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Special Focus

AWID is an international, feminist, membership organisation committed to achieving gender equality, sustainable development and women’s human rights

Women Human Rights Defenders

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WHRDs are self-identified women and lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LBTQI) people and others who defend rights and are subject to gender-specific risks and threats due to their human rights work and/or as a direct consequence of their gender identity or sexual orientation.

WHRDs are subject to systematic violence and discrimination due to their identities and unyielding struggles for rights, equality and justice.

The WHRD Program collaborates with international and regional partners as well as the AWID membership to raise awareness about these risks and threats, advocate for feminist and holistic measures of protection and safety, and actively promote a culture of self-care and collective well being in our movements.

Risks and threats targeting WHRDs  

WHRDs are exposed to the same types of risks that all other defenders who defend human rights, communities, and the environment face. However, they are also exposed to gender-based violence and gender-specific risks because they challenge existing gender norms within their communities and societies.

By defending rights, WHRDs are at risk of:

  • Physical assault and death
  • Intimidation and harassment, including in online spaces
  • Judicial harassment and criminalization
  • Burnout

A collaborative, holistic approach to safety

We work collaboratively with international and regional networks and our membership

  • to raise awareness about human rights abuses and violations against WHRDs and the systemic violence and discrimination they experience
  • to strengthen protection mechanisms and ensure more effective and timely responses to WHRDs at risk

We work to promote a holistic approach to protection which includes:

  • emphasizing the importance of self-care and collective well being, and recognizing that what care and wellbeing mean may differ across cultures
  • documenting the violations targeting WHRDs using a feminist intersectional perspective;
  • promoting the social recognition and celebration of the work and resilience of WHRDs ; and
  • building civic spaces that are conducive to dismantling structural inequalities without restrictions or obstacles

Our Actions

We aim to contribute to a safer world for WHRDs, their families and communities. We believe that action for rights and justice should not put WHRDs at risk; it should be appreciated and celebrated.

  • Promoting collaboration and coordination among human rights and women’s rights organizations at the international level to  strengthen  responses concerning safety and wellbeing of WHRDs.

  • Supporting regional networks of WHRDs and their organizations, such as the Mesoamerican Initiative for WHRDs and the WHRD Middle East and North Africa  Coalition, in promoting and strengthening collective action for protection - emphasizing the establishment of solidarity and protection networks, the promotion of self-care, and advocacy and mobilization for the safety of WHRDs;

  • Increasing the visibility and recognition of  WHRDs and their struggles, as well as the risks that they encounter by documenting the attacks that they face, and researching, producing, and disseminating information on their struggles, strategies, and challenges:

  • Mobilizing urgent responses of international solidarity for WHRDs at risk through our international and regional networks, and our active membership.

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Come meet the feminist economies we LOVE.

The economy is about how we organize our societies, our homes and workplaces. How do we live together? How do we produce food, organize childcare, provide for our health? The economy is also about how we access and manage resources, how we relate with other people, with ourselves and with nature.

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We are excited to share with you a taste of feminist economic alternatives, featuring inspiring collectives from all around the world.

I have written a paper about an issue related to Women’s Rights and Development. How can I share it with AWID’s members?

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CFA FAQ - Other questions - AR

اسئلة أخرى

Snippet FEA São Paulo City Center (ES)

Centro de la ciudad de São Paulo

Fuente: Censo de População de Rua, Prefeitura de São Paulo

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Edificios abandonados/desocupados
Illustration of an abandoned, run down building to depict the housing crisis

Personas que viven en la calle
 

31,000

  

40.000

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Primer Diálogo de Alto Nivel sobre la Financiación para el Desarrollo, 29 y 30 de octubre de 2003

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Otros mecanismos de seguimiento a Monterrey son los siguientes:

  • La reunión especial de alto nivel organizada por el Consejo Económico y Social de la ONU (ECOSOC) que se realiza cada año, bajo liderazgo del Banco Mundial, el Fondo Monetario Internacional, la Organización Mundial del Comercio y la UNCTAD (Conferencia de las Naciones Unidas sobre Comercio y Desarrollo) como seguimiento al Consenso de Monterrey. El ECOSOC también dedica hasta dos días para deliberar sobre los temas de la agenda de la FpD durante su sesión sustantiva.
  • El Comité de Expertos sobre la Cooperación Internacional en Materia Fiscal, que es el órgano de la ONU especializado en el tema impositivo, se ocupa de los distintos aspectos de las políticas fiscales identificados en el Consenso de Monterrey y aporta un marco para el diálogo que permita mejorar y promover la cooperación internacional en cuestiones tributarias entre autoridades nacionales del área fiscal.

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Día 1

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Campagne publicitaire d'Ocupação 9 de Julho :

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Yellow square that says: "Mas quen cuida das mulheres?" or "But who is taking care of women?" in Portuguese.
A yellow square that says "Nenhuma a menos" which translates to "Not another woman less"
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1Nenhuna a menos se traduit littéralement par « pas une femme de moins » ou « ni una menos » en espagnol - un célèbre slogan féministe en Amérique latine qui a émergé en Argentine en réponse à l'augmentation de la violence sexiste.

2010: le quatrième Dialogue de haut niveau a lieu

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  • Le quatrième Dialogue de haut niveau sur le financement du développement s’est tenu les 23 et 24 mars 2010 sur le thème Le Consensus de Monterrey et la Déclaration de Doha sur le financement du développement : état de la mise en œuvre et responsabilités futures. Dans ce cadre, quatre tables rondes ont été organisées sur les sujets suivants : la réforme des systèmes monétaires et financiers internationaux, l’impact de la crise financière sur les investissements étrangers directs, le commerce international et les flux financiers privés et enfin le rôle de la coopération financière et technique pour le développement – dont celui des nouvelles sources de financement du développement – dans l’optimisation de la mobilisation des ressources nationales et internationales en faveur du développement.
  • Un dialogue interactif informel a également permis à différentes parties prenantes de se concentrer sur le lien qui unit le financement du développement et les objectifs du Millénaire pour le développement.

Snippet - CSW68 - Feminist Community Evening - ES

🎤 Noche de la comunidad feminista:

una reunión para les activistas feministas que asisten a la CSW68

(¡con invitades especiales!)

📅Martes 12 de marzo
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Snippet FEA Clemencia (EN)

Meet Clemencia Carabalí Rodallega, an extraordinary Afro-Colombian feminist.

She has worked relentlessly for three decades towards the safeguarding of human rights, women’s rights and peace-building in conflict areas on the Pacific Coast of Colombia.

Clemencia has made significant contributions to the fight for truth, reparations and justice for the victims of Colombia’s civil war. She received the National Award for the Defense of Human Rights in 2019, and also participated in the campaign of newly elected Afro-Colombian and long-time friend, vice-president Francia Marquez.

Although Clemencia has faced and continues to face many hardships, including threats and assassination attempts, she continues to fight for the rights of Afro-Colombian women and communities across the country.

April 2015: Interactive hearings with the business sector and civil society take place

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Informal interactive hearings with the business sector and civil society took place on 8 and 9 April 2015 respectively at UN headquarters in New York.

  • Women’s rights organizations and other CSOs raised concern about the limited participation of Member States during the CSO hearings and thus the Addis Ababa CSO Coordinating Group (ACG) issued a letter to the Co-facilitators
  • The second drafting session of the Addis Ababa outcome document was held from 13 – 17 April 2015 at the UN Headquarters. The basis of discussion was the Zero Draft.
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