Wranga Loni ( ps, وړانګه لوڼۍ, ur, وڑانگہ لونی; also spelled Wrranga Lunri or Wrranga Luni) is a

human rights activist A human rights defender or human rights activist is a person who, individually or with others, acts to promote or protect human rights. They can be journalists, environmentalists, whistleblowers, trade unionists, lawyers, teachers, housing campai ...

and writer from

Sanjawi Sanjawi ( ps, سنځاوۍ), also spelled Sanzawi or Sinjawi, is a town in Balochistan, Pakistan, with a population of 94,000. It serves as the capital of Sanjawi Tehsil – an administrative subdivision of Ziarat District.Balochistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. She is a leading member of the

Pashtun Tahafuz Movement The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM; ps, پښتون ژغورنې غورځنګ ''Paṣtūn Zhghōrənē Ghōrźang''; ur, , lit=Pashtun Protection Movement) is a social movement for Pashtun human rights based in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan ...

(PTM), as well as a founding member of the Waak Movement, which aims to bring political awareness among

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

women.

Social activism

Wranga joined the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement in February 2018 along with her elder brother, Arman Loni. Both of them actively took part in organizing the PTM public gatherings, usually traveling to the gathering site a week earlier to help run awareness campaigns among the locals. Wranga recalled, “ rmansaid women’s awareness was important for our future survival in peace and with human dignity.” At the gatherings, Wranga would mostly give speeches from the stage but Arman would usually prefer to be behind the scenes. The activities of Arman and Wranga irked the local tribal chiefs, because of which Arman's family was forced to move from their native

Sanjawi Sanjawi ( ps, سنځاوۍ), also spelled Sanzawi or Sinjawi, is a town in Balochistan, Pakistan, with a population of 94,000. It serves as the capital of Sanjawi Tehsil – an administrative subdivision of Ziarat District.Killa Saifullah Killa Saifullah ( ps, قلعه سيف الله), also Qilla Saifullah is a city in Killa Saifullah District, Balochistan, Pakistan.) is a district in northwestern Balochistan province, Pakistan. Killa Saifullah is famous for its fertile soil produ ...

, the hometown of

Nawab Ayaz Jogezai Nawab Ayaz Khan Jogezai ( ps, نواب محمد ایاز خان جوګېزی, ur, ) (Born 28 January 1959) is the Pashtun Nawab. He became Nawab after the death of Nawab Taimoor Shah Khan Jogezai. While he was still alive, Nawab Taimoor Sha ...

, the Pashtun tribal chief who offered them refuge. On 2 February 2019, after Wranga and Arman participated at a protest sit-in outside Loralai Press Club in

Loralai Loralai ( ps, لورلايي, ur, ), also known as Bori ( ps, ), is the division headquarter of Loralai Division and district headquarter of Loralai District. It is in the northeast of Balochistan province in Pakistan. It is above sea level ...

, her brother was allegedly killed during a crackdown by the police. The police, however, refused to lodge an FIR, which was criticized by

Shireen Mazari Shireen Mehrunnisa Mazari ( ur, ) is a Pakistani politician who served the Federal Minister for Human Rights, from 20 August 2018 to 10 April 2022. She is the chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Appointment of Chief Election Commi ...

, the Human Rights Minister of Pakistan. On 9 February 2020, just before PTM's public gathering in Loralai to mark the first death anniversary of Arman Loni, security forces arrested Wranga Loni,

Arfa Siddiq Arfa Siddiq Kakar ( ps, عارفه صدیق کاکړه, ur, عارفہ صدیق کاکڑ; born 28 January 1987), also spelled Arifa Siddique, is a politician and human rights activist from the town of Muslim Bagh in northern Balochistan, Pakista ...

Sanna Ejaz Sanna Ejaz ( ps, ثنا اعجاز) or Sana Ijaz, is a journalist and human rights activist from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. She is a leading member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), as well as a founding member of the Waak Movement, whic ...

, and other female PTM activists as they were on their way to the gathering site. The security forces released them, however, when political activists gathered outside the police station to protest for them.

References

External links

"Pakistan: My brother was killed for fighting for our rights"
article by Wranga Loni, ''

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

'', 18 April 2019. {{DEFAULTSORT:Loni, Wranga Living people Pakistani human rights activists Pakistani humanists Pashtun women Pakistani feminists Feminism in Pakistan Women's rights in Pakistan People from Ziarat District Pashtun Tahafuz Movement politicians Pakistani prisoners and detainees Pashto-language poets Year of birth missing (living people)

Social activism

See also

References

External links