Sara Mohammad

Sara Mohammad (born 1967) is an Iraqi Kurdish-born Swedish human rights activist and pharmacist. She claimed asylum in Sweden as a quota refugee in 1993 after fleeing from her child marriage a day before the wedding. Her brother had threatened to shoot her, holding a Kalashnikov rifle to her head.[1][2] After Fadime Şahindal was murdered in Uppsala in 2002, Mohammad founded Gapf (Glöm Aldrig Pela och Fadime or Never Forget Pela and Fadime), an organization which campaigns against honour killing.[3]

Sara Mohammad (2015)

In 1984, when was she 17 years old, she was abused and threatened by her brother when she refused to enter into a child marriage. As a result, she had to flee from her family.[4] Her own experiences have contributed to her unceasing fight against honour-related violence and oppression, both in Kurdistan and Sweden. In 2001, she founded GAPF to fight honour-related violence. GAPF's close collaboration with the Swedish authorities and with the administration of Östergötland has, since 2005, reinforced efforts to prevent honour-related violence, forced marriage and female genital mutilation. In March 2017, Linköping University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences awarded her an honorary doctorate for her "fearless commitment for the rights of girls and young women" as well as for her struggle to prevent female genital mutilation.[5]

Despite her efforts, Mohammad does not believe the situation is improving in Sweden. "The events that reach the attention of the authorities are just the tip of the iceberg: we get a much fuller picture in GAPF. Girls and women are subject to increasing restrictions and questioning... Little girls in daycare are forced to wear headscarves to cover their hair: they become sexual objects even when very young."[5]

References
  1. Batha, Emma (24 October 2018). "Child bride refugees spur Sweden to tighten marriage law". Reuters. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  2. Smith, Saphora (17 November 2018). "Sweden may become latest country to annul child marriages". NBC News.
  3. "Honor-related crime could become a specific offence". Radio Sweden. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  4. "Sara Mohammad" (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio. 22 July 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  5. "Fight against honour-related violence brings honorary doctorate". Linköping University. 23 March 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
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