Souhayr Belhassen is a Tunisian journalist, activist and the president of the FIDH. Belhassen is part of the Tunisian opposition.
Souhayr Belhassen was born in 1943 in Gabes to a Tunisian mother and a Tunisian-Indonesian father. She studied political science and law graduating from the University of Tunis and the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris .
Souhayr Belhassen worked since the 70s as a correspondent for Reuters and Jeune Afrique Weekly in Tunis.
Souhayr Belhassen was elected on 24 April 2007 as head of International Federation of Human Rights Leagues, making her the first Arab-Muslim woman to take on that position.
Souhayr Belhassen is also very active in the Ligue Tunisienne des Droits de l’Homme (LTDH), the oldest human rights organization in the Arab world. She became its vice president in November 2000, then joined the FIDH’s international office at the Quito congress in 2004.
Souhayr Belhassen was nominated for the Arab Revolution Women Award in 2011.