Feminists from India and Pakistan Issue Urgent Call for Peace and Dialogue | May 15, 2025 — Press Release

PRESS RELEASE

Feminists from India and Pakistan Issue Urgent Call for Peace and Dialogue

“We reject the logic of war—rooted in colonial borders, toxic masculinity, and nationalist propaganda”

Statement by over a thousand feminists, including:

Amar Sindhu, Arfana Mallah, Beena Sarwar, Bushra Gohar, Farzana Bari, Jamila Gilani, Jugnu Mohsin, Khawar Mumtaz, Nasreen Azhar, Naveen Hayat, Neelam Hussain, Nighat Said Khan, Rukhshanda Naz, Saba Gul Khattak, Salima Hashmi and Tahira Abdullah from Pakistan

AND

Anamika Haksar, Cynthia Stephen, Hemlata Mahiswar, Jayati Ghosh, Kalyani Menon Sen, Khalida Parveen, Lalita Ramdas, Maya Rao, Navsharan Singh, Rita Manchanda, Shabnam Hashmi, Syeda Hameed, Uma Chakravarti, and Vani Subramanian from India

and about a dozen organisations.

New Delhi / Islamabad, 15 May 2025 — In a show of historic cross-border feminist solidarity for peace, about a dozen organizations and approximately 1000 people have come together to issue a powerful statement calling for immediate de-escalation, dialogue, and justice in the wake of renewed hostilities between the two nations. The signatories include feminists, peace activists, artists, journalists, academics, students, grassroots organizers and other professionals from India and Pakistan. The statement unequivocally condemns the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir. It highlights how such attacks are cynically used to inflame communal tensions and justify militarisation, while silencing those who call for peace. The signatories express their disappointment at India’s unilateral decision of suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty; and the retributive decision by both countries to cancel medical and short-term visas causing distress and leading to family separation, especially of children from their mothers. The statement expresses deep concern for the loss of life on both sides and emphasizes that wars have no winners.

Reflecting on the fact that the past year has seen a global surge in armed violence, and devastating images from Gaza and other conflict zones that have become so routine on social media platforms, the statement says that ‘we are tragically getting desensitised to the true horrors of armed conflict’.

It further states that, "The ceasefire must be the first step in a long, difficult walk towards justice and peace". Denouncing the naming of India’s military operation as “Operation Sindoor,” a deeply patriarchal invocation that exploits female-coded symbols for nationalist ends, the statement emphasizes that war only benefits arms dealers while devastating women, children, and marginalized communities.

Together the signatories call on the governments of India and Pakistan to:

• To consolidate the 10th May ceasefire, desist from cross-border violations and defuse rising tensions by keeping channels of communication open;
• To jointly initiate an investigation, including international representatives, into the Pahalgam attack with a view to bringing the perpetrators to justice;
• To refrain from unilateral actions such as disrupting the Indus Waters Treaty;
• To prioritise and engage in dialogue and diplomacy to resolve differences;

• To work towards resolving the core political issue of Kashmir that lies at the heart of the conflict.

Organisational endorsements include (in alphabetical order):

Pakistan: Aurat March (Islamabad and Lahore); Women’s Action Forum (chapters: National, Hyderabad, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, and Quetta).

India: All India Democratic Women’s Association; All India Feminist Association (NAPM); All India Progressive Women’s Association; ANHAD; Forum Against Oppression of Women; Hazrat-e-mamuli Zindagi; Saheli Women’s Resource Centre; Vimochana forum for Women’s rights; Where are the women (Hyderabad).

Contact: Anuradha: + 91 8860824459, Vani: + 91 9891128911

Email: saheliwomen[at]gmail.com and auratmarchisb[at]gmail.com