Women Human Rights Defenders
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.
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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.
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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;
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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:
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Mobilizing urgent responses of international solidarity for WHRDs at risk through our international and regional networks, and our active membership.
Related Content
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Con 1773 cabilderos de los combustibles fósiles presentes en la COP29 del año pasado, nos dirigimos, junto con otres feministas a Belém (Brasil) del 10 al 21 de noviembre de 2025. Allí continuaremos denunciando las soluciones falsas, llamando la atención sobre la captura corporativa, y exigiendo que los Estados cumplan sus compromisos bajo las Responsabilidades Comunes pero Diferenciadas y las Capacidades Respectivas (en inglés) para impulsar las alternativas económicas feministas.
USD 2,7 billones para gasto militar. USD 300.000 millones para la justicia climática. Estamos aquí para dar vuelta el relato.
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Sanyu est une féministe panafricaine basée à Nairobi, au Kenya. Elle a passé la dernière décennie à soutenir les mouvements syndicaux, féministes et de défense des droits humains en faveur de la redevabilité des entreprises, de la justice économique et de la justice de genre. Elle a travaillé avec le Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, IWRAW Asia Pacific et la Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. Elle est titulaire d’un master en droits humains et d’une licence en droit de l’Université de Nottingham. Ses écrits ont été publiés dans le Business and Human Rights Journal, Human Rights Law Review, Open Global Rights, Open Democracy et d’autres encore. Pendant son temps libre, elle adore se promener en forêt et chasser les papillons.
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Eni Lestari
Eni Lestari is an Indonesian domestic worker in Hong Kong and a migrant rights activist. After escaping her abusive employer, she transformed herself from a victim into an organizer for domestic workers in particular, and migrant workers in general. In 2000, she founded the Association of Indonesian Migrant Workers (ATKI-Hong Kong) which later expanded to Macau, Taiwan, and Indonesia. She was the coordinator and the one of the spokesperson of the Asia Migrants Coordinating Body (AMCB) - an alliance of grassroots migrants organisations in Hong Kong coming from Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Nepal and Sri Lanka. She is also the current chairperson of International Migrants Alliance, the first-ever global alliance of grassroots migrants, immigrants, refugees, and other displaced people.
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«¿Dónde está el dinero para las organizaciones feministas?»
¿Cuánto sabes sobre financiamiento feminista? 📊 Pon a prueba tu conocimiento sobre la movilización de recursos para el financiamiento de la organización feminista, respondiendo al cuestionario "¿Dónde está el dinero?":
Completa el quiz en línea Descarga la versión para imprimir
La encuesta ha cerrado. ¡Muchas gracias!
Queremos expresar nuestro más sincero agradecimiento a todos los diversos grupos, colectivos y organizaciones feministas de todo el mundo que respondieron a la encuesta WITM. Su participación y sus puntos de vista han sido inestimables y enriquecerán enormemente nuestra comprensión colectiva de los recursos feministas a nivel mundial.
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AWID, el Center for Women’s Global Leadership [CWGL, Centro por el Liderazgo Global de las Mujeres], y la African Women's Development and Communication Network [FEMNET, Red de Desarrollo y Comunicación de las Mujeres Africanas], presentan esta plataforma como aporte para cuestionar las nociones dominantes acerca del desarrollo y poner sobre la mesa propuestas iniciales para una agenda feminista para el desarrollo y la justicia económica y de género.
¿Cómo se originó este proyecto?
Las propuestas
Estas propuestas son exactamente eso: se ideas y experiencias a ser conversadas, debatidas, para que les sumemos elementos, las desmenucemos, las adaptemos, las adoptemos e incluso para que inspiren otras propuestas.
Rachel Mabaudi
Rachel is a financial professional with over two decades of experience. She has overseen financial affairs and projects for private and public entities, non-profits, and international non-governmental organizations. A Chartered Accountant with a Global Master’s in Business Administration, she is also a member of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants. In her spare time, Rachel designs typography art, enjoys traveling and spending time with family and friends over a bottle of wine.
