ThinkHer

 I believe that a nation that has to protect its women rather than empower them has a problem. One has to understand that power hides itself in the language of protection and purity. This is where the statement, "Fundamentalism uses women's bodies as a battlefield in its struggle to appropriate institutional power", by Malathi De Alwis, makes sense. Malathi de Alwis ©Colombo Telegraph Malathi de Alwis is a pioneering Sri Lankan anthropologist, feminist scholar, peace activist and a teacher. Born on 6 October 1963 in Sri Lanka, she earned her PhD in socio-cultural anthropology from the University of Chicago. She spent her career unpacking the uneasy alliance between gender and nationalism. During the turbulent decades of civil war in Sri Lanka, she stood out as a voice that asked difficult questions. Her work has been indispensable to understanding Sinhala Buddhist nationalism and its construction of the good woman. Her PhD work, titled- Maternalist Politics in Sri Lanka: ...

Earlier this month, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado received the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, a recognition for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy” The award shines a light on her decades-long struggle to restore the principles of free expression, fair elections, and civic participation in a country where dissent often comes at a heavy cost. María Corina Machado @ ThinkHer Venezuela, once among Latin America’s wealthiest nations, has endured years of economic collapse, corruption, and political repression under Nicolás Maduro’s regime. In this backdrop of crisis, Machado — an industrial engineer turned activist — emerged as a powerful and controversial figure. She co-founded Súmate, a citizen movement for electoral transparency, and later became the boldest voice of the opposition. Her outspokenness has earned her admiration from many Venezu...