Militancy: A progressive voice for tribal women silenced in targeted attack

[desicad]

Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection

This file photo shows Farida Afridi working in her office.

Farida Afridi was shot dead in cold blood for the crime of being a decent, caring human being. As the executive director of the human rights NGO, Sawera, Afridi was working in Fata performing the most thankless of jobs: trying to improve the plight of women in an area where many people have never even considered the concept of womens rights. For that, she had to pay the ultimate price as she was killed by armed gunmen, most likely members of the Taliban, as she drove from her home in Hayatabad, Peshawar to Jamrud in Khyber Agency. Apart from taking away a valuable activist, the militants, through their brutality, will also ensure that there is a chilling effect as fewer NGOs and women will be willing to risk working in an area that needs their efforts the most.

Afridis ruthless murder also highlights the need for reform in Fata. Since Fata is not bound by Pakistani laws, those working there do not have the rights guaranteed to Pakistani citizens by the Constitution, and thus makes it easier for militants to operate. Last year, Zarteef Khan Afridi, who worked for the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, was also shot dead by militants in Jamrud. This shows that NGO activists are a prime target in Fata. They are denounced as agents of the West who are out to corrupt the people of the region. Recall how hard Maulana Fazlullah campaigned against polio vaccinations, claiming that these would make men sterile.

People like Afridi may be doing some of the most vital work in the country and for that they deserve the best protection the government can provide. In Fata, this means that the army must pursue her killers. The murders of NGO workers may be the most visible work of the Taliban but they have ruined countless other lives in the area too. This is a menace that cannot be tackled by regular law-enforcement measures. Military operations are the only way to prevent the murders of future Farida Afridis.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/404673/farida-afridi/

 

[jahanzaibi]

Re: Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection

Bahi un panch aoortoon ka kia hooa jo pak.army kay jawanoon ki hawis ka nishana banni theen? koi un kay lia bhi awaz utaay..wo bhi mazloom pakistani aurteen theen

 

[desicad]

Re: Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection

@huma.asl what did you do to the s in the title?........

 

[ambroxo]

Re: Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection

[h=2]Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection [/h]

? :doh:

 

[Queue Farms]

​

In Farida Afridis death, women from the tribal belt have lost a fierce fighter.
Farida, belonging to the Afridi subtribe Kokikhel, was targeted on Wednesday morning at 6.30am when she left her house in Tehsil Jamrud Ghundi **** for her office in Hayatabad.
She was cornered by motorcyclists who shot her and she died on the way to Jamrud hospital, said witness Abid Ali. Farida was 25.
Along with her sister Noor Zia, Farida was committed to social change and economic emancipation for women from the platform of a welfare organisation called the Society for Appraisal and Women Empowerment in Rural Areas (SAWERA). Both women were among the founding members of the NGO and had a Masters degree in Gender Studies.
Due to tribal customs and traditions, women in the area remain mostly restricted and unable to achieve their true potential, but Farida broke all barriers and relentlessly worked for womens development. We have lost a great member of our team, said Lal Jan, the technical advisor of the organisation.
To increase womens involvement in the social and economic sphere, a few educated and aspiring women, including Farida who was still in school at that time, established SAWERA in 2004. The NGO works for the rights of women and childrens rights in the tribal belt.
Farida had three sisters and four brothers and she was the second eldest. She belonged to a poor family that had no personal enmity, Lal Jan said.
In an interview for The Express Tribune published in September 2011, Farida had said: The government is oblivious to the general attitude of tribesmen towards women and the extent of inequality in our patriarchal society. This pushed us to start a struggle for their empowerment.
The sisters faced tough resistance when they told their family about the path they had chosen for themselves. We told our parents that we would work in accordance with our religious and cultural traditions, assuring them that we would never let the family honour suffer because of our line of work. Finally, they agreed, Noor had said.
Syed Afzal Shinwari, project coordinator in Community Appraisal and Motivation Program (CAMP), said that SAWERA started small but is now an influential organisation. Because of this brutal act, women in Fata will be discouraged to work and development will come to a halt, he said.
Condemnation
Both government and security agencies will be sleeping and people like Farida, Zartif Khan, Khan Habib Afridi and Mukarram Khan Atif will be mercilessly killed. We, the participants of civil society organisations in Peshawar, strongly condemn this tragic death and vow to raise our voice against this tyranny and brutality at the hands of anti-state elements who have been given a free hand to kill people from the civil society, civil society group Strengthening Participatory Organisaion said in a statement.
The End Violence Against Women/Girl alliance in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Fata also condemned the murder.
Faridas struggle and efforts towards the empowerment of tribal women will never be forgotten.
Edited by Zehra Abid

 

[Queue Farms]

yeh jahil aur zalim Mecca kay kafiron say bhi aagay hayn kion k woh bhi aurton ko karobar karnay daity thay aur qatal nahi kartay thay.

Drone sahi aata hay aaisay logon par

 

[MuslimPak]

Chalo tum ne mana to sahih k tum log drones ko support karte ho. It is good that you made things clear for innocent public and readers of this forum.

yeh jahil aur zalim Mecca kay kafiron say bhi aagay hayn kion k woh bhi aurton ko karobar karnay daity thay aur qatal nahi kartay thay.

Drone sahi aata hay aaisay logon par

 

[Humi]

Re: Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection

@huma.asl what did you do to the s in the title?........

oh I was correcting the "deserves" spelling....ok I see the "s" thing now...nvm, the title has been changed by someone else anyway..

 

[Desi_Action]

Business as usual, nothing special, killing, bloodshed and terror. Can someone tell, how much of this all would be enough for this country?

 

[BoneBasher]

Re: Farida Afridi of FATA deserves state protection

oh I was correcting the "deserves" spelling....ok I see the "s" thing now...nvm, the title has been changed by someone else anyway..

Madam zara dihaan kara karein nai nai nokri hey supreme court me aap ki, aap ki zari si ghalti se poore ka poore judgement change ho sakta hey.

 

[Queue Farms]

Wow aur tum log jo nehtay logon ko bila wajay uratay rhao wow theek hay, ?? Islam k nam par logon ko zibah karna theek hay to drones bhi ghalat nahi

Chalo tum ne mana to sahih k tum log drones ko support karte ho. It is good that you made things clear for innocent public and readers of this forum.

 

[urdu_man]

Farida Afridi .. Role Model for Pakistani Women

How miserably sad and depressing. Farida Afridi, an activist for tribal women in Pakistan, was murdered today. (You know how. You dont even need to look. Leaving home for work. Guys on motorcycles. Guns. Died on the way to the hospital.)

Along with her sister Noor Zia, Farida was committed to social change and economic emancipation for women from the platform of a welfare organisation called the Society for Appraisal and Women Empowerment in Rural Areas (SAWERA). Both women were among the founding members of the NGO and had a Masters degree in Gender Studies.

Due to tribal customs and traditions, women in the area remain mostly restricted and unable to achieve their true potential, but Farida broke all barriers and relentlessly worked for womens development. We have lost a great member of our team, said Lal Jan, the technical advisor of the organisation.

The sisters faced tough resistance when they told their family about the path they had chosen for themselves. We told our parents that we would work in accordance with our religious and cultural traditions, assuring them that we would never let the family honour suffer because of our line of work. Finally, they agreed, Noor had said.
Syed Afzal Shinwari, project coordinator in Community Appraisal and Motivation Program (CAMP), said that SAWERA started small but is now an influential organisation. Because of this brutal act, women in Fata will be discouraged to work and development will come to a halt, he said.
​

If it werent for the support of their father and the persistence of their mother, Farida Afridi and Noor Zia Afridi would not be able to read a single word of this article. But today, the two are not only final year students of MSc in Gender studies and holders of MBA degrees, but are also determined champions of womens education and empowerment.
Farida and Noors long struggle against discriminatory tribal customs started when they were school children. After we completed our primary education, our male family members wanted us to stop going to school, says Farida. But the girls parents were adamant that they would continue their education.
Since then, equal status for women and childrens rights have been issues close to their hearts. It was to win these rights that the two established the Society for Appraisal and Women Empowerment in Rural Areas (SAWERA) in the Jamrud subdivision of Khyber Agency in December 2008.
​

And this is their reward.