activist

Rescued from Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by her mother just hours before the ceremony, Purity Oyie was forced to flee and become a pariah.

But after enduring years of separation from her family, the young Kenyan activist and role-model, is now her father’s “pride and joy,” having become the first woman in her village to graduate from college – as she told Liz Scaffidi.

Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, a two time Academy award winner and women’s rights activist says that she is on a mission to force “difficult conversations” that her own society needs to have.

Ms. Obaid-Chinoy is due to take part in the International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights (FIFDH), in Geneva, which starts on Friday.  She spoke to Michele Zaccheo, before celebrations for International Women’s Day got underway.

Children with disabilities deserve to have the same rights as everyone else, which is something that will have a “tremendous impact” on society as a whole.

That’s the message from Emmanuel Elisha Ford, a 16-year-old Guyanese-American disabilities activist, speaking at an event at UN Headquarters on World Children’s Day, observed on Monday.

Elisha stressed that children with disabilities have dreams despite the challenges they face, and his wish is “for every child to have a fair chance.”

The trauma of war still lingers with Sri Lankans whether they have been affected directly or not, an activist from the country told a meeting at the UN.

The Indian Ocean island nation is recovering from a 25 year old conflict that pitted government forces against the so-called Tamil Tigers ended in 2009

The society is also deeply divided along religious, ethnic and linguistic lines.

Probe into South Sudan July attacks points to “lack of leadership”

Borders established by colonial powers in North Africa created new nations but devastated the region’s indigenous people, according to an activist from Libya.

Akli Sh’kka said his people, the Tuareg, are still experiencing the fallout from what he characterises as a “crime.”

Mr Sh’kka heads the Imouhagh International Organisation for the Sake of Justice & Transparency based in Brighton in the United Kingdom.

Older women in Kenya who are struggling to make ends meet and to care for themselves must be better supported by their government.

That’s according to Esther Wamera, a Kenyan activist and leader for the elderly.

Ms Wamera and other experts gathered at the UN to discuss the impact of the newly agreed global goals on the issue of ageing

Grece Kaneiya caught up with Ms Wamera to find out more about the challenges facing older women in Kenya and initiatives the government has put in place to address them.

Duration: 2’53”