India, Swati Maliwal, from abused child to national champion of women's rights

When she was little and lived in a dysfunctional family, with a father who sexually abused her, Swati Maliwal took courage in thinking that when she grew up, she would help others. Today, at 39, she joined the upper house of the Indian parliament.

But his strenuous commitment in favor of women began during the 2000s, when she was still a university student: From a young age, she dedicated herself to defending women's rights, instead of accepting the offer of a job in a giant software company that could have given her financial security.

She began working with various NGOs and activist groups to promote human rights and women's issues, and was a key member of the movement Indian Against Corruption led by social activist Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal. In 2015 she became the youngest president of Delhi Commission for Women, and has actively addressed the issues of domestic violence, exploitation of women and women's safety in the Indian capital. In the eight years under the leadership of Swati Maliwal, the Commission handled 170 thousand rape complaints, dowry-related violence, honor killings and human trafficking. Eight times as many as in the previous decade, during which only 20,000 complaints were registered. The commission now receives up to 4,000 calls a day, and its help line now employs 100 consultants, up from 20 in the past. The number of lawyers working with the commission has increased from five to 70.

Swati Maliwal has never held back. With one 10 day hunger strike she protested against the way rape cases were handled, and succeeded in getting the government to toughen the penalties. She walked the streets of Delhi at 3 a.m. to experience what a woman felt alone at night, and she participated in police raids on brothels, resulting in the release of women and girls, who was then given professional training. She also issued a summons against the Delhi Police Commissioner, who refused to share data on crime rates. «I received rape and death threats», he reported to Guardian. «I was trolled, called a “woman who hates men”, an opinionated person who should be ashamed of herself». She also was called a “disloyal daughter” when she revealed her father's abuse and denigrated her when she spoke out about her divorce, calling her marriage “toxic.” But she decided not to block the trolls or confront them.

Her active involvement in the women's rights movement has intensified over the years, leading her to become one of the most influential voices in the field of social justice and women's rights in the country. On January 5, Swati Maliwal resigned as president of the Delhi Commission for Women: by entering parliament, she is ready to amplify her voice, to take her fight for rights to a national level.