Veeru Kohli
Pakistani human rights activist From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Veeru Kohli (Urdu: ویرو کوہلی ; 1964-2023) was a Pakistani bonded labor and human rights activist.[1] She was known for starting to campaign against slavery after twenty years of living in bondage herself.
Personal life
She was born to a poor Hindu scheduled caste agricultural labourer's family in Allahdino Shah village in Jhuddo, Sindh province, and was married at the age of 16 into a family bonded to their landlord.[2][3] She died a widow and left 11 children.[2] Her name is sometimes written as Veero Kohli. She died on 31st Oct 2023[4]
Campaigning
In 2013, she ran as an independent candidate in the Hyderabad provincial elections.[5][6]
She had previously been a slave in southern Pakistan but escaped her captors.[7]
After being forced back into bondage and suffering beatings she stood up to the authorities and gained her freedom,[3] with help from the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan in Hyderabad.[2] Her experiences inspired her to campaign for freedom for others. This meant she, as a Saraiki speaker, had to learn Urdu to enable her to communicate with a wide range of people. Oxfam have helped her promote her ideas and develop her confidence.[3]
In 2009 she was given the Frederick Douglass Freedom Award by the Free the Slaves organisation.[2][8]
Azad Nagar
Azad Nagar is the settlement that Veeru Kohli built with help from a local NGO Green Rural Development Organization (GRDO) and Action Aid in 2006. It was planned as a place where freed bonded labourers would live temporarily as they began their new lives. It has 310 families over 4.5 hectares of land. Most of the residents are Hindu.[9]
References
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.