Dr. Arifa Sayeda Zehra, often referred to as a national icon in Pakistan, was a towering figure whose contributions spanned the realms of education, intellectual history, and social advocacy. Her distinctive voice and profound insights, particularly on the Urdu language, literature, human rights, and social issues, cemented her legacy as one of the most respected intellectuals and humanitarians of her time.

👩‍🏫 The Professional Journey of a Pioneering Educationist

Dr. Zehra’s professional life was characterised by a deep commitment to teaching, academic leadership, and educational reform, particularly for women’s empowerment.

• Academic Foundation: She built a formidable academic background, earning a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from Lahore College for Women University, a Master of Arts in Urdu from Government College University, Lahore, and further degrees—an M.A. in Asian Studies and a Ph.D. in History—from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Her 1983 dissertation, Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan, 1817-1898: Man with a Mission, reflected her specialisation in intellectual history.
• Key Leadership Roles: Her career included influential roles at premier educational institutions in Lahore:
  • She began as a lecturer at Lahore College for Women in 1966, eventually serving as its vice principal (1985-1988) and then Principal (1988-1989).
  • She later served as the Principal of the Government College of Women, Gulberg (1989-2002).
• Later Career and Influence: Post-retirement from formal administration, her expertise remained in high demand. She was a Professor Emeritus of History at Forman Christian College and was a visiting faculty member at numerous prestigious institutions, including the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and the National College of Arts (NCA).

🌟 Key Achievements and Educational Reforms

Dr. Zehra’s impact on education goes beyond her administrative roles; she was a fervent advocate for quality education and language preservation.

Advocating for the Urdu Language

She was celebrated for her immense knowledge and passion for the Urdu language and literature. Dr. Zehra continually advocated for the language’s continued use, accessibility to classic books, and what she termed a “literary revolution” among Pakistani youth to reconnect them with their national heritage. Her televised forums and lectures often explored the socio-cultural context of the language, discussing influences like colonialism and classism on its perception.

Influential Public Service

Her expertise led to involvement in high-level policy and governance:

• She served as a member of the Punjab Public Service Commission (2002-2005).
• She was a Caretaker Provincial Minister of Punjab, demonstrating her readiness to contribute to provincial governance.
• She served as the Special Advisor to the Prime Minister for Education and National Harmony Affairs.

🫂 Impact as a Social Worker and Human Rights Advocate

While she often stated she preferred to work for social change through the platform of education rather than official NGO membership, Dr. Zehra’s contributions to human rights and gender equality are profound.

• Champion of Gender Equality: Her decision to teach at women’s colleges was deeply rooted in her commitment to female equity and parity. She used her platform to educate women on their basic legal rights and societal roles.
• Chairperson of NCSW: She served as the Chairperson on the National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW), a critical position from which she could directly influence policy and legislation to improve the lives and standing of women in Pakistan.
• Voice for Development and Rights: She was a vocal proponent for basic human rights and holistic development in Pakistan, often discussing South Asian social issues in public forums and conferences. Her intellectual analysis of societal problems helped shape public discourse and raise awareness among various segments of the population.

💎 The Enduring Legacy

Dr. Arifa Sayeda Zehra’s legacy is one of intellectual honesty, unwavering integrity, and a life dedicated to service. Her passing on November 10, 2025 (at the age of 88), marked the end of an era, but her influence continues.

• Inspiration to Youth: Her engaging and accessible lectures, which often went viral online, made her an inspirational figure, particularly for the youth, who were drawn to her eloquent articulation of complex issues.
• Intellectual Depth: She gifted Pakistan a treasure trove of critical analysis on history, society, and literature, constantly pushing for deeper, more reasoned engagement with national challenges.
• Recognition: Her lifetime of service was recognised through various honors, including the University of Hawaii Distinguished Alumni Awardee in 2016.

Dr. Zehra remains a shining example of how a dedicated educationist can transcend the classroom to become a formidable force for social justice and national harmony. Her work will continue to inspire new generations to seek knowledge and speak truth to power.

Today, on December 10, 2023, the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is being celebrated. December 10 commemorates the day in 1948 when the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Mr Antonio Guterres, the United Nations Secretary-General said, “Human rights are the foundation for human dignity, and the cornerstone of peaceful, inclusive, fair, equal and prosperous societies…They are a unifying force and a rallying cry. They reflect the most fundamental thing we share – our common humanity.” 

Dr. Volker Türk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said, “On this Human Rights Day, we reaffirm the universality and indivisibility of all rights, as we stand up for human rights for all.”  He added, “Human rights is a force to reckon with, not because it serves the interests of the powerful, but because it has captured the imagination of the powerless…And so I will endeavour to promote advances in all human rights, without distinction, in every region, and across all UN activities.”

Besides, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the world body has adopted the ‘Geneva Convention’ its ‘Additional Protocols’, (1949)  and International Criminal Court (ICC) (1998) for a single purpose: to defend protect, and safeguard the human rights of all. The basic human rights provisions of the Geneva Conventions including the ones protected under Common Article 3 of the conventions are non-derogable in the sense that they must be respected even in times of international and non-international conflicts, international disturbances, and foreign occupations.

The preamble of the ICC states that ICC is “mindful that during this century millions of children, women, and men have been victims of unimaginable atrocities that deeply shock the conscience of humanity” and “recognizing that such crimes threaten the peace, security and well-being of the world.”
 

Tragically, civilized nations have fallen from their lofty calling: namely, human rights for all mankind. There is a sad commentary on the state of human rights all over the globe. It is the job of all human rights defenders to jump-start that moral evolution.

George Bernard Shaw, world renowned political philosopher was prophetic when he said in 1940’s “Only on paper has humanity yet achieved glory, beauty, truth, knowledge, virtue, and abiding love.”
 

The presence of the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ ICC and other human rights instruments offers no consolation for the people of Kashmir because its framers have not lived up to its spirit, at least applying it selectively to suit the objectives of certain powers.

The people of Kashmir are perplexed as to how to interpret such joi de vivre. Over seventy-five years have elapsed since the adoption of this Declaration, but the people of Kashmir have not seen an iota of change in the human rights situation in Kashmir. For worse may be but never for the better. The latest phenomenon of settler colonial project has brought Kashmir to the brink of genocide, as articulated by Dr. Gregory Stanton, Chairman, of Genocide Watch before the United States Congress on January 12, 2022. Such international treaties are meaningless for the people of Kashmir, or Palestine or for any other people who do not see their application, or even a negative mention to those who ride roughshod over them with total impunity while enjoying the good graces of some of the members of the world community to aspire to a high moral station above others. 

According to the definition of ICC, tens of thousands of Indian soldiers and scores of India officials are guilty of crimes against humanity in Kashmir. The crimes committed by 900,000 Indian military and paramilitary forces in Kashmir are a daily feature of Kashmiri life. According to Arundhati Roy, India’s legendary novelist, the 900,000 Indian soldiers have made Kashmir the largest militarized zone in the world. Indian army has organized and employed violence against civilians to create deep fear among the general population to advance the political and religious agenda of a Hindutva ideology. Does anyone seriously believe that Under ICC Statue, a single Indian soldier or an official would ever be prosecuted before the ICC? Of course NOT. India has sneered at international law for decades and the international community has just yawned.
  
Too often, the international community closes its eyes to the brutal reality of Kashmir because of India’s hegemony in South Asia and its potentially attractive consumer market.  As a consequence, the moral suasion that could jolt India into recognizing its international law obligation to accede to self‑determination in Kashmir is blunted. 

The world body and saner elements in American policy agencies should take a leaf out of the warning of Arundhati Roy, “Kashmir is the real theatre of unspeakable violence and moral corrosion that can spin us into violence and nuclear war at any moment. To prevent that from happening, the conflict in Kashmir has to be addressed and resolved.” Huff Post, Mar 1, 2019

We call upon the United Nations to use its influence in putting an end of human rights violations especially when the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is being celebrated with great pomp. The UN needs to do more than celebrate anniversaries if it is concerned about ensuring peace, stability and security in South Asia.

Dr. Fai is Secretary General, World Kashmir Awareness Forum. He can be reached at: gnfai2003@yahoo.com www.kashmirawareness.org

The OIC Ministerial Meeting of the Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir was held on September 20, 2023, at the United Nations headquarters, in New York on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting was chaired by Mr Hissein Brahim Taha, the Secretary General of the OIC. It was attended by the foreign ministers and senior officials of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Niger and representative of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

The ministers reaffirmed their support to the people of Jammu and Kashmir in their struggle to achieve the right of self-determination that was promised to them by the United Nations. The ministers also expressed their fervent desire to see an immediate end to the sufferings of the people of Kashmir so that conditions are created for a sustained and meaningful dialogue between Pakistan, India and the leadership of the people of Kashmir.

Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani, the foreign minister of Pakistan apprised the members of the Contact Group about the deteriorating and serious situation in Indian-occupied Kashmir, saying that “The current Indian leadership is bent upon perpetuating India’s occupation of Jammu & Kashmir.” He warned the members of the Contact Group that newly enacted laws are designed to change the demography of Kashmir. Otherwise, why India has issued millions of domicile certificates to Indian citizens to settle in Kashmir, he asked?

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, participated today in the meeting of the Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir organized by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 78). Addressing the meeting, Prince Faisal bin Farhan said the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia stands by the Muslim people in maintaining their Islamic identity and preserving their dignity. The foreign minister also reiterated the Kingdom’s support to the afflicted people in areas witnessing conflicts and unrest, including the people of the Jammu and Kashmir region.

Saudi Foreign Minister added that the Jammu and Kashmir issue constitutes one of the pressing challenges facing the security and stability of the region, the foreign minister said, warning that leaving the issue unresolved will contribute to regional instability. The Kingdom is exerting unremitting effort to mediate between the parties of the conflict in order to reduce escalation and achieve calm and a peaceful settlement to the issue in accordance with the relevant international resolutions, the foreign minister said. Such efforts emanate from the Kingdom’s unwavering stance in support of Islamic peoples. Deputy Minister for International Multilateral Affairs Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Rassi and Director-General of the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulrahman Al-Dawood attended the meeting.

Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai, representing the people of Jammu and Kashmir conveyed the gratitude of the people to brotherly member states of the OIC Contact Group for their steadfast and unwavering support extended to them in their struggle for the right of self-determination.

Dr. Fai added that the issue of Indian-occupied Kashmir continues to be unresolved and the international community has almost relinquished and retracted from the promise that was made to them in 1948. – the promise of the right of self-determination under the auspices of the United Nations. To break the will of the people of Kashmir, India has deployed over 900,000 soldiers fully armed and with unlimited powers under the draconian Kashmir-specific laws which have wreaked havoc in the region. The atrocities inflicted on the hapless Kashmiris have been documented by Indian and international human rights organizations, like Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch, including a 47-page report issued by the United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights.

The following nine recommendations were made by Dr. Fai to the OIC Contact Group in Jammu and Kashmir for immediate action.

1. OIC must re-educate the member nations of the UN General Assembly that the conflict of Kashmir is primarily about the right to self-determination, no ifs and no buts.

2. OIC must persuade the United Nations to convey to the Government of India to rescind the Domicile Law which is designed to change the demography of Kashmir and change the majority Muslim character into a minority community
 
3. OIC should also convince the United Nations to prevail upon India to repeal all draconian laws, including the Unlawful Activity Prevention Act (UAPA), the Public Safety Act (PSA) which are being used to forcibly silence the people into submission.
 
4. Given the report, issued by the United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights on June 14, 2018 & July 8, 2019, regarding the ‘Situation in Kashmir’, we request the OIC members of the Human Rights Council to endorse this report and initiate a joint OIC resolution to set up an enquiry commission on human rights violations in Kashmir during the forthcoming session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva to be held in February 2024.
 
5. Widely use and disseminate testimony of Dr Gregory Stanton, Chairman, ‘Genocide Watch’, which he gave to the United States Congress on January 12, 2022, and repeated that Kashmir was on the brink of genocide.
 
6. The OIC must provide ‘safe havens’ for the Kashmiri Diaspora, especially those fleeing oppression in Occupied Kashmir – scholars, activists, journalists, and businessmen – in OIC member states, in an institutional manner, like opening up visas/jobs / relocation facilitation for such skilled and professional Kashmiris, for whom living in Modi’s India has become unbearable.
 
7. In the ‘battle of ideas for Azadi (Freedom) of Kashmiri people, OIC must promote the 3 core causes together: PKR (Palestine, Kashmir, Rohingya); and establish a special website, combining genocide with resistance.
 
8. OIC should allocate emergency scholarship funds to the meritorious students of Kashmir who are the victims of Indian state terrorism.
 
9. OIC must persuade the Government of India to release all political prisoners unconditionally, including Mohammad Yasin Malik, Shabir Ahmed Shah, Masarat Alalm, Aasia Andrabi, Khurram Parvez, and others.

A Joint Communique was adopted unanimously during the Contact Group meeting which condemns the protracted detention of the entire Hurriyat leadership, the genuine voice of the Kashmiri political aspirations, and thousands of political activists, journalists and human rights defenders.

The Communique also reads:

Reaffirming the inalienable right to self-determination of the people of Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

Rejecting the conduct of the G-20 Tourism Working Group Meeting, held in Srinagar on 22-24 May 2023, which aimed to legitimize India’s illegal occupation of the IIOJK and sought to project a facade of normalcy in the occupied territory.

Denouncing India’s continued refusal to allow the OIC Special Envoy, the OIC- Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC), the UN Special Mandate Holders and international civil society organizations to visit IIOJK.

Welcoming the role played by the relevant UN Special Rapporteurs, world leaders, parliamentarians, human rights organizations, and international media, in raising their voice against illegal Indian occupation and then ongoing egregious human rights violations in IIOJK.

The Joint Communique also:

Denounced the Indian authorities’ fresh plea seeking the death penalty for one of the renowned Kashmiri leaders, Yaseen Malik, who is incarcerated and has already been awarded life imprisonment; and mandated the Special Envoy on Jammu and Kashmir to take appropriate steps to raise voice against the possible award of the death penalty to Malik.

Rejected the illegal and unilateral actions taken by India on August 5, 2019, as well as subsequent steps to undermine the internationally- recognized disputed status of the IIOJK and to alter its demographic structure and political landscape.

Appreciated the countries, which decided to dissociate themselves from the G-20 Tourism Working Group Meeting in Srinagar, and,

Barrister Sultan Mehmood Choudhary, President Azad Kashmir & Mr Ghulam Mohmmad Safi, representative of All Parties Hurriyat Conference addressed the Contact Group via Zoom.

Barrister Sultan Mehmood Choudhary, President, of Azad Jammu Kashmir said that Kashmir is one of the oldest issues, pending on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council. The urgency dictates the United Nations and the OIC must come forward to support the people of Kashmir in their struggle to achieve the right to self-determination.

Mr. Safi highlighted the grave situation in Kashmir and emphasized that the Kashmir dispute needs to be resolved for the sake of international peace and security. The inaction and passivity of the world powers have given the sense of total impunity to 900,000 Indian soldiers in occupied Kashmir, Mr Safi told the group.