LAHORE: Well-known pro-democracy campaigner and civil rights activist Hina Jilani was on Wednesday nominated for the Stockholm Human Rights Award (2020).

“It is a great honour,” Ms Jilani said talking to Dawn about her nomination.

“Especially so because the award has come from my own community — the legal fraternity.”

The annual award is jointly bestowed by the Swedish Bar Association, the International Bar Association (IBA) and the International Legal Assistance Consortium (ILAC).

“It is also a matter of great pride for the human rights community of Pakistan, of which I am a part for over three decades,” Ms Jilani added.

Ms Jilani is a veteran campaigner against injustices in society and internationally recognised in the field of human rights laws.

In 1987, she teamed up with her elder sister, late Asma Jahangir, and a few other progressive lawyers to found Pakistan’s first all-female law firm, AGHS, providing legal aid to women.

The same year, she played her part in establishing the Women’s Action Forum (WAF) – a campaigner group for women’s rights and challenger of discriminatory laws.

In1986, she set up Pakistan’s first Legal Aid Centre. In the same year, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) was established with Ms Jilani as one of its founding members. In 1990, Ms Jilani co-founded Dastak,a shelter providing free legal counsel and support to women fleeing gender-based violence.

Mr I A Rehman, a well-known human rights campaigner, says the award to Ms Jilani is a source of pride not only to the rights community, but to the whole country.

“Her contribution to the cause is immense; she is on the list of the Human Rights Defenders of the United Nations, the chairperson of the organisation against torture and an active member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan ever since it was formed more than three decades ago. In short, this is a well-deserved nomination,” Mr Rehman said.

Published in Dawn, October 8th, 2020