Writer Feature: Zeenath Shiffani
The Writer's Notebook
*
The Writer's Notebook *
Zeenath Shiffani is from Sri Lanka. She is one of IHRAM Press’s treasured writers. In this interview, she shares her musings, inspiration, and honest thoughts on her experience with us as an author and activist.
Her latest publication with IHRAM Press is Ghosts from the Past, featured in IHRAM Quarter 3 Literary Magazine: Childhood Dreams and Aspirations.
Thank you for all you do, Zeenath.
Now be honest, how has your experience been with IHRAM Press? How did you find us and why did you choose to publish with us?
My experience with IHRAM not only endorsed me as a global writer but it also set the platform for me to pursue my career in writing. I found IHRAM on the internet, I chose IHRAM above all since it genuinely speaks about the oppressed and the voiceless. IHRAM is a very rare and unbiased platform for writers.
Would you recommend IHRAM Press to other writers/artists?
Yes most definitely.
Share a quote from your written piece published in IHRAM Literary Magazine 2024!
“The misery of war leaves my village in devastation
Throwing all of us into different directions"
Now for the fun questions! What compels you to pick up a pen or open your laptop to free-write? And what inspires/influences your writing, particularly when it comes to addressing human rights issues?
My village is a village surrounded by emerald fields and an abundance of rivers snaking across. The boundless nature that was part of me during my carefree childhood was my inspiration for writing at the beginning, however the internal war between the LTTE and armed forces destroyed my village and internally displaced us. Going from being mesmerized by the beauty of nature I started to witness the horror of war, families torn apart and dreams destroyed! The unfairness of oppression by the powerful over the powerless and the many violations of human rights triggered me to act as a voice to the voiceless.
The human rights concerns addressed in the IHRAM literary magazine are often complex and challenging to navigate. How do you navigate the balance between highlighting these challenges and maintaining a sense of hope or optimism in your writing?
My writing is and was mostly based on what I witnessed and I felt writing about the violation of human rights committed in a tiny unknown village. It is just as important as the well documented war crimes around the world. I desperately wanted the world to know the injustice committed to poor, helpless, powerless citizens belonging to a rural village. My poems and write-offs speak about the pain endured by the victims. My words are not mere words., they are emotions. Emotions of each and every individual who have suffered in the grip of war.
How do you personally connect with our mission? Particularly on the power of art and literature to influence social change, and our values of beauty as a fundamental creative principle, sincerity, vulnerability, celebrating diversity, and opening doorways of engagement.
Although many media personnel faced oppression, extra-judicial killings, and disappearances in my country, IHRAM gives me the stage to influence and inspire as whistle-blower to sensitise the policymakers to ensure the principles of good governance. IHRAM gives me the courage to take up challenges, and I advocate with writing, focusing on violation of human rights, civil war crimes, and social injustice to bring about change for the better future. My dream through literary work is a world free of bullet and blood.
The IHRAM magazine aims to celebrate authors contending with their identities within the context of their environments. How does your environment influence your view of the world (your home country, city, and surrounding culture)?
Born in a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic village being from a second minority community in my country, l had to face the ill-treatment and under-privileges compared to the majority community. But arts and literature make us united in diversity and beyond boundaries.
In comparison, how does your intersectionality influence your view of the world (your personal beliefs, gender expression, religious affiliations, etc.)?
IHRAM is the ideal gateway to foster a writer like me from a small island like Sri Lanka with many limitations with freedom of expression and media oppression. I find IHRAM to be a common platform which unites the writers in diversity globally.
