Shaheen Ali

Shaheen Ali has an LLB (Peshawar), LLM (Hull), MA (Peshawar) and PhD (Hull). She is a socio-legal scholar and has written extensively in the field of Islamic law, human rights, women and child rights. She was Rector of the National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE), Pakistan, Professor of Law University of Peshawar, Pakistan for twenty-five years and Director Women's Study Centre at the same university. Shaheen served on the National Commission of Inquiry on Women as well as the Prime Minister's Consultative Committee on Women in Pakistan. She also served as the first woman cabinet Minister for Health, Population Welfare and Women's Development in the Government of the Khyber Pukhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan (formerly known as the North west Frontier Province) and the first Chair of the National Commission on the Status of Women of Pakistan. Shaheen was member and Vice-Chair of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary detention (2008-2014). Shaheen has consulted with a range of national and international organisations including the British Council, DFID, NORAD, UNICEF, UNIFEM, UNDP to name a few, as well as providing expert legal opinions in the area of Islamic law in UK and US courts. She was also a member of the British Council Task Force on Gender and Development and a founder member and Co-ordinator of the South Asian Research network on Gender, Law and Governance (SARN). Shaheen is member of the Advisory Board of the Arab Law Quarterly.

Distinctions and Awards

• Awarded honorary doctorate by the University of Oslo September 2024

  Member, International Independent Panel of Experts on Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations 2024-25.

  Member, United Nations International Independent Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran 2023-25.

  Member, International Strategic Advisory Board, University of Oslo, 2012-2014

  Member and Vice-chair, United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (2008-14)

  Included in the directory of 100 most influential Pakistani Women 2012.

  Awarded the Asian Women of Achievement Award 2005 (Public Sector), United Kingdom.

  Awarded the British Muslims Annual Honours achievement plaque in the House of Lords in May 2002.

  Awarded the Star Woman Award of the Year (1996) in the field of Law, Pakistan by The Star Girls and Women Foundation, Karachi, Pakistan.

  Awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship for Doctoral Studies at the Law School, University of Hull, England. (1995-1998).

  Awarded Aizaz-i-Fazilat (Presidential Award) 1992 for contribution to higher education and research in Pakistan.

  Honourable mention in the UNESCO Prize for development of the teaching of Human Rights 1992 by an international jury in Paris, November, 1992.

  Josephine Onoh Memorial Award, University of Hull for outstanding performance in LLM. (1991)

  Won a Foreign and Commonwealth Scholarship for LLM. studies at University of Hull, England. 1990-91.

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

UG Modules

• LA354-15 An Introduction to Islamic Law

PGT Modules

• LA967-20 Women's Human Rights and Global Justice
• LA984-60 Dissertation, Research and Writing Seminar
• LA9E0-20 An Introduction to Islamic Law

I welcome enquiries from prospective PhD supervisees. However, please ensure that you have a research proposal which corresponds with the University of Warwick School of Law requirements.

Current PhD Students:

• Renad Alotaibi
• Ismet Morshed
• Ohoud Rowaished