My Life Working as a Woman Activist in Asian and African Contexts

Since My childhood ,I have seen myself as an emerging woman leader who must out voice all abuses and gender based violence against women.

I got ashamed when I had my first menstruating period ,and I started to have a certain consciousness about women inner conflict .

When I reached twelve years old ,I started to act in many plays at my school portraying women victimized and entrapped in a patriarchal society which gave privileges to men and judged women to be impotent .I tried to scream and tell them ,that womanliness is not about my body ,it is about who I am ,my identity.Then,I started writing in blogs since sixteen years old and called myself gender abolitionist ,recalling slavery abolitionism in the United States of America. 

Rushing feelings, mature ideas and innovative plans made  my friends called me often “Thatcher the iron lady». I told them :"I may be young ,but life and misjudgments over women taught me to be me Ahlem an Arab lady coming from the MENA region not someone else." When I discovered the world of the civil society ,apart from being founder of three NGOS :Young leaders entrepreneurs ,Biledi –My country, and She network for women and children empowerment, apart from being founder of Creativo club in Kasserine my hometown and Leadership Club in the American center in the capital too. 

I conducted researches about what being a  woman means?

what is the difference between feminine and feminity ?

sex and gender?

 All these concepts were rolling in my head and enabled me not only to focus or making women issues my life cause but to reflect upon conflicT,especially “the personal “which turned to be” political.  

women were raped because they were judged upon their appearances .They were molested in public transportation , abused in offices and even in closed bed rooms with their husbands.

 I shuffled all my cards and started to look for being a feminist who is not excluding men but engaging them in a national dialogue within my project:”Rise for justice” after being appointed by the international movement “one Billion Rising.”  

 Furthermore,my participation in so many international programs made me think about not only Africa but Asia as well…Feminism deals with all cases of victims beyond geographical limits. I may call myself sometimes a global feminist who will consecrate her life for women because they need me as I need them.  

 I want to say that I want to be an African crossing Asian issues feminist and activist :I should be skilled enough which I am building and spreading all over me either through my articles or workshops. I am seeing myself as someone appointed soulfully and spiritually to speak up, rise up and show that being woman is not an obstacle.

 I am blessed to be a woman and what I am trying to do in my life is to make women as proud as me ,to be educated and empowered .

By this token, far from falling in the theory of conspiracy and victimhood which I really hate ,women must be and ought to be enflamed to stand up ,to say no when someone wants to hurt and tarnish their dignity. Asia was and still the place where my “cup of Grail “like TS.Eliot mentioned in “the waste land ”.

My reality  and my identity are a piece in a larger image called Africa .So as AN EMERGING WOMAN  leader ,I pledge to work for and with women and never belittle them until I am buried   ”