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
- Included in the 100 most influential women of Pakistan.
- Appointed Member of the International Strategic Advisory Board, Oslo University, 2012.
- 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, Uni