“Courage, to me, resonates in the silent strength of a Balochi woman, who bravely challenged patriarchy within her home and took her fight to the streets against authoritarian rule, her voice echoing despite the silence.”
Fariba Balouch is a London-based Iranian human rights activist. She is from Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan Province and a member of Iran’s marginalized Baluchi ethnic group. She is outspoken about women’s rights and the human rights crisis in Sistan and Baluchistan, which has been disproportionately affected by regime violence, executions, and systemic discrimination. As a result of her activism and in an effort to intimidate her, Iranian authorities have threated her life and detained her son and brother in Iran. Yet, Ms. Balouch believes the only way forward is resistance, and she persists in her activism. Ms. Balouch continues to advocate for Iranian women’s rights and to draw attention to the Iranian regime’s gender-, ethnicity-, and sect-based discrimination.