Gulalai at last:

On 12th October, I was detained by FIA and my passport was confiscated because my name had been put on Exit Control List. Apparently, defending human rights has become a crime and security threat in our country. I was released after 9 hours of detention. I am overwhelmed with the support I received after I was detained by FIA. I am very thankful to the political groups, movements, international and national organizations, media, social media activists and individuals who raised their voice for me. I received tremendous organized support from leaders and workers of political groups including Women Democratic Front, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement PTM – پښتون تحفظ موومنټ Awami Workers Party, and Awami National Party. Thank you for standing like a rock by my side. Many international human rights organizations raised their voices for me including Amnesty International, Humanist International, Humanists UK, World Movement for Democracy and Pakistan Human Rights Defenders Network. Thank you for reminding the world that human rights are universal and abuse of human rights in any part of the world is a global concern. I am thankful to media especially BBC, Deewa-VOA, Reuters and 24 News for standing by me. I am particularly thankful to the people who showed in person presence in FIA office during my detention and in Swabi Courts during my Bail Before Arrest Application Submission. Ismat Raza Shahjahan immediately reached to airport after I was detained to protect me from mishandling. She spent these 9 hours in detention with me negotiating my bail, strategizing, informing everyone, mobilizing support and taking care of each and everything. Without Ismat Bibi it would have been a very hard and dark day. Thank you Ismat Bibi, Abdullah Nangyal, Shah Baaz Stouryani, Meena Gabeena, Tooba Syed, Alia Bakhshal, Rahim Advocate, Asadullah Advocate, Khudai Noor Nasar, Sanna Ejaz, Nargis Afsheen Khattak, Shahab Khattak, Gohar Nangyal, Shereenyãr Yousafzai, Usman, Jamil Khan Manager and other PTM activists for accompanying me in these 2 very hard days. Your presence gave me courage in the face of despair. I am specially thankful to my lawyers and their team Saleem Khan and Ashfaq Khan, I am overwhelmed with the support I received in my home town Swabi. Thank you to all those who couldn’t reach but kept on calling to check on me. I also want to thanks wholeheartedly all social media activists and every individual whose name I might not know or skipped because I haven’t yet got time to scroll through social media, without your voices it would have been impossible to respond to the state oppression. My family and friends have always paid a huge cost for my rebellion in the form visiting courts, facing persecution, attacks and propaganda- this is not new for them. They have always got my back. Once again thank you for standing up with me, for standing up for our constitutional right to freedom of speech, right to association and right to life. Asking for peace and human rights is not a crime, together we will make this world a better place.