Saliha Rashid : Yorkshire Women of Achievement award nominee
by Mike Berriman
A victim of honour abuse has been nominated for a top Yorkshire award for campaigning for the rights of Asian women.
Leeds Trinity University graduate and Yorkshire Women of Achievement Awards nominee Saliha Rashid spoke to students at her former university today about her experience as a victim of honour abuse.
Saliha, 22, graduated last year with a First-Class honours degree in psychology: “I come from a community which operated an honour system. As a result of that everything in my life was under constant control and monitoring.
“I was always told that because I was blind and a woman I would never become independent and I couldn’t have high aspirations.”
The 2014 graduate campaigns particularly on behalf of disabled victims and survivors of honour based abuse and forced marriage.
Saliha has been nominated in the Young Achiever category after being singled out for her exceptional contribution to her local community.
The tireless campaigner also works with asylum seekers wishing to seek asylum on grounds of sexual orientation.
Saliha is now studying for a degree in law with the intention of going into criminal and human rights law: “I would like to work with victims of honour abuse and forced marriage, to try to change things for them, to put more support systems in place for them and raise awareness because support for disabled victims is very limited.”
She talks here of her experiences in the past and hopes for the future.
The award ceremony takes place at the Royal Armouries on Friday May 15.