Gulalai Ismail

Early life and activism

Ismail was born in Swabi and from the age of nine was brought up in Peshawar, Pakistan. The daughter of teacher and human rights activist Muhammad Ismail, she was educated from a young age about gender discrimination and women's rights. Ismail graduated from Quaid-e-Azam University in Islamabad in 2002 with a Master of philosophy degree in biotechnology. At the age of 16, she founded Non-governmental organization Aware Girls with her sister Saba Ismail, aiming to challenge the culture of violence and the oppression of women in the rural Khyber Pakhtunkhwa area in the north west of Pakistan. In an interview in 2011, she said:

Ismail aims to get peace activists together to discuss ways to promote peaceful resistance to the Taliban and encourage more woman into politics, as well as investigating the psychological impact of terrorism on children and families. Malala Yousafzai was an attendee of Aware Girls in 2011. She has criticised the British government's Prevent strategy saying it can lead to alienation of Muslims and could turn vulnerable individuals towards extremism. Ismail has also spoken out against blasphemy laws in Pakistan and the effect this has had on progressive speech, secular activism, and the safety of secular activists. She said: "I am convinced that without a secular democracy, we will not achieve peace in Pakistan."

In addition to Aware Girls, which she continues to chair, Ismail set up the Seeds of Peace network in 2010, training young people in human rights and political leadership, encouraging the participation of women in politics in Pakistan, and encouraging tolerance between people of differing faiths. Seeds of Peace was a response to what Ismail saw as the increased 'Talibanisation' of young men and women vulnerable to militants in the Swabi district and other rural areas. According to the World Humanist Congress, "her work is characterised by promoting peace and pluralism; challenging religious extremism and militancy; promoting good governance in areas stricken by militancy, providing civic education to young people; strengthening democracy; and political mainstreaming of young women."

Between 2009 and 2011 Ismail was on the Executive Committee of the International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organization, and between 2010 and 2012 she was a Board Member of the Women's Global Network for Reproductive Rights. She also works for the Gender Working Group of the United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY), and is a member of the Asian Democracy Network.

Ismail's organisation has widened its scope to include education on topics such as access to safe abortions, HIV and AIDS, and she continues to speak at international conferences to promote awareness of peace-building, tolerance and women's rights. Both Gulalai and her sister Saba have also acted as adviser on peace and women's rights to the United Nations and US governmental departments. She has been threatened for her activism and has been forced to flee her home in the past. On May 16, 2014, four armed gunmen attempted to force their way into the family home, shouting for Ismail who had been delayed by lost baggage at the airport. In an interview with the BBC she said,

In 2013 Ismail set up the Marastyal Helpline to give advice and assistance to women at risk from, and victims of, gender based violence. The service gives advice on legal and medical aid as well as emergency ambulance information and emotional counseling and operates from Peshawar.

Awards and recognition

Ismail won the 2009 YouthActionNet Fellowship.

In 2013 she received the Democracy Award from the National Endowment for Democracy, and was acknowledged as one of the 100 Leading Global Thinkers of 2013 by Foreign Policy magazine.

In August 2014 she was awarded the International Humanist of the Year Award by the International Humanist and Ethical Union at the World Humanist Congress in Oxford, England.

She received the 2015 Commonwealth Youth Award for Excellence in Development, under the theme of Democracy and Human Rights.

In 2016 her organisation, Aware Girls, was awarded the Fondation Chirac Peace Prize for its contribution to the prevention of conflict in Pakistan.