Sapan News Network

A conversation with Bangladeshi lawyer Sara Hossain who heads the UN Human Rights Council’s independent investigation into Iran’s human rights violations following #MahsaAmini’s custodial death.

As news of #NoamChomsky’s failing health makes the rounds, a journalist and peace activist from Pakistan (Beena Sarwar) shares some of what she learned from interactions with a trailblazing public intellectual whose moral compass has impacted the world.

We're thrilled to announce the screening of Beena Sarwar’s new documentary, “Democracy in Debt”! This compelling film explores the elections in Sri Lanka, one of the world's oldest democracies, with themes that will resonate universally. 📅 Date & Time: June 18th, 7pm 📍 Location: Art Spark in Austin 📌 RSVP: Secure your spot at bit.ly/Likhawat (FREE event, limited space)

Great Opportunity for Students, Journalists, and Writers! Join Beena Sarwar, acclaimed journalist and editor, for an in-person writing workshop! Learn from her extensive experience in human rights, media, and peace efforts. Connect with fellow writers and journalists in this unique opportunity. Date: June 15th Saturday Time: 10:30 AM to 3:00 PM Location: 310 S Abel Street, Milpitas CA Fee: $50 (Group Discount for 3 or more @ 10%) Zelle or Venmo info@disharifoundation.org About Beena Sarwar: Beena Sarwar, a Pakistani multimedia journalist, editor, and documentary filmmaker, focuses on human rights, gender, media, peace, extremism, violence, and South Asia. A Nieman Fellow at Harvard University in 2006 and a Fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School in 2007, she has taught journalism at Princeton University, Brown University, and Harvard Summer School. She has contributed to global media outlets such as New York Times, Guardian, Al Jazeera, and CNN. Editor of Aman ki Asha, and founder member of the Pakistan-India People’s Action for Peace and Democracy, she is also a co-founder of the South Asia Peace Action Network, with three decades of fostering peace and dialogue in the region. She is also founder and Editor-in-chief of Sapan News Network, a syndicated news and features service launched in August 2022. Register Now: https://rb.gy/6glbtd Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to grow and learn. See you there!

How a volunteer organisation is helping to breathe new life into the Persian literary classic ‘Gulistan-e-Saadi’ – and celebrating prominent Urdu poet Zehra Nigah’s 88th birthday - by Abdullah Zahid.

The lakes, paddy fields and forests of the ancient village of Dutuwewa are a world away from Colombo’s high-rises and colonial buildings. As elsewhere, decisions taken by ‘old men’ in the corridors of power impact life here, just as these rural voters will impact politics nationally," Beena Sarwar writes from Sri Lanka!

‘A country may believe it wins something by killing people but can anything be as valuable as human life?’ a farmer in the heart of Sinhala Buddhist country in Sri Lanka asks, expressing solidarity with US student protestors.

"The Indian state has papered over the silence of the media to push through a false narrative of development, democracy, and progress in Kashmir, making it a façade to hide the bigger picture."

An art student from Karachi shares her experience of a cross-cultural trip to the Buddhist temple caves of Ridi Vihare in Sri Lanka, where ancient culture thrives alongside the modern – a study trip embodying the importance of people-to-people interactions.

"Were all 4,700 birds and animals, now at #Vantara, really in need of rescue? How exactly did Vantara source so many of them — and so many endangered species — in just a matter of years? And where do Vantara’s ambitions really stop?" Read more on Sapan News.