Asma Jahangir

Asma Jahangir

Asma Jilani Jahangir ( _ur. عاصمہ جہانگیر) (born 1952 in Lahore) is a Pakistani lawyer and human rights activist.

She has been the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief since 2004 (first attached to the former Commission on Human Rights, now to the Human Rights Council). Previously, she served as the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.

Born into a prosperous family with a history of activism (her father, Malik Jilani, was a former civil servant, entered politics upon retirement and spent time in jail and under house arrest for opposing military dictatorships), Jahangir herself became involved at a young age in protests against the military regime in Pakistan. She completed her law degree in 1978.

She cut her teeth during protests against the Hudood Ordinance put in place as part of Gen. Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization program in Pakistan. She is a founding member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, and has served as Secretary-General and later Chair of the organization.

In 1980, Asma Jahangir and her sister, Hina Jilani, got together with few fellow activists and lawyers and formed the first law firm established by women in Pakistan. They also helped form the Women's Action Forum (WAF) in the same year. The first WAF demonstration was in 1983 when some 25-50 women took to the streets protesting the famous Safia Bibi case. Safia, a young blind girl, had been raped yet had ended up in jail on the charge of zina. "We (their law firm) had been given a lot of cases by the advocate general and the moment this demonstration came to light, the cases were taken away from us." Asma recalls. [Dawn-The Reviewer, April 2, 1998, “A ray of hope”]

In 1995, Jahangir received the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.

In her capacity as a UN official, Jahangir was in Pakistan when a state of emergency was declared by President Pervez Musharraf. On November 5, 2007, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour indicated that Jahangir was among the judicial and political officials detained by the Musharraf government. cite web | title= UN's top rights official voices alarm at imposition of state of emergency | publisher=United Nations | url=http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=24527&Cr=Pakistan&Cr1= | date=2007-11-05 | accessdate=2007-11-05 ]

On November 5, 2007, "The Economist" reported that: "Over 500 lawyers, opposition politicians and human rights activists have been arrested. They include Asma Jahangir, boss of the country’s human-rights commission and a former UN special rapporteur. In an e-mail from house arrest, where she has been placed for 90 days, Ms Jahangir regretted that General Musharraf had “lost his marbles”. [ [http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10088419 Pakistan | Coup number two | Economist.com ] ]

Personal life

She has a son and two daughters. Sulema Jahangir, her daughter, is also a lawyer .

External links

* [http://www.jazbah.org/asmaj.php Profile of Asma Jahangir]
* [http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_5-8-2004_pg7_16 News Report on appointment as Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief]
* [http://www.ohchr.org/english/issues/religion/index.htm UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief]
* [http://www.hrcp-web.org/ Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)]
* [http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/asma_jahangir.html Time Magazine profile]
* [http://archive.gulfnews.com/articles/07/01/25/10099390.html Gulf News: A profile in courage]

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Women in Pakistan — The status of women in Pakistan varies considerably across classes, regions, and the rural/urban divide due to uneven socioeconomic development and the impact of tribal, feudal, and capitalist social formations on women s lives. The Pakistani… …   Wikipedia

  • PCO Judges case — Constitution Petition No. 8 9 of 2009 Court Supreme Court of Pakistan Date decided July 31, 2009 Citation(s) (Supreme Court of Pakistan July 31, 2009). Text Ju …   Wikipedia

  • Persecution of Bahá'ís — Bahá í Faith Central figures Bahá u lláh The Báb · Abdu l Bahá Key scriptur …   Wikipedia

  • International Crisis Group — Type Non profit NGO Founded 1995 Location Brussels, Belgium Key people Louise Arbour, President/CEO Method international conflict prevention …   Wikipedia

  • Human rights in Turkey — Republic of Turkey This article is part of the series: Politics and government of the Republic of Turkey …   Wikipedia

  • Bahai-Verfolgung — Die Verfolgung der Bahai zeigt sich in staatlich durchgeführten, geförderten oder geduldeten Maßnahmen gegen Bahai aufgrund ihrer religiösen Überzeugung. Die teilweise schwerwiegenden Menschenrechtsverletzungen erstrecken sich sowohl über… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Verfolgung der Baha'i — Die Verfolgung der Bahai zeigt sich in staatlich durchgeführten, geförderten oder geduldeten Maßnahmen gegen Bahai aufgrund ihrer religiösen Überzeugung. Die teilweise schwerwiegenden Menschenrechtsverletzungen erstrecken sich sowohl über… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Verfolgung der Bahai — Die Verfolgung der Bahai zeigt sich in staatlich durchgeführten, geförderten oder geduldeten Maßnahmen gegen Bahai aufgrund ihrer religiösen Überzeugung. Die teilweise schwerwiegenden Menschenrechtsverletzungen erstrecken sich sowohl über… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • List of Pakistanis — Pakistan is the sixth most populous nation in the world. Below is a list of such people who belong or relate in some way to this nation. See for an alphabetical list of Pakistanis with categories. Heads of State or Government * Muhammad Ali… …   Wikipedia

  • Mukhtaran Bibi — Mukhtār Mā ī (Mukhtaran Bibi) Mukhtaran Bibi, Glamour Magazine Woman of the Year 2005 Born Mukhtaran Bibi 1972 Meerwala, Pakistan Nationality …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”