Philippe Leroyer | Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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

Read in: English French Spanish

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.

Related Content

Type

Shireen Lateef

Read in: English French Spanish
Category
Civil & Political Rights
Region
Pacific
Date of death / disappearance
Cause of death / disappearance

Natural

Shireen was an inspiration to many feminists in Fiji and a powerful ally to the women’s movement. She advocated tirelessly for gender equality locally and regionally.

She began her career as a junior gender specialist at the Asian Development Bank and brought about drastic changes to the institution’s gender policies.

Her research, “Rule by the Danda: Domestic violence amongst Indo Fijians” was one of the earliest pieces of research on domestic violence, marriage and women in Fiji. This seminal work has been a catalyst for feminist work in this area.

Shireen’s legacy lives on as many remember her influence, commitment and support to the women’s movement in Fiji and the Pacific.

 

Shireen Lateef, Fiji

Snippet FEA collaborator and allies Photo 4 (ES)

La foto muestra a Sopo hablando en un evento público en el interior. Sostiene el micrófono mientras lee sus notas y está sentada en una silla entre otras tres personas que son oradores o moderadores.

Herramientas

Resumen Narrativas sobre la «Ideología de género»: Una amenaza para los derechos humanos

Что подразумевается под внешним финансированием?

Внешнее финансирование включает гранты и другие формы финансирования от благотворительных фондов, правительств, двусторонних, многосторонних или корпоративных спонсоров и индивидуальных доноров – как внутри вашей страны, так и из-за рубежа. Сюда не входят ресурсы, которые группы, организации и/или движения генерируют самостоятельно, такие как, например, членские взносы, добровольные взносы "сотрудниц(-ков), участниц(-ков) и/или сторонниц(-ков), сборы через сообщество, сдача помещений в аренду или продажа услуг. Для удобства в опрос включены определения различных видов финансирования и краткие описания различных доноров.

No puedo presentar una propuesta escrita, ¿aceptan otros formatos?

Read in: English French Spanish

Como expresión de nuestro compromiso con hacer que todos los aspectos del Foro AWID sean accesibles, aceptaremos propuestas en forma de audio/video cuando se trate de personas/organizaciones/grupos que no puedan enviarlas por escrito. Si decides enviar tu propuesta en formato de audio/video, por favor responde las preguntas en el mismo orden en que aparecen en el Formulario para Presentar Actividades.

Para presentar un archivo de audio/video, por favor escríbenos utilizando nuestro formulario de contacto. Seleccione «propuesta de actividad» como asunto de mensaje.

Contactanos

Mariam Uy Acob

Read in: English French Spanish
Category
Derechos civiles y políticos
Region
El Pacifico
Cause of death / disappearance

Asesinada

Mariam era asistente jurídica en la Alianza Kawagib Moro por los Derechos Humanos.

Fue una acérrima crítica de la militarización de las comunidades moro, y denunció sistemáticamente los bombardeos aéreos y la concentración de campamentos militares. Tuvo que buscar refugio luego de exponer y denunciar las injusticias cometidas contra las comunidades musulmanas en Filipinas.

Se cree que fue asesinada por agentes militares sospechosos debido a su trabajo como defensora de derechos humanos. Los atacantes que mataron a Mariam la esperaron, se pusieron a la par del vehículo en el que se desplazaba y le dispararon siete veces.

 

Mariam Uy Acob, Philippines

Snippet FEA different lines of work S4 (FR)

Lignes de travail :

CONTRE

O meu idioma não é um dos oficiais do inquérito, e estou a ter dificuldades a preencher o mesmo. O que posso fazer?

A AWID compromete-se a alcançar a justiça linguística e lamentamos que, neste momento, não seja viável disponibilizar um inquérito do WITM em mais idiomas. No entanto, caso precise de apoio com traduções ou queira preencher o inquérito em qualquer outro idioma, entre em contacto connosco através de witm@awid.org.

¿Qué incluye el costo de inscripción?

Read in: English French Spanish

El costo de inscripción para el Foro de AWID cubre, para todxs lxs participantes:

  •  Pleno acceso a los cuatro días del Foro
  • Almuerzos y pausas para café/té durante los días del Foro
  • Materiales de consulta
  • Interpretación simultánea durante las plenarias y algunas sesiones/actividades subsidiarias determinadas (inglés, francés, español e idioma local)
  • Participación en la cena/fiesta de celebración
  • Aplicación móvil con programa definitivo y función de chat
  • Servicio de wi-fi gratuito dentro del área de Foro
  • Traslados desde/al aeropuerto y transporte hotel-sede-hotel.

Florence Adong-Ewoo

Read in: English French Spanish
Category
Droits économiques, sociaux et culturels
Region
Afrique
Afrique subsaharienne
Cause of death / disappearance

Accident

Florence était une militante des droits des personnes handicapées qui travaillait avec plusieurs organisations de femmes handicapées en Ouganda.

Elle a également occupé le poste de présidente de l’Association des femmes handicapées du district de Lira, ainsi que du caucus des conseillères du district de Lira. Formée en tant que conseillère pour personnes handicapées et parents d'enfants handicapés, elle a soutenu de nombreux projets appelant à une plus grande représentation des personnes handicapées.

Elle est morte dans un accident de moto.

 

Florence Adong-Ewoo, Uganda

Snippet FEA Wage Parity (EN)

Illustration of two a pair of white-skinned people in glasses, to the left in the background is a mand and to the right at the forefront is a woman. The background is turquoise.

WAGE PARITY

Reason to join 2

Find and create connections. There are over 9,000 AWID members, all working to address complementary, interconnected issues. This diversity supports the sustainability of feminist movements and actors.

لم تتلق مجموعتنا التمويل بشكل متواصل بين الأعوام 2021-2023. هل علينا تعبئة الاستطلاع؟

نعم. نريد السماع منكم/ن دون أي علاقة ان حصلتم/ن على تمويل لثلاثة أعوام أو عامين أو عام واحد في السنوات 2021-2023.

No puedo asistir al Foro en persona: ¿en qué otra forma puedo participar?

Read in: English French Spanish

Más que un simple evento, el Foro de AWID es parte de nuestro Viaje de Realidades Feministas, con muchos espacios en los cuales reunirse, en línea o en forma presencial, para compartir, discutir, elaborar estrategias, y crear conjuntamente realidades feministas.

Infórmate sobre el Viaje de Realidades Feministas y sobre todo lo que sucederá en este Viaje antes del Foro. ¡Y mantente sintonizadx para los anuncios post-Foro!

Estamos estudiando opciones para la participación virtual en el Foro, y compartiremos la información cuando sepamos qué podemos ofrecer.

Marceline Loridan-Ivens

Read in: English French Spanish
Category
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
Region
Europe

Born in 1928, Marceline worked as an actress, a screenwriter, and a director.

She directed The Birch-Tree Meadow in 2003, starring Anouk Aimee, as well as several other documentaries. She was also a holocaust survivor. She was just fifteen when she and her father were both arrested and sent to Nazi concentration camps. The three kilometres between her father in Auschwitz and herself in Birkenau were an insurmountable distance, which she writes about in one of her seminal novels “But You Did Not Come Back.”

In talking about her work, she once said: "All I can say is that everything I can write, everything I can unveil — it's my task to do it.”

 

Marceline Loridan-Ivens, France

Snippet FEA Map of Spain Union Otras (ES)

Fondo mostaza con mapa de España en rosa y pin amarillo de la ubicación del Sindicato Otras;