Zahra Joya (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: زهرا جویا) is an award-winning Hazara journalist from Afghanistan. She is the founder of

Rukhshana Media ''Rukhshana Media'' () is an women in Afghanistan, Afghan women's media organisation created in November 2020 in memory of Rukhshana, a young woman stoning, stoned to death in 2015 in Ghor Province for having fled with a lover after a forced marr ...

, an outlet in

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

which she runs from exile.

Early life

Zahra Joya was born in a small rural village to a Hazara family in

Bamyan Province Bamyan Province ( prs, ولایت بامیان) also spelled Bamiyan, Bāmīān or Bāmyān is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the central highlands of the Afghanistan. The terrain in Bamyan is mountainous or semi-m ...

in 1992. She was 5 years old when the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

seized power in Afghanistan. From 1996 to 2001, they banned almost all education for girls. Joya would dress as a boy and call herself Mohammed, and walked alongside her young uncle for two hours each day to get to school. In an interview with

Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...

for ''

TIME Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' in 2022, she claimed that some men in her family, including her father, believed in women's rights. After the United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban government in 2001, she was able to drop the disguise and enroll in law school in

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

, planning on following her father's footsteps as a prosecutor. Moved by the untold stories of her female classmates, she decided to become a journalist, despite the dangers and difficulties of being a female reporter in Afghanistan.

Career

Joya worked as the deputy director of communications at the Kabul municipal government. At times, she was the only female amongst her colleagues. When she remarked this, she was told that women wouldn't have good capacity or skills needed for the job. In December 2020, she founded

, the country's first feminist news agency. She had been motivated to do so after a friend's suggestion, and due to the responses of her male colleagues regarding the lack of female journalists. The outlet was named Rukhshana to honor a 19-year-old girl who was stoned to death by the Taliban in 2015 in

Ghor Province Ghōr (Dari: ), also spelled Ghowr or Ghur, is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in the western Hindu Kush in central Afghanistan, towards the northwest. The province contains eleven districts, encompassing hundreds ...

. The girl was sentenced to death for having eloped with a lover after her family had arranged a marriage for her. Joya's aim was to bring light to the reality of life for Afghan women with stories published and reported on by local female journalists, covering issues like rape and forced marriage. She established Rukhshana Media with her own savings but had to launch an online fundraiser to keep operations running. She was critical of the Taliban and reported on their crackdown on female public servants in the months before the US and its allies withdrew their troops. A few days before the country fell to the Taliban, she collaborated with ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' to publish the Women Report Afghanistan project, reporting on the Taliban takeover. Joya and her colleagues received a number of threats for their journalism. Due to her reporting and because of the Taliban's longtime

persecution of Hazaras The Hazaras have long been the subjects of persecution by both Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as non-state militant groups. The Hazaras are mostly from Afghanistan, primarily from the central regions of Afghanistan, known as Hazarajat. Sig ...

, Joya was a target of the Taliban. Fearing for her life, she decided to flee the country. She received an evacuation notice from the British government and was eventually airlifted to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. She continues to run Rukhshana Media in exile, and remains in contact with her team who send her reports from Afghanistan in secret. Most female Afghan journalists were forced to leave their jobs after the takeover.

Awards and recognition

Joya was one of 12 women named ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

s Women of the Year in 2022. She was recognized for her journalism, and was interviewed by

. Joya received the 2022 Change maker Award from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on September 20, 2022. She was honored as one of the

BBC 100 Women ''100 Women'' is a BBC multi-format series established in 2013. The annual series examines the role of women in the 21st century and has included events in London and Mexico. Announcement of the list is the start of an international "BBC's women ...

in December 2022. Rukhshana Media received the Marie Colvin Award at the British Journalism Awards 2021.

External links

Rukhshana Media in Persian

Rukhshana Media in English

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joya, Zahra Living people Afghan journalists Afghan feminists Afghan refugees Hazara people Hazara people by occupation Hazara journalists 1992 births People from Bamyan Province BBC 100 Women