Mrs Tawakkol Karman is a Yemeni human rights activist, journalist, and politician. She became the international public face of the 2011 Yemeni uprising that constituted part of the Arab Spring and has been dubbed ‘Mother of the Revolution’, ‘Lady of the Arab Spring,’ and ‘Iron Woman’. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011 in recognition of her achievements in the non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work in Yemen. She became the first Yemeni, the first Arab woman, and the second Muslim woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize, as well as the youngest Nobel Peace Laureate at the time, at the age of 32 (she is now second youngest). TIME Magazine recognised Mrs Karman as the Most Rebellious Woman in History. Foreign Policy Magazine chose her as one of the Top 100 Global Thinkers for many years.
A mother of three, Mrs Karman is the President and Founder of the NGO Women Journalists without Chains (WJWC), Founder of the Peaceful Youth Revolution Council, and a board member of Nobel Women Initiative. Bold and outspoken, Mrs Karman was imprisoned many times for her pro-democracy and pro-human rights protests. She vowed with other Laureates and global leaders to end child slavery. Mrs Karman was recognised by many other awards and accolades including the Courage Award granted by the US Embassy in Sana’a in 2008, the Galileo Galilei Award in Florence, Italy, and was a Winner of the Freedom Award granted by the US National Civil Rights Museum. Inspired by non-violent leaders Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi, Mrs Karman pioneers peaceful protest in the Middle East for accelerating change.
This event is free and open for everyone. Should you be interested, please sign up for the ballot below. Each person may ballot for up to two seats. Names will be chosen at random from the ballot and we have several daily releases before Monday 7th May. You will only be notified by email if you have been successful in the ballot.
If you wish to ballot meet Mrs Karman at a private reception please email president@theoxfordguild.com.
