to engage women in political participation. Clinton praised Begum for “fearlessly championing Pakistani women’s political and economic rights, and working to empower the disadvantaged and oppressed.”
Other honorees
include Samar Badawi of Saudi Arabia, the first woman to sue her father for
abusing the guardian system and preventing her from marrying the suitor of her
choice. She is also the first woman to file a lawsuit against the government
demanding the right for women to vote.
Zin Mar Aung of
Burma was imprisoned for 11 years for her political activism and has dedicated
her life to promoting democracy, women’s empowerment, and conflict resolution.
First lady
Michelle Obama praised the women for standing up and saying “the things that no
one else could say, or would say. Year after year, they endured hardships that
few of us could bear.”
“These women
come from all different corners of the globe; they have taken very different
journeys to this moment,” she said. “But they are all here today because
somewhere along the line they decided they could no longer accept the world as
it is. And they committed themselves to fighting for the world as they know it
should be.
“They saw
corruption and they worked to expose it. They saw oppression and they worked to
end it. They saw violence, poverty, discrimination, and inequality, and they decided
to use their voices and risk their lives to do something about it.”
The State
Department gives out the awards every year on International Women’s Day on
March 8.
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