Widad Akrawi
Widad Akreyi is a Kurdish health expert and human rights activist. She has co-founded the human rights organization Defend International and is the author of several books about both health issues and human rights.
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Widad Akreyi
ویداد ئاکرەیی
ویداد ئاکرەیی
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Akreyi holds a master's degree in genetics and a PhD in international health and epidemiology.[1] Violations of human rights that occurred during the Iraqi government offensive against the Kurds in 1974, as well as during the Al-Anfal Campaign are thought to have shaped her life.
She has been listed as one of the winners of the Fellowship of Reconciliation peace awards, where she was called "outspoken peace activist" and the "first young woman of Middle Eastern descent" to engage in advocacy relating to illicit trade of small arms and light weapons, gender-based violence, chemical and biological disarmament, conventional disarmament and international security.[2]
In 2013, Akreyi was awarded the "Special Prize for bridging the gap between civilisations" by the National Organisation for Future Generations for making valuable contributions to humanity through the creation of a culture of coexistence.[3] When she received the International Pfeffer Peace Award in 2014, she dedicated it to the residents of Kobane and Sinjar and the persecuted Christians in the Middle East.[4][5] In 2017, she was presented with the Davenport mayor medal and the Pacem in Terris Award for "her selfless commitment to human rights for all."[6][7]
In 2018, she received the International Simply Woman Harmony Award for devoting her life to defending human rights,[8] and in 2020 she was handpicked as a woman of the year 2020.[9]
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Akreyi was born into a secular family in Kurdistan region, Iraq. In her early and her teenage years, she resisted every effort made by members of the Baath Party to induce her to gain her trust and become a member, which caused her to be blacklisted for a period of time.[10]
In 1986, she moved to Erbil where she studied civil engineering with a focus on designing roads and bridges at the Salahaddin University. In 1988 she was secretly involved in documenting torture and other violations of human rights throughout Iraq. The following year, she became politically involved in various struggles for human rights, peace, social justice, democratic governance and ethnic reconciliation. Her advocacy of anti-authoritarianism and her criticism of the use of excessive force against civilians were not without risk and threat to her life and the lives of her family members. Her involvement in these issues became more intense after the Al-Anfal Campaign, also known as the Kurdish Genocide. Despite difficult times, she managed to complete her B.Sc. in 1990.[11]
After the first Gulf War, when the Iraqi regime regained control of the Kurdistan region through an offensive in spring 1991, she was forced to leave her country.
In the diaspora, Akreyi earned a master's degree in genetics and genomics and a PhD degree in global health and cancer epidemiology.[1][5] She has served as a clinical geneticist, researching inherited diseases.[10]
Akreyi is the co-founder of Defend International, an NGO whose mission is "to respond to grave violations of human rights and of International Humanitarian Law, monitor the implementation of preventive measures that are designed to end impunity for the perpetrators of these crimes, conduct medical research that may either directly or indirectly improve the health standard of communities, and to promote peace and democracy through cultural relations and diplomacy."[12]
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Humanitarian initiatives and peace and security efforts[edit]
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Arms Trade Treaty[edit]
In 2005, Akreyi began advocating for a UN resolution on a strong and an effective Arms Trade Treaty to prevent the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons that might be used for acts of genocide, crimes against humanity, or terrorism.[5]
Created bridges to Arabic-speaking audiences[edit]
Since 2005 she has been engaged in online discussions, blogging and other interactive techniques [26] through which she was able to create online bridges to Arabic speaking audiences by becoming part of online dialogue and debate. In 2006, the International Secretariat of Amnesty International praised her activities in support of Amnesty's campaigns, noting that her involvement boosted Amnesty's "chances of success."[5]
In 2008, Akreyi joined an international campaign against Eid aerial firing.[27]
Gender-based violence[edit]
In March 2008, she joined the international campaign to end gender-based violence at gunpoint.[28]
In a press release published in February 2013, Akreyi called on UN negotiators of the Arms Trade Treaty to include a legally-binding provision to prevent armed gender-based violence, noting the importance of maintaining the "momentum created over the last seven years" in favor of a strong and an effective Arms Trade Treaty. "We aim to provide new directions to assist in developing policy measures that counter the harmful impacts that illicit trade in small arms and light weapons have on vulnerable populations, especially on women and children" said Akreyi.[29]
(in English)
Official website
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Genetics and inherited disease (M.A.); Global health and cancer epidemiology (PhD)
Advocate for human rights, peace and justice, author, Arms Trade Treaty, UN Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict, UN Resolution 2117
- Pacem in Terris Award
- Pfeffer Peace Prize
- Davenport Mayor Medal
- Woman Harmony Award
- Woman of the Year 2020
- Special Prize for bridging gap between cultures