British Pakistani female campaigner appointed to House of Lords

• Shaista Gohir's parents are from Daultalla, Tehsil Gujarkhan, Rawalpindi District.
  
• The House of Lords Appointments Commission chose her, and the Prime Minister and the Queen accepted her appointment.
  
• I aim to engage with girls and women in Pakistan and look forward to collaborating with NGOs working in this field in Pakistan, she says.
  

LONDON: A leading British Pakistani women’s rights campaigner has been appointed to the House of Lords as a non-party political peer by the Prime Minister and Queen.

Shaista Gohir welcomed her appointment as a Baroness to the House of Lords and described it as a "huge honour".

Shaista Gohir, CEO of the Muslim Women’s Network UK, made her name campaigning fearlessly for the rights of Muslim women and speaking out against extremism and radicalism.

Shaista Gohir’s parents are originally from Daultalla, Tehsil Gujarkhan in District Rawalpindi. They moved to England in the early 1960s.

Shaista Gohir told Geo and The News that she will be using the platform of her NGO, Nisa Global Foundation, which she established last year, to help women and girls in developing countries, including Pakistan.

Shaista Gohir said, "I plan to work with girls and women in Pakistan and look forward to working with NGOs working in this area in Pakistan and elsewhere. Women in South Asia have so much potential. My mother is my biggest inspiration, and I would not be where I am today without her help. She encouraged us and devoted herself to our education and learning. She gave me and my siblings confidence and guidance and made sure that we stood up for the right causes in life."

Shaista Gohir was chosen by the House of Lords Appointments Commission, and both the Prime Minister and the Queen agreed with her choice.

Her likely title will be the Baroness of Hall Green, reflecting her close connection to the area of Birmingham. Hall Green is where she has lived for the last 20 years and where her charity Muslim Women’s Network UK is based.

Baroness Shaista Gohir said, "It is a huge honour to have been invited to join such a prestigious institution and be at the heart of law making. I did not think someone like me would ever be given such an opportunity. I see this role as an extension of my activism and will use my voice to fly the flag for women’s rights, inequalities experienced by the most vulnerable in society, the charity sector, women’s health, the NHS, and, of course, for the West Midlands region. I look forward to working independently with peers across the House, sharing my expertise and providing scrutiny of government policy and legislation. "

Shaista Gohir, who is a mother to three children, said that her activism began in 2004 when she started working for the rights of Muslim women from her bedroom.

She worked hard to make her charity successful and started getting funding from charitable foundations. "I managed to get a little bit of funding and support. From an informal group in 2004 to a national award-winning charity, now it's a £400,000 charity with about 15 staff.

Shaista Gohir’s brother, Asajd Nazir, is a leading British Asian journalist and edits a leading showbiz weekly paper focused on Bollywood.