Public lecture by Kholoud Helmi “Women in the middle of the Syrian conflict”

Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University (IIRPS VU), Asian, African and Latin American Studies Centre (AALASC) at the VU IIRPS and Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs invites to the public lecture “Women in the middle of the Syrian conflict” which will be given by a Syrian journalist Kholoud Helmi.

The Syrian Civil War is an ongoing multi-sided armed conflict in Syria among several groups: the Syrian Government and its supporters, Syrian Arab rebel groups, the Syrian Democratic Forces, jihadist groups, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The war grew out of the mass popular protests and civil unrest of the 2011 Arab Spring. The conflict turned into the armed conflict after President Bashar al-Assad’s government violently cracked down on protests which called for his removal from power. In terms of the conflict, there’s plenty of room for doubts about what were the true goals of the popular protests and what has it actually turned into now?

Ms Kholoud Helmi will try to answer questions of how the rights of women are being threatened in the conflict and how they are managing to survive it when the circumstances are daily suffering and constant loom of death.

The lecture will be followed by a discussion which will be moderated by dr. Ieva Koreivaitė, a lecturer at IIRPS VU. The event will take place on Wednesday, 23rd of November, 2016, at 13.15 o’clock in the conference room 402. Both lecture and discussion will be held in English language.

Kholoud Helmi is a Syrian journalist working for an underground newspaper called “Enab Baladi”. Despite the many dangers that the newspaper faces daily because of its activities, it still shines the light on the conflict in Syria and delivers the news to the world. Back in 2012, Ms. Helmi, together with a group of her female friends, initiated demonstrations by which they attempted to bring democracy, organize free elections and guarantee human rights. In 2015, the journalist was awarded the The Anna Politkovskaya Award, a prize which is presented annually by Reach All Women in War (RAW in WAR) and honours women human rights defenders from war and conflict zones around the world.