A leading British Pakistani women’s rights campaigner Shaista Gohir has earned an appointment to the House of Lords as a non-party political peer by the prime minister and the Queen. After an application and interview procedure, the independent House of Lords Appointments Commission proposed her for a life peerage, which was confirmed by the Prime Minister and the Queen.
Ms. Gohir’s activism began in 2004 when, after volunteering and becoming an active advocate for women’s rights, she founded her own Muslim women’s organization in Birmingham. Her accomplishments include establishing the national Muslim Women’s Network Helpline, a professional faith, and culturally sensitive helpline and counseling service available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Shaista, who is of Pakistani descent, has been named one of Britain’s most powerful Muslim women, ensuring that policy is informed by her peers’ lived experiences. Her accomplishments include successfully opposing the Foreign Office’s policy of charging forced marriage victims as young as 16- and 17-years old repatriation fees.
She also recently established the Nisa Global Foundation to assist women and girls in poor countries. Shaista has already received the MBE and OBE for her services to Muslim people and community relations, as well as the MBE for Gender Equality and Women’s Rights.
Furthermore, her anticipated title will be Baroness of Hall Green, indicating her strong ties to the Birmingham area. Her charity, Muslim Women’s Network UK, is situated in Hall Green, where she has lived for the past 20 years. It is a wonderful pleasure to have been invited to join such a famous institution and be at the core of lawmaking, said Baroness Shaista Gohir. “I never imagined that someone like me would be granted such a chance,” she added.