INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The Bolivian mountaineer who scaled new heightsNine years ago, Cecilia Llusco was one of 11 Indigenous women who made it to the summit of
They called themselves the cholitas escaladoras (the climbing cholitas) and went on to scale many more peaks in Bolivia and across South
Their name comes from chola, once a pejorative term for Indigenous Aymara women.In August, I travelled to Bolivia for a three-day expedition
She first started working in tourism at the age of eight, alongside her father, a trekking guide.View image in fullscreenCecilia Llusco has
faced much discrimination for being an Indigenous woman who climbs mountains
Photograph: Claudia Morales/The GuardianLlusco takes enormous pride in being an Indigenous woman and always goes up mountains wearing her
pollera, a voluminous traditional floral skirt, over layers of petticoats
Watching her ascend an ice wall wearing crampons and a helmet, and holding two pickaxes, while her skirt and petticoats billowed in the
wind, was unforgettable.She and her peers have faced discrimination for being Indigenous women and for daring to reach the tops of multiple
But despite everything, Llusco is full of an infectiously joyful exuberance when out in nature
And her belief in the strength of others, particularly women, is steadfast and reassuring.Sarah JohnsonThe photographer who documented the
horrors of GazaWhen the war in Gaza broke out, Motaz Azaiza picked up his camera and headed to the frontline
He spent 107 days documenting the conflict, during which 15 members of his family were killed.Through his lens, the rest of the world was
able to witness the devastation in Gaza
in Gaza reached millions on social media
Photograph: Motaz AzaizaWhen I first met Azaiza in February, he had just arrived in Doha after being flown out of Gaza on a military
was also resilient and determined
He has flown around the world, sharing his first-hand experiences of the war and calling for a ceasefire
When he is not pressuring high-profile ministers, you can find him giving motivational talks to student protesters at Columbia University in
New York or taking centre stage at a Massive Attack concert in Bristol.When we last spoke, Azaiza was finishing a speaking tour of the US,
Several hundred thousand people are estimated to have died, many from disease and hunger as the government blocked aid, and women were
almost did not survive the war
Today, however, the women of Mekelle 70 Enderta are back on the road.When I interviewed her in April, as the team prepared for a tournament
in the historic town of Axum, Genet had just returned from competing in the African Games in Accra, Ghana, fulfilling a lifelong
ambition.View image in fullscreenTeam captain Genet Mekonen receives treatment for injuries sustained in a recent crash, after a tournament
may feel understandably bitter about having some of their prime years snatched from them by conflict, but Genet is upbeat and relentlessly
optimistic.Combining easy humour with strict athletic discipline, she is a natural leader, even at her young age, and has her sights set on
becoming a regular international competitor
cannot speak or hear, Asom Khan has so much to say
When I arrived at his shelter in a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh, he was quick to dig out his art books so I could see his drawings,
to show me the photos he takes with his phone, and to tell me his story through the makeshift sign language he has developed.There is
to speak by the authorities.skip past newsletter promotionSign up to Global DispatchGet a different world view with a roundup of the best
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in fullscreenAsom Khan holds up his drawing of Rohingya life in Myanmar
He has developed his own sign language to allow him to express himself
Photograph: Kaamil AhmedHe also represents their determination to be heard
military, was one of the most memorable photos of the crisis
to the world what it is like to live in a refugee camp, where he has now spent almost half of his life.Kaamil AhmedThe Iranian lawyer
fighting for womenIt is difficult to comprehend the strength required to keep going in the face of decades of state harassment, including
imprisonment, just for doing your job
But the human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has been doing just that, while also supporting others with warmth, humour and steely
resolve.Her determination to stand up for victims of injustice in Iran is resolute
For decades she has fought for justice, defending children on death row, child victims of domestic abuse and prominent activists
She was beaten and arrested after attending the funeral of 16-year-old Armita Geravand bare-headed, in defiance of the hijab rules.View
image in fullscreenNasrin Sotoudeh at home in Tehran 11 years ago
She has since been imprisoned and barred from practising as a lawyer but still fights for human rights
Photograph: Abedin Taherkenareh/EPA-EFESome question how, as a wife and mother, she could risk imprisonment, after she was sentenced to 38
but has been barred from practising law
Still, she does what she can to help others by acting as a consultant and continues to fight for her beliefs.Speaking to Sotoudeh by video
call earlier this year, what struck me most was her calm demeanour, even as she spoke about returning to prison
She has every right to rage against the regime, yet she remains focused on fighting abuses.The government has been relentless in its efforts
to crush her spirit, but Sotoudeh refuses to give up hope
Even as Iran continues to suppress protests, she has faith that the violent repression of women, and the men who support them, will not last
Isabel ChoatThe sex worker in Ivory Coast risking it all for her familyThis summer, I found myself deep in the forests of northern Ivory
Coast near the border with Mali and Guinea, talking to dozens of young Nigerian women, many lured there by traffickers promising them good
jobs.One of them was Sandra, 22, who quietly shared the ambition of them all to be independent
Unlike many of her peers, however, she had been born into a wealthy family and had knowingly taken up sex work.After her father died when
she was a teenager, and as is customary in parts of south-east Nigeria, her uncles seized his property and threw out his family.Sandra was
forced to become a breadwinner to help her mother take care of her family
Her pursuit of employment led first into sex work in Nigeria and then Ivory Coast.As she spoke, her determination to return to her family
and give them a semblance of the life that had been snatched from them was evident
she would keep working to raise enough money to take back to Nigeria so all her sacrifices would have been worth it.Her determination to
deny herself any comforts indefinitely, and put her dignity and life on the line for her loved ones at such a young age, was as inspiring as
it was unsettling.Eromo Egbejule
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
