South Asia Peace Action Network (Sapan) invites you to a discussion meeting on the subject of gender violence in South Asia, and why we need to ‘feminise to humanise’.
The event coincides with the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, an annual international campaign that kicks off on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December, Human Rights Day.
Sapan series: Imagine! Neighbours in Peace – VIII
Event title: Gender Violence in South Asia: Feminise to Humanise
Date: Sunday, November 28, 2021
Time: 8.30 am ET / 6.30 pm PKT / 7.00 pm IST / 7.30 pm BST
The 90-minute event is free and open to the public. It will be broadcast via Facebook Live.
To attend the Zoom meeting and participate, register here.
Looking at the world through a feminist lens, the session is dedicated to human-rights activist Kamla Bhasin (1946-2021), who sowed the seeds of peace and equality in South Asia. She propagated the idea of uniting to resist, to celebrate, to fight together, while including men in the struggle against patriarchy.
The Sapan event features a plenary session with prominent speakers from around the region, followed by a Q&A by the audience. Top lawyers, researchers, and activists are expected to attend.
The moderator for the event is Swarna Rajagopalan, political scientist and founder of Prajnya, a Chennai-based organisation whose most visible work is gender violence awareness. She is also a founding member of the Women’s Regional Network.
Speakers include: Rahul Roy, filmmaker, author and film-festival director; Maria Memon, Karachi-based TV journalist and newscaster; Sara Hossain, eminent Bangladeshi human-rights lawyer; Shireen Pervin Huq, globally known leader for women’s rights and freedom of expression in Bangladesh; Rita Manchanda, scholar, author, peacebuilder and programme advisor at the South Asia Forum for Human Rights; Manjula Pradeep, human rights activist and co-chair of International Dalit Solidarity Network; Nalaka Gunawardene, analyst who has worked for newspapers, international news magazines, radio and TV channels; Mona Sherpa, development and feminism activist; and Ho Chi Minh Islam, the first registered transwoman nurse in Bangladesh and a Development Officer and Goodwill Ambassador for the Transgender Rights at No Passport Voice.
Eminent human rights advocate Radhika Coomaraswamy from Sri Lanka will present the closing remarks. She is known also for her work as Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict.
Facilitators for the event include senior journalists Mandira Nayar and Beena Sarwar.
Besides invited speakers, those wishing to share their thoughts and/or volunteer at the event are invited to email southasiapeaceactionnetwork@gmail.com. Please share a brief introduction about yourself. If you’d like to add something to the discussion, please say what you would like to talk about, for not more than a minute.
ABOUT SAPAN: Initiated in March 2021, Sapan is a coalition of organizations and individuals advocating for peace, justice, democracy, and human rights in South Asia and diaspora, working towards a visa-free South Asia and greater regional cooperation.
Social media links @SouthAsiaPeace – Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn.
Southasia Peace Action Network 
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