by MIKE SHUSTER
Earlier this month, 25-year-old Farida Afridi, who ran an organization that provides information for women about their rights, was gunned down in the street, near the city of Peshawar in northwest Pakistan. No one has been arrested for this killing. In all likelihood no one will be.
On July 4, Afridi was leaving her home to go to her office in Peshawar. What happened next shocked the local community, says Zar Ali Khan, who heads a consortium of activist groups in Peshawar.
“When she was coming from her home early in the morning at 6 a.m., she was intercepted by two motorcyclists,” Ali Khan says.
The men on the motorcycles pulled out guns. This was something that Afridi had been warned about, many times, he says.
Three years ago, Afridi created SAWERA, or the Society for Appraisal and Woman Empowerment in Rural Areas. She gave lectures and provided information on women’s rights. But in the process, she caught the attention of some in northwest Pakistan who didn’t like her message.
“They had warned her not to go and work for the empowerment of women, for the rights of women,” Ali Khan says.
There were at least a dozen warnings. Then came the attack.
NPR for more
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