Northern Ireland
Anne Carr is a Dialogue Practitioner and has been leading Storytelling exercises for conflict resolution for 25 years in Northern Ireland. She was the founder of the first integrated school in Northern Ireland and is now a private consultant and a member of the board at Women Into Politics, where she encourages women to share their experiences of the conflicts in Northern Ireland as a way to foster community and lasting stability.
May de Silva is the Director of Women Into Politics, an NGO that works to increase the number of women in decision making roles. Women into Politics provides courses to develop political leadership skills, networking and mentoring opportunities, and a forum to discuss women’s roles in grassroots organizations and individuals.
Pakistan
Arshi Saleem Hashmi is a Senior Research Analyst at the Institute of Regional Studies in Islamabad and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the National Defense University in Islamabad. She specializes in Religion and Politics of Violent Conflicts.
Falaknaz Asfandyar became an activist for the Swat Valley in Pakistan after her husband, Amirzeb Asfandyar, a prominent politician, was assassinated in a roadside bombing, allegedly by a Taliban warlord. She works to bring attention to the plight of the Swat Valley and also assists in distributing aid and raising awareness about internally displaced persons in the region.
Mossarat Qadim is the Executive Director of the PAIMAN Trust in Islamabad, an organization that seeks to empower women politically and economically, improve educational resources throughout Pakistan, and implement programs to advance conflict resolution and security.
Farhat Akram is an Assistant Research Officer at the Islamabad Policy Research Institute, where she works in the area of Peace and Conflict Studies in Central Asia. Farhat contributed to the launch of the Pakistan’s first English-Arabic bilingual Magazine The Diplomatic Insight in 2008, a platform for the dialogue and cooperation in the diplomatic circles. She also works as volunteer for the NGO Community Support Dialogue.
Shaheen Akhtar is a research fellow at the Institute of Regional Studies in Islamabad and a visiting faculty at the Quaid-e-Azam University and at National Defence University in Islamabad. As scholar, she focuses on security and conflict resolution, development and gender issues in the region.
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is a film producer and journalist who has worked on 14 films for major networks in the United States and Britain, covering conflict zones and controversial topics in Afghanistan, Iraq, Indonesia, Pakistan, Canada, Sweden, and more. In 2007, Sharmeen helped found the Citizens Archive of Pakistan, a non-profit volunteer organization formed to foster and promote community-wide interest in the culture and history of Pakistan among underprivileged children.
Salma Malik is a lecturer at the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies at Quaid-I-Azam University in Islamabad. She specializes in War, Arms Control & Disarmament, Military Sociology, South Asian Affairs and her publications include Conflict Management & Transformation, Human Security, CBMs & Micro-Disarmament. She has also worked as a Research Officer at the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad.
Shabana Fayyaz is an assistant professor at the Defence and Strategic Studies Department of Quaid-I-Azam University in Islamabad. Her research specialty is terrorism in Pakistan with an emphasis on deradicalization studies. She publishes regularly in leading academic journals, and she has been a contributor to major news sources, including NPR in the United States.
Indonesia
Lily Zakiyah Munir is the Director and co-founder of the Center for Pesantren and Democracy Studies (CePDeS), the founding member of SAVE Indonesia, and a scholar specializing in Islamic feminism. Lily has organized youth retreats for hundreds of high school age students to empower them to pursue non-violent conflict resolution as well as to get a greater sense of self.
Dewirini Anggraeni is actively engaged in the Indonesian youth movement and in the Center for Pesantren and Democracy Studies (CePDeS), and is a new member of SAVE Indonesia. She has organized youth peace camps and Mothers for Change! trainings in Solo, Bandung and Jakarta. She has an English Literature degree from the State Islamic University in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Yemen
Fahmia al Fotih' is the SAVE Yemen coordinator and a freelance journalist for the Yemen Times. Previously, she has worked as a consultant for USAID and UNIFEM. She is responsible for managing the ongoing operations of SAVE Yemen and facilitating the implementation of the Mothers for Change! program.
Noor Baabad is the Assistant Deputy Minister for Social Care and a member of the Higher Council for Women. Noor has advocated for women’s legal rights in Yemen, reconciliation between northern and southern Yemen, and an end to revenge killing.
Fatima Al Zuhairi is the principal of the Rabia al-Adawea School in Sana’a, where she sees her mission as raising the next generation of Yemenis to be healthier, better educated, and more connected with the world beyond Yemen’s borders. She strives to create a school community where teachers and staff truly believe that every student can and will learn and to promote the right of education for every single member of the community, especially girls.
Nadia al-Sakkaf is the Editor-in-Chief of the Yemen Times, the most widely-read English language newspaper in Yemen. She is an active advocate for SAVE and has been instrumental in exposing the issue of child brides in Yemen to international media. Al-Sakkaf was awarded with the inaugural Gebran Tueni Award for journalistic integrity and demonstrated excellence in leadership, managerial, and professional standards. The Yemen Times is considered one of the strongest forces in Yemen today for checking government corruption and influencing public policy.
England
Hanan Ibrahim is the founder of the Somali Family Support Group, a community organization serving Somali families, Horn of Africa Asylum seekers, and refugees. She also runs a women´s group Shaah iyo Sheeko (tea and chat). In 2009 she received the Ambassador For Peace Award for her work of creating peace in the community.
Sabin Malik Khan is the first female Muslim Counter-Terrorism Advisor at the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism in the Home Office. Previously, she worked as Community Cohesion Advisor and as Commissioner for the Women’s National Commission. For 20 years, she has been actively involved in voluntary work with youth and communities, and she has frequently been invited as an expert to speak about the British Muslim Communities.
India
Archana Kapoor is the founder of SMART, an NGO working with marginalized communities in northern India, the editor and publisher of the political magazine Hard News, the director of her own media house, and the president of SAVE India. She has been the driving force behind our ongoing operations in India, including our recent workshops for victims of the 26/11 terror attacks “Swimming to the Future” and “Our Stories, Our Futures.”
Vinita Kamte became an activist after her husband, Police Commissioner Ashok Kamte, died in the 26-11 terrorist attack in Mumbai. Vinita’s quest to find out the events leading up to his death revealed gross negligence on the part of the police and turned into a best-selling book, To The Last Bullet. Vinita is now an advocate for widows of police officers in Mumbai and a spokesperson for victims of violent extremism.
Manju Singh is the founder of the WorldKids Foundation in Mumbai, which produces children’s television shows with educational and socially-minded themes. The WorldKids Foundation works in partnership with schools throughout India, and it has hosted numerous traveling film festivals to bring value-based entertainment to children in Mumbai, Indore, and Delhi.
Anita Pratap is a documentary filmmaker, author and journalist. She was the South Asia Bureau Chief of CNN, a correspondent for Time Magazine and a reporter for Indian newspapers and magazines. She covered all the major stories in the region ranging from ethnic conflicts to women and poverty issues. She is currently working on a new book on conflict resolution.
Hasina Kharbhih founded the Impulse NGO Network, a social organization that deals with child-trafficking, HIV/AIDS intervention, and livelihood support initiatives in rural Northeastern India. She has been a researcher on human rights and human trafficking, and she has contributed to internationally acknowledged Meghalaya Model, a comprehensive tracking system that successfully brings together the state government, security agencies, legal groups, the media, and citizens’ organizations to combat trafficking in children.
Palestine
Asma Asfour was the first elected woman to join the Sinjel Municipality in the Ramallah District in 2005. As a council member, she advocates for gender equality, greater female participation in Palestinian politics, and improved educational resources in Palestine.
Najwa Saadeh became a member of the Parents Circle - Family Forum after she lost her 12-year-old daughter Christine in 2003, when the Israeli army opened fire at the car in which Christine was sitting with her family. Najwa is an advocate for peace and reconciliation between Israel and Palestine and works primarily through the Parents Circle.
Siham Ikhlayel is an active member of the Parents Circle - Family Forum, she is the coordinator of the women’s committee. Siham joined the Parents Circle in 2006 in honor of her mother a former member. Siham’s family has been tremendously affected by the Israeli occupation, a brother was killed at the checkpoint another was critically wounded and a third was in an Israeli jail. Today Siham and her brothers Khaled and Ali work to advocate for peace and to promote the PCFF message.
Bosnia
Memnuna Zvizdić is a co-founder of Medica, the center for the protection of women raped in war, and a director of Žene Ženama, a Bosnian women's center for human rights, peace, and security. She is a feminist and a peace activist for organizations related to human rights, peace activism, and peaceful conflict resolution. She is also a trainer for non-violent communication skills and peaceful conflict resolution. She has written several articles about local peace building efforts, and she is a chief editor of the manual “Women and Women's Activism in Bosnia and Herzegovina, To Be Peace–the local concept for peace building.”
Spain
Beatriz Abril Alegre became a member of the Association March 11th—Affected by Terrorism after she lost her 19-year-old brother Óscar in the March 11, 2004 train bombings in Madrid. This association provides those injured or affected by the bombing with legal, social, medical, and psychological support. Beatriz became known as the voice of youth in Spain, and during the trial of the accused terrorists, she called upon her countrymen and women to not stigmatize Muslims.
Israel
Robi Damelin is a spokesperson for the Parents Circle - Families Forum, an organization that supports bereaved Israeli and Palestinian family and advocates for reconciliation between Israel and Palestine. Robi joined the Parents Circle after her son, David, was killed by a sniper at a checkpoint, and today she speaks to universities, governments, and independent groups worldwide about reconciliation on a personal level and the need for peace between Israel and Palestine.
Somalia
Asha Hagi Elmi is the Founder and Chairperson of Save Somali Women and Children (SSWC), an organization that originally served to help internally displaced persons but now promotes women’s political participation in Somalia. She created the Sixth Clan to empower women to participate in the Somali peace process, and she remains an active advocate for peace in Somalia. In 2008, she won the Alternative Nobel Peace Prize and in 2009, she won the Clinton Global Initiative’s Global Citizen Award.
Najma Ahmed Abdi works for Save Somali Women and Children in Somalia and Kenya. This NGO was founded in 1992 by a group of female Somali intellectuals to advance women's human rights and conflict resolution. Najma is also the Chair of the Youth Leadership Forum and a member of the national Committee on Female Genital Mutilation in Somalia.
Qoran Noor has worked with the United Nations Development Programme and with Islamic Relief as a Gender Coordinator and a Human Rights Officer. Over the last five years, she has been working in Kenya and other areas of Africa as a Program Manager for projects related to women’s rights, public health, and gender issues.
USA
Cindy Corrie founded the Rachel Corrie Foundation after her daughter, Rachel, was killed in the Gaza Strip while trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian family’s home. The Corrie family established the foundation in order to foster connections between people, build understanding and respect, and support grassroots efforts in pursuit of human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice.
Phyllis Rodriguez is a teacher, artist, and social justice activist. Her son, Greg, was killed in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, and she works internationally with Aïcha el-Wafi, the mother of an alleged 9-11 co-conspirator, with the Forgiveness Project. Rodriguez is also affiliated with The Institute for the Healing of Memories, an organization based in Cape Town, South Africa, that promotes healing from trauma through a unique workshop process, which Rodriguez is helping to bring to the United States.
Manal Omar has worked as a journalist and a program coordinator for many NGOs and international institutions, including the World Bank, UNESCO, and OXFAM. Her work has been featured in the Washington Times, the LA Times, the BBC, NPR, The London Times and Newsweek. Manal currently works as a Program Officer for the US Institute for Peace.
Christie Coombs is a freelance journalist and a voice for families and individuals affected by terrorism in Massachusetts. She founded the Jeffrey Coombs Foundation in honor of her husband Jeffrey who was killed in the 9/11 attacks. Christie is also a co-founder of the Mass Military Heroes Fund and a board of director member of the American Red Cross in Massachusetts.
Guatemala
Olga Alicia Paz, from Guatemala, comes into close contact with the effects of extremism as the Chair of Equipo de Estudios Comunitarios y Accion Psicosocial, an NGO that provides help to victims of political violence. She advocates for women's rights as a member of the National Union of Guatemalan Women and through her research on “Processes Generating Favourable Conditions to Demand Justice for Women Survivors of Sexual Violence During the Armed Conflict in Guatemala.”
France
Aïcha el Wafi was part of the founding SAVE group, and she works with the Forgiveness Project worldwide. Aïcha’s son, Zacarias Mouassaoui, was the so-called “20th hijacker” in the September 11th attacks and in 2006 received a life sentence for his role in the terrorist activities. Aïcha works with Phyllis Rodriguez in advocating for reconciliation worldwide.
Lebanon
Nawal Hassan also works with women and children on the ground in Lebanon, where she offers educational and vocational training opportunities to youth in Palestinian camps on Lebanon. She does so through the Najdeh Association, which offers economic and spiritual support to women who join the organization. Nawal’s passion for the plight of Palestinian women is also reflected in her work as coordinator of the Training and Research Project for Palestinian Refugee Women and as coordinator of the Advocacy Forum for the Naher-el-Bared camp.
Saudi Arabia
Dr. Maha al-Muneef is a medical doctor and leading woman’s rights and children’s rights activist in Saudi Arabia. She is the Founder and Executive Director of the National Family Safety Program in Riyadh, the Chair of the Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect Committee at King Abdulaziz Medical City, and a member of the Shura Council.
Colombia
Ana Teresa Bernal Montañez was one of the five commissioners on the Colombian Commission on Reparations and Reconciliation. She has been central to the negotiations between the FARC and the Pastrana government by representing the National Peace Council on the Thematic Commission and has represented women’s voices through the implementation of a women’s public forum in the bilateral dialogues. She is an avid advocate for Colombian citizens and their right to peace, as reflected in her work as national coordinator for the National Network of Citizens’ Initiatives for Peace and Against War, and in the ten million votes she gained through a non-binding ballot in the 1997 “Citizen’s Mandate for Peace, Life, and Liberty Campaign.”
Iraq
Khanim Latif is the Program Manager for Asuda, an NGO combating violence against women in Sulaymaniyah. She was elected as an independent candidate for the 2005 Iraqi national assembly elections and participated in campaigning for the endorsement of a 25% quota for women for legislative seats. In the past she worked for other NGOs and international organizations such as UNDP, UNICEF and QANDIL. Khanim is also a member of Amnesty International.
Rajaa al-Khuzai was one of the first three female parliamentarians in the US-backed interim Governing Council. In 2005, Rajaa founded the Iraqi Widows Organization, an NGO that provides widows with financial assistance, job opportunities, and educational training. Rajaa is also a gynecologist and the mother of seven children.
Turkey
Ece Temelkuran is a widely acclaimed Turkish journalist. She writes articles that examine critically the tension between ultranationalism and Islamic extremism as well as about the ongoing dialogue surrounding Turkey’s role in the European Union.
Germany
Güner Balci is an editor for the influential ZDF-magazine Frontal 21 and was a social worker in Neukölln. She also participated in projects in Berlin’s Rollbergviertel and organized protests against honor killings at the MaDonna girl’s meeting point. Her work served as the inspiration for the play, Arabboy: The Short Life of Rashid A, which describes the life of a Muslim immigrant boy who drops out of school in Neukölln and descends into a life of violence, drugs, and street crime.
Necla Kelek is a social scientist and author whose award-winning books Islam in Everyday Life, The Foreign Bride, and Lost Sons explore the lives of Muslims in Germany. Originally of Turkish descent, Necla advocates for women's rights, especially within Muslim communities, and has raised awareness of forced marriages, honor killings, and controversial issues in Europe.
Kuwait
Rola Dashti is the Chairperson of the Kuwait Economic Society. She works to energize civil society institutions for economic, social, and political reform and advocates for gender equity and a greater role for women in the public sphere. She lobbied for a law to allow Kuwaiti women to vote and run for parliamentary elections, and in 2009 she became on of the first female parliamentarians in Kuwait. In 2007, Rola was listed among the world’s 100 most powerful Arabs.
Visit our SAVE Forum: http://save-sisters.845342.n3.nabble.com.
Anne Carr is a Dialogue Practitioner and has been leading Storytelling exercises for conflict resolution for 25 years in Northern Ireland. She was the founder of the first integrated school in Northern Ireland and is now a private consultant and a member of the board at Women Into Politics, where she encourages women to share their experiences of the conflicts in Northern Ireland as a way to foster community and lasting stability.
May de Silva is the Director of Women Into Politics, an NGO that works to increase the number of women in decision making roles. Women into Politics provides courses to develop political leadership skills, networking and mentoring opportunities, and a forum to discuss women’s roles in grassroots organizations and individuals.
Pakistan
Arshi Saleem Hashmi is a Senior Research Analyst at the Institute of Regional Studies in Islamabad and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the National Defense University in Islamabad. She specializes in Religion and Politics of Violent Conflicts.
Falaknaz Asfandyar became an activist for the Swat Valley in Pakistan after her husband, Amirzeb Asfandyar, a prominent politician, was assassinated in a roadside bombing, allegedly by a Taliban warlord. She works to bring attention to the plight of the Swat Valley and also assists in distributing aid and raising awareness about internally displaced persons in the region.
Mossarat Qadim is the Executive Director of the PAIMAN Trust in Islamabad, an organization that seeks to empower women politically and economically, improve educational resources throughout Pakistan, and implement programs to advance conflict resolution and security.
Farhat Akram is an Assistant Research Officer at the Islamabad Policy Research Institute, where she works in the area of Peace and Conflict Studies in Central Asia. Farhat contributed to the launch of the Pakistan’s first English-Arabic bilingual Magazine The Diplomatic Insight in 2008, a platform for the dialogue and cooperation in the diplomatic circles. She also works as volunteer for the NGO Community Support Dialogue.
Shaheen Akhtar is a research fellow at the Institute of Regional Studies in Islamabad and a visiting faculty at the Quaid-e-Azam University and at National Defence University in Islamabad. As scholar, she focuses on security and conflict resolution, development and gender issues in the region.
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is a film producer and journalist who has worked on 14 films for major networks in the United States and Britain, covering conflict zones and controversial topics in Afghanistan, Iraq, Indonesia, Pakistan, Canada, Sweden, and more. In 2007, Sharmeen helped found the Citizens Archive of Pakistan, a non-profit volunteer organization formed to foster and promote community-wide interest in the culture and history of Pakistan among underprivileged children.
Salma Malik is a lecturer at the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies at Quaid-I-Azam University in Islamabad. She specializes in War, Arms Control & Disarmament, Military Sociology, South Asian Affairs and her publications include Conflict Management & Transformation, Human Security, CBMs & Micro-Disarmament. She has also worked as a Research Officer at the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad.
Shabana Fayyaz is an assistant professor at the Defence and Strategic Studies Department of Quaid-I-Azam University in Islamabad. Her research specialty is terrorism in Pakistan with an emphasis on deradicalization studies. She publishes regularly in leading academic journals, and she has been a contributor to major news sources, including NPR in the United States.
Indonesia
Lily Zakiyah Munir is the Director and co-founder of the Center for Pesantren and Democracy Studies (CePDeS), the founding member of SAVE Indonesia, and a scholar specializing in Islamic feminism. Lily has organized youth retreats for hundreds of high school age students to empower them to pursue non-violent conflict resolution as well as to get a greater sense of self.
Yemen
Fahmia al Fotih' is the SAVE Yemen coordinator and a freelance journalist for the Yemen Times. Previously, she has worked as a consultant for USAID and UNIFEM. She is responsible for managing the ongoing operations of SAVE Yemen and facilitating the implementation of the Mothers for Change! program.
Noor Baabad is the Assistant Deputy Minister for Social Care and a member of the Higher Council for Women. Noor has advocated for women’s legal rights in Yemen, reconciliation between northern and southern Yemen, and an end to revenge killing.
Fatima Al Zuhairi is the principal of the Rabia al-Adawea School in Sana’a, where she sees her mission as raising the next generation of Yemenis to be healthier, better educated, and more connected with the world beyond Yemen’s borders. She strives to create a school community where teachers and staff truly believe that every student can and will learn and to promote the right of education for every single member of the community, especially girls.
Nadia al-Sakkaf is the Editor-in-Chief of the Yemen Times, the most widely-read English language newspaper in Yemen. She is an active advocate for SAVE and has been instrumental in exposing the issue of child brides in Yemen to international media. Al-Sakkaf was awarded with the inaugural Gebran Tueni Award for journalistic integrity and demonstrated excellence in leadership, managerial, and professional standards. The Yemen Times is considered one of the strongest forces in Yemen today for checking government corruption and influencing public policy.
England
Hanan Ibrahim is the founder of the Somali Family Support Group, a community organization serving Somali families, Horn of Africa Asylum seekers, and refugees. She also runs a women´s group Shaah iyo Sheeko (tea and chat). In 2009 she received the Ambassador For Peace Award for her work of creating peace in the community.
Sabin Malik Khan is the first female Muslim Counter-Terrorism Advisor at the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism in the Home Office. Previously, she worked as Community Cohesion Advisor and as Commissioner for the Women’s National Commission. For 20 years, she has been actively involved in voluntary work with youth and communities, and she has frequently been invited as an expert to speak about the British Muslim Communities.
India
Archana Kapoor is the founder of SMART, an NGO working with marginalized communities in northern India, the editor and publisher of the political magazine Hard News, the director of her own media house, and the president of SAVE India. She has been the driving force behind our ongoing operations in India, including our recent workshops for victims of the 26/11 terror attacks “Swimming to the Future” and “Our Stories, Our Futures.”
Vinita Kamte became an activist after her husband, Police Commissioner Ashok Kamte, died in the 26-11 terrorist attack in Mumbai. Vinita’s quest to find out the events leading up to his death revealed gross negligence on the part of the police and turned into a best-selling book, To The Last Bullet. Vinita is now an advocate for widows of police officers in Mumbai and a spokesperson for victims of violent extremism.
Manju Singh is the founder of the WorldKids Foundation in Mumbai, which produces children’s television shows with educational and socially-minded themes. The WorldKids Foundation works in partnership with schools throughout India, and it has hosted numerous traveling film festivals to bring value-based entertainment to children in Mumbai, Indore, and Delhi.
Anita Pratap is a documentary filmmaker, author and journalist. She was the South Asia Bureau Chief of CNN, a correspondent for Time Magazine and a reporter for Indian newspapers and magazines. She covered all the major stories in the region ranging from ethnic conflicts to women and poverty issues. She is currently working on a new book on conflict resolution.
Hasina Kharbhih founded the Impulse NGO Network, a social organization that deals with child-trafficking, HIV/AIDS intervention, and livelihood support initiatives in rural Northeastern India. She has been a researcher on human rights and human trafficking, and she has contributed to internationally acknowledged Meghalaya Model, a comprehensive tracking system that successfully brings together the state government, security agencies, legal groups, the media, and citizens’ organizations to combat trafficking in children.
Palestine
Asma Asfour was the first elected woman to join the Sinjel Municipality in the Ramallah District in 2005. As a council member, she advocates for gender equality, greater female participation in Palestinian politics, and improved educational resources in Palestine.
Najwa Saadeh became a member of the Parents Circle - Family Forum after she lost her 12-year-old daughter Christine in 2003, when the Israeli army opened fire at the car in which Christine was sitting with her family. Najwa is an advocate for peace and reconciliation between Israel and Palestine and works primarily through the Parents Circle.
Siham Ikhlayel is an active member of the Parents Circle - Family Forum, she is the coordinator of the women’s committee. Siham joined the Parents Circle in 2006 in honor of her mother a former member. Siham’s family has been tremendously affected by the Israeli occupation, a brother was killed at the checkpoint another was critically wounded and a third was in an Israeli jail. Today Siham and her brothers Khaled and Ali work to advocate for peace and to promote the PCFF message.
Bosnia
Memnuna Zvizdić is a co-founder of Medica, the center for the protection of women raped in war, and a director of Žene Ženama, a Bosnian women's center for human rights, peace, and security. She is a feminist and a peace activist for organizations related to human rights, peace activism, and peaceful conflict resolution. She is also a trainer for non-violent communication skills and peaceful conflict resolution. She has written several articles about local peace building efforts, and she is a chief editor of the manual “Women and Women's Activism in Bosnia and Herzegovina, To Be Peace–the local concept for peace building.”
Spain
Beatriz Abril Alegre became a member of the Association March 11th—Affected by Terrorism after she lost her 19-year-old brother Óscar in the March 11, 2004 train bombings in Madrid. This association provides those injured or affected by the bombing with legal, social, medical, and psychological support. Beatriz became known as the voice of youth in Spain, and during the trial of the accused terrorists, she called upon her countrymen and women to not stigmatize Muslims.
Israel
Robi Damelin is a spokesperson for the Parents Circle - Families Forum, an organization that supports bereaved Israeli and Palestinian family and advocates for reconciliation between Israel and Palestine. Robi joined the Parents Circle after her son, David, was killed by a sniper at a checkpoint, and today she speaks to universities, governments, and independent groups worldwide about reconciliation on a personal level and the need for peace between Israel and Palestine.
Somalia
Asha Hagi Elmi is the Founder and Chairperson of Save Somali Women and Children (SSWC), an organization that originally served to help internally displaced persons but now promotes women’s political participation in Somalia. She created the Sixth Clan to empower women to participate in the Somali peace process, and she remains an active advocate for peace in Somalia. In 2008, she won the Alternative Nobel Peace Prize and in 2009, she won the Clinton Global Initiative’s Global Citizen Award.
Najma Ahmed Abdi works for Save Somali Women and Children in Somalia and Kenya. This NGO was founded in 1992 by a group of female Somali intellectuals to advance women's human rights and conflict resolution. Najma is also the Chair of the Youth Leadership Forum and a member of the national Committee on Female Genital Mutilation in Somalia.
Qoran Noor has worked with the United Nations Development Programme and with Islamic Relief as a Gender Coordinator and a Human Rights Officer. Over the last five years, she has been working in Kenya and other areas of Africa as a Program Manager for projects related to women’s rights, public health, and gender issues.
USA
Cindy Corrie founded the Rachel Corrie Foundation after her daughter, Rachel, was killed in the Gaza Strip while trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian family’s home. The Corrie family established the foundation in order to foster connections between people, build understanding and respect, and support grassroots efforts in pursuit of human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice.
Phyllis Rodriguez is a teacher, artist, and social justice activist. Her son, Greg, was killed in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, and she works internationally with Aïcha el-Wafi, the mother of an alleged 9-11 co-conspirator, with the Forgiveness Project. Rodriguez is also affiliated with The Institute for the Healing of Memories, an organization based in Cape Town, South Africa, that promotes healing from trauma through a unique workshop process, which Rodriguez is helping to bring to the United States.
Manal Omar has worked as a journalist and a program coordinator for many NGOs and international institutions, including the World Bank, UNESCO, and OXFAM. Her work has been featured in the Washington Times, the LA Times, the BBC, NPR, The London Times and Newsweek. Manal currently works as a Program Officer for the US Institute for Peace.
Christie Coombs is a freelance journalist and a voice for families and individuals affected by terrorism in Massachusetts. She founded the Jeffrey Coombs Foundation in honor of her husband Jeffrey who was killed in the 9/11 attacks. Christie is also a co-founder of the Mass Military Heroes Fund and a board of director member of the American Red Cross in Massachusetts.
Guatemala
Olga Alicia Paz, from Guatemala, comes into close contact with the effects of extremism as the Chair of Equipo de Estudios Comunitarios y Accion Psicosocial, an NGO that provides help to victims of political violence. She advocates for women's rights as a member of the National Union of Guatemalan Women and through her research on “Processes Generating Favourable Conditions to Demand Justice for Women Survivors of Sexual Violence During the Armed Conflict in Guatemala.”
France
Aïcha el Wafi was part of the founding SAVE group, and she works with the Forgiveness Project worldwide. Aïcha’s son, Zacarias Mouassaoui, was the so-called “20th hijacker” in the September 11th attacks and in 2006 received a life sentence for his role in the terrorist activities. Aïcha works with Phyllis Rodriguez in advocating for reconciliation worldwide.
Lebanon
Nawal Hassan also works with women and children on the ground in Lebanon, where she offers educational and vocational training opportunities to youth in Palestinian camps on Lebanon. She does so through the Najdeh Association, which offers economic and spiritual support to women who join the organization. Nawal’s passion for the plight of Palestinian women is also reflected in her work as coordinator of the Training and Research Project for Palestinian Refugee Women and as coordinator of the Advocacy Forum for the Naher-el-Bared camp.
Saudi Arabia
Dr. Maha al-Muneef is a medical doctor and leading woman’s rights and children’s rights activist in Saudi Arabia. She is the Founder and Executive Director of the National Family Safety Program in Riyadh, the Chair of the Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect Committee at King Abdulaziz Medical City, and a member of the Shura Council.
Colombia
Ana Teresa Bernal Montañez was one of the five commissioners on the Colombian Commission on Reparations and Reconciliation. She has been central to the negotiations between the FARC and the Pastrana government by representing the National Peace Council on the Thematic Commission and has represented women’s voices through the implementation of a women’s public forum in the bilateral dialogues. She is an avid advocate for Colombian citizens and their right to peace, as reflected in her work as national coordinator for the National Network of Citizens’ Initiatives for Peace and Against War, and in the ten million votes she gained through a non-binding ballot in the 1997 “Citizen’s Mandate for Peace, Life, and Liberty Campaign.”
Iraq
Khanim Latif is the Program Manager for Asuda, an NGO combating violence against women in Sulaymaniyah. She was elected as an independent candidate for the 2005 Iraqi national assembly elections and participated in campaigning for the endorsement of a 25% quota for women for legislative seats. In the past she worked for other NGOs and international organizations such as UNDP, UNICEF and QANDIL. Khanim is also a member of Amnesty International.
Rajaa al-Khuzai was one of the first three female parliamentarians in the US-backed interim Governing Council. In 2005, Rajaa founded the Iraqi Widows Organization, an NGO that provides widows with financial assistance, job opportunities, and educational training. Rajaa is also a gynecologist and the mother of seven children.
Turkey
Ece Temelkuran is a widely acclaimed Turkish journalist. She writes articles that examine critically the tension between ultranationalism and Islamic extremism as well as about the ongoing dialogue surrounding Turkey’s role in the European Union.
Germany
Güner Balci is an editor for the influential ZDF-magazine Frontal 21 and was a social worker in Neukölln. She also participated in projects in Berlin’s Rollbergviertel and organized protests against honor killings at the MaDonna girl’s meeting point. Her work served as the inspiration for the play, Arabboy: The Short Life of Rashid A, which describes the life of a Muslim immigrant boy who drops out of school in Neukölln and descends into a life of violence, drugs, and street crime.
Necla Kelek is a social scientist and author whose award-winning books Islam in Everyday Life, The Foreign Bride, and Lost Sons explore the lives of Muslims in Germany. Originally of Turkish descent, Necla advocates for women's rights, especially within Muslim communities, and has raised awareness of forced marriages, honor killings, and controversial issues in Europe.
Kuwait
Rola Dashti is the Chairperson of the Kuwait Economic Society. She works to energize civil society institutions for economic, social, and political reform and advocates for gender equity and a greater role for women in the public sphere. She lobbied for a law to allow Kuwaiti women to vote and run for parliamentary elections, and in 2009 she became on of the first female parliamentarians in Kuwait. In 2007, Rola was listed among the world’s 100 most powerful Arabs.
Visit our SAVE Forum: http://save-sisters.845342.n3.nabble.com.
