women's revolution?

FCBBCA: Is the Arab Spring a

EXTERNAL EVENT HELD AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS 

IN ASSOCIATION WITH BBC ARABIC

The uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa were a time when the 'revolutionary Arab woman' grabbed the attention of the western media. For the next in our series of #FCBBCA events we will be bringing together a panel of Arab women including a recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize; Yemeni journalist, activist, mother of three and founder of Women Journalists Without Chains Tawakkul Karman. 

She will be joined by, among others, Iranian women's rights and civil society activist Sussan Tahmasebi and Mervat Mhani of the Free Generation Movement in Libya. They will be discussing the role that women have played in the uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa.

For further information and to book tickets see here.

Chaired by Lindsey Hilsum, international editor at Channel 4 News.

With:

Tawakkul Karman, a Yemeni journalist and activist. In December Karman will receive a Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo for her non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women's rights to full participation in peace-building work. Yemen had been a fragile country before the turbulence of the Arab uprisings reached its capital, Sana'a. Since the uprising began in January 2011 state repression, arrests, shootings and bombings of civilian protesters has been widespread. Karman quickly emerged as a leading opposition figure. 

Sussan Tahmasebi, women's rights and civil society activist. Tahmasebi works at the national and grassroots level in Iran to address gender issues, and strengthen and promote the role of civil society organisations. She is a founding member of the award-winning One Million Signatures Campaign, which collects signatures in support of changing discriminatory laws against women in Iran. Campaign members engage in face-face discussions with Iranians from all walks of life across Iran and internationally. They then collect signatures in support of a petition opposing all gender-biased laws in Iran. 

Mervat Mhani, Libyan mother of two and member of The Free Generation Movement, a non-governmental organization made up of independent activists working towards the development and progression of Libya and Libyan society. The Free Generation Movement aspires to be the voice of change and the driving force for progression. Their vision involves splitting Libya’s progression into three phases: 1. Resistance 2. Stabilization 3. Development.
Additional panelists to be confirmed.