Rebecca Dykes, called Becky by her loved ones, was a Program and Policy Manager in Lebanon for the UK’s government Department for International Development.
On December 16, 2017, she was raped and strangled by a taxi driver in Lebanon during what should have been a 10-minute ride home.
Prior to her death, Becky strived to improve the lives of refugees and vulnerable host communities throughout Lebanon. She was passionate about humanitarian work throughout her career, based on her firm belief in basic human rights and equality.
In her work in Lebanon, she particularly enjoyed a ‘Lebanon Host Community’ project between Lebanese and Syrian refugees. Another focused on local women at risk of violence. In her spare time, she swam, hiked, went scuba-diving. She studied Arabic and took photographs. She ran a half-marathon. An outstanding long-distance runner, she’d already run two marathons in the UK and a half marathon in Bahrain. ‘One day I’d like to ride a horse in South America too,’ she said on her last birthday.
Becky’s Legacy
The UK government set up The Rebecca Dykes Chevening Scholarship in 2018 with the aim of continuing Becky’s passion for humanitarian and stabilization work for refugees, and other vulnerable communities. It is open to female Lebanese applicants (or Palestinians in Lebanon) who wish to undertake studies in gender studies, peace and conflict studies, development and human rights, refugee and migration studies, and other subject areas related to Becky’s work. The first two recipients are currently studying for doctorates on refugee-related subjects in the UK and Europe.
Becky’s legacy is carried on by those whose lives she has touched. Her mother, writer Jane Houng, is the founder of the Rebecca Dykes Writers initiatives, as well as Becky’s Bathhouse, and Becky’s Button. Each project is aimed at protecting the world’s most vulnerable women and aiding in the fight to end femicide and gender-based violence.