Through the Awareness Programme, we help women recognise that they have the right to make their own choices. It is not about being given power, but about discovering that it was always there.
We support women to trust their judgement, to step into independence, and to realise they are free to live life on their terms, not defined by fear, control, or the expectations of others.
This is where dreams begin to feel possible again.
Vivian is a woman with disability. She is gentle, expressive, and deeply sensitive to the world around her. She understands far more than many people assume, and like all of us, she has her own preferences, her own personality, and her own need for comfort, dignity, and connection.
She also cannot easily advocate for herself.
For much of her life, Vivian has depended on others to interpret her needs, to speak for her, and to make decisions about her world. That dependence, combined with disability and isolation, has made her profoundly vulnerable in ways that are often invisible to systems.
On paper, Vivian is “in the system”.
She is known to services.
She is known to agencies.
She is surrounded by processes and frameworks that are supposed to exist to protect her.
And yet, in real life, she has often been left:
Without any truly independent person regularly checking on her welfare
Without proper support to help her communicate or be heard
Without control over her environment, her comfort, or her daily life
And without anyone holding overall responsibility for her well-being as a whole person
This is not because there are no systems.
It is because systems do not always join up.
Vivian’s life shows something confronting and painful:
A person can be known to many systems and still be effectively invisible.
Her situation has never been about one single failure, one single decision, or one single moment. It has been about years of drifting between boundaries — between health, disability, aged care and legal frameworks — where each part can say, “This is not quite our role,” and no one is responsible for the whole.
It has also shown something else that is deeply important:
When a person cannot easily communicate, and no one is actively helping them to have a voice, their world can quietly become very small.
It is the story of many women (People) who are:
Dependent
Isolated
Or unable to advocate for themselves
It is the story of women who are technically “being cared for”, but not truly being seen.
It is the story of what happens when:
Assumptions replace oversight
Process replaces presence
And paperwork replaces human responsibility
Vivian deserves — like every woman — more than survival.
She deserves:
Comfort
Dignity
Choice
Voice
Safety
And a life that feels like her own
Sister Power exists because no woman should live a life where her well-being depends on gaps, luck, or silence.
Vivian’s story reminds us why:
Being in a system is not the same as being protected.
Being alive is not the same as being free.
And being cared for is not the same as being seen.
This is why Sister Power stands for every woman who has been oppressed, silenced, or made invisible — whether by people, by circumstances, or by systems that were never designed to hold the whole person.
The challenges faced by these Hazara females are a tribute to their resilience in the face of adversity while they await their Australian visas, it serves as a testament to their strength and determination. Despite being forced to flee their homeland due to the escalating violence and persecution by the Taliban, they have not given up hope and continue to strive for a better future. Their journey has been filled with hardships, from separation from family members to encountering hostility and abuse in Pakistan. However, they have found solace and support in each other and the companionship of Sediqa, a fellow Hazara woman. Throughout their experiences, they have demonstrated the power of unity, hope, and perseverance, they inspire us all to stand up against injustice and fight for a better world.
These courageous women are still in the process of waiting for their Australian visas. Sughra is the mother of Shazia, Mahdi, Setara, and Farzam, because the Taliban was aggressively searching for her, she was forced to flee Afghanistan. Her youngest son, Farzam was with her at that time, they are now living in Germany. After Sughra and Farzam fled to Germany, Shazia assumed the responsibility of caring for her siblings who at that time were in Kabul.
Due to the escalating violence and persecution by the Taliban, these Hazara siblings were forced to flee again and seek refuge in Pakistan. Unfortunately, they have been met with hostility and abuse at every turn.
