PAKISTAN: Not Just a Survivor — A Changemaker

About this Story

This story was first published on the World Pulse platform and is shared here through a collaboration between World Pulse and Imaara Survivor Support Foundation. As part of Imaara’s Project Tell-Tale initiative, selected stories from World Pulse are being cross-posted to amplify survivor voices and strengthen conversations around gender-based violence.

The story was submitted in response to a call for stories connected to the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence (2025), inviting survivors, advocates, and allies to share lived experiences, reflections, and pathways toward justice and healing.

Read the original story on World Pulse!

By: Sheeba Shoro

(The author has chosen to be identified in this publication)

For years, I believed that silence was safer than truth. I thought hiding my pain was the easiest way to survive. But one day, I realized something powerful: when we stay silent, abuse grows louder, and when we speak, abuse begins to shake.

My story doesn't begin where online violence tried to break me. My story begins where I stood up again from the very ground where people assumed I would collapse.

I was just like thousands of girls who simply use social media to express their creativity, their voice, and their identity. I wasn't doing anything wrong. I was only claiming my space — my digital space.

And then… it started.

Unknown boys began messaging me. Then their tone changed. And then their intention became clear.

Blackmailing. Pressure. "Be in a relationship with us or else…" Fake screenshots. False assumptions. Threats of humiliation.

They were not just attacking my profile. They were attacking my heart.

There came a moment when I thought: maybe I should leave social media. Maybe they were right — "What are girls doing online anyway?"

But then a voice inside me rose and said:

"If boys have the right to use social media, why don't girls? Are we not human? Do we not have hearts? Does our respect not matter?"

That day, I decided: I would not become fear. I would become the one who breaks fear.

Digital harassment tried to silence me. Threats, manipulation, character assassination — everything happened. But every time, I learned one thing: as long as we fear technology, abusers will use technology against us.

So I refused to let fear become my weakness. I turned awareness into my weapon. I turned my voice into my shield. And then… I turned my journey into my mission.

Because I am not just a survivor — I am a changemaker.

Today, I conduct online safety and digital empowerment sessions for girls across Pakistan for those who have never had the tools or protection that I once lacked. I teach them that their online presence is not a weakness. It is their strength.

Their voice is not meant to hide behind someone else's threat.

And every time a girl messages me saying, "Baji, I was blackmailed too, but your post gave me courage," I feel that even my smallest act of bravery became a light for someone else.

Justice for me was not a courtroom decision. Justice happened the day I empowered my sisters with digital tools I never had. Justice happened the day I realized my story could save another life. Justice happened when I turned my pain into my mission.

I want the world to know:

Violence may break bodies, but courage rebuilds nations.

I am a Pakistani survivor. I am a digital warrior. I am a changemaker. I am the voice that speaks not just for myself, but for my sisters.

And if even one girl is saved because of my voice, if one life becomes safer, if one person finds hope, then my life's purpose is fulfilled.

This is not just my story. This is the declaration of our digital freedom. This is our revolution.

When digital harassment happens, silence should not be our first reaction. Fear should not become our identity.

If someone tries to intimidate us online or offline, we must not shrink—we must stand. But with courage, not violence. With confidence, not revenge.

Girls are not weak. Girls are not helpless. Girls are capable of facing difficult situations when they are trusted and supported.

Do you know why many girls stay silent?

Because they are afraid they will not be believed, not because they are weak.

Real protection for girls begins at home.

When parents build trust from childhood, when they listen without judgment and support instead of doubt, they raise daughters who speak without fear.

To every parent, brother, and sister reading this:

Build trust so strong that your daughter never hesitates to tell you the truth. Make your home a safe space before the world becomes unsafe.

I was able to face my situation because my family believed me. They stood beside me. Their belief became my shield.

And that is the real power of girls.

Confidence strengthened by trust, not silence nor fear.

Let us raise girls who speak.

Let us become families who listen.

Let us build a digital world where harassment meets accountability.

We don't speak only for 16 days. We will speak until the whole world hears us.

*This story received a Story Award, and the author has been recognized as a Featured Storyteller on World Pulse.