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Protection of the Family

The Issue

Over the past few years, a troubling new trend at the international human rights level is being observed, where discourses on ‘protecting the family’ are being employed to defend violations committed against family members, to bolster and justify impunity, and to restrict equal rights within and to family life.

The campaign to "Protect the Family" is driven by ultra-conservative efforts to impose "traditional" and patriarchal interpretations of the family, and to move rights out of the hands of family members and into the institution of ‘the family’.

“Protection of the Family” efforts stem from:

  • rising traditionalism,
  • rising cultural, social and religious conservatism and
  • sentiment hostile to women’s human rights, sexual rights, child rights and the rights of persons with non-normative gender identities and sexual orientations.

Since 2014, a group of states have been operating as a bloc in human rights spaces under the name “Group of Friends of the Family”, and resolutions on “Protection of the Family” have been successfully passed every year since 2014.

This agenda has spread beyond the Human Rights Council. We have seen regressive language on “the family” being introduced at the Commission on the Status of Women, and attempts made to introduce it in negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.


Our Approach

AWID works with partners and allies to jointly resist “Protection of the Family” and other regressive agendas, and to uphold the universality of human rights.

In response to the increased influence of regressive actors in human rights spaces, AWID joined allies to form the Observatory on the Universality of Rights (OURs).  OURs is a collaborative project that monitors, analyzes, and shares information on anti-rights initiatives like  “Protection of the Family”.

Rights at Risk, the first OURs report, charts a map of the actors making up the global anti-rights lobby, identifies their key discourses and strategies, and the effect they are having on our human rights.   

The report outlines “Protection of the Family” as an agenda that has fostered collaboration across a broad range of regressive actors at the UN.  It describes it as: “a strategic framework that houses “multiple patriarchal and anti-rights positions, where the framework, in turn, aims to justify and institutionalize these positions.”

 

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Our values - Justice and systemic change

Justice and systemic change

We work towards a world based on social, environmental, and economic justice; and interdependence, solidarity, and respect. We work towards dismantling systems of oppressive power and against all its manifestations, including patriarchy, fundamentalisms, militarisms, fascisms and corporate power that threaten our lives and our world. We want a just world where resources and power are shared in ways that enable everyone to thrive.

ما هي لغات استطلاع "أين المال" الرسمية؟

حالياً سيتواجد الاستطلاع على منصة KOBO باللغات العربية، الإنجليزية، الفرنسية، البرتغالية، الروسية والاسبانية. ستكون لديكم/ن الفرصة لاختيار اللغة التي تريدون تعبئة الاستطلاع بها في بداية الاستطلاع.

Peni Moore

Peni was a radical feminist philosopher, poet, writer, playwright and songwriter.

As the first coordinator for the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement, she left a legacy that was infused with her deep concern for women’s human rights, justice and peace. Peni’s commitment to social, economic and ecological justice and her outstanding work gained local and international respect. She was one of the first in mainstream feminist movements in Fiji to work with, and beside LGBTQI people as a real accomplice, and provided practical assistance to the early Fiji sex worker movement.

Her colleagues described her as a formidable individual and visionary leader for change. She inspired many by her creativity and courage. Her work provided platforms for people to be heard, attain new skills and forge new pathways both at the personal and community level.


 

Peni Moore, Fiji

Snippet FEA Union Otras Photo Panel (ES)

Un panel de 13 personas de pie detrás de una silla de conferencia. Sobre la mesa hay hojas de papeles, micrófonos y botellas de agua. Detrás de ellos se puede ver una pared blanca y cortinas negras.

Miembrxs del sindicato OTRAS

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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If you have received emails from any staff members at AWID, we would like you to understand the following:

  • The information contained in this communication is confidential and is intended solely for the addressee. 

  • This communication may contain information proprietary to the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID), and may not be reproduced or disseminated in whole or in part without AWID's written consent. 

  • AWID does not warrant that any information contained herein is complete or correct. This communication is not an offer to enter into any agreement and is not a confirmation of any agreement described herein unless the context clearly indicates the contrary. 

  • AWID is not acting as your adviser in any agreement that may be proposed herein, and this communication does not constitute a recommendation, guidance or proposal to enter into any agreement. 

  • AWID does not guarantee or otherwise assure the expected results of any agreement. This communication may contain views or opinions that are not necessarily those of AWID. 

  • You shall not be entitled to place any reliance on the information contained in this communication for the purposes of entering into any proposed agreement or otherwise.

Join the Feminist Realities journey (Forum page)

Únete al viaje por las Realidades feministas

Este Foro de AWID celebrará y difundirá las realidades feministas que nos rodean en diferentes etapas de desarrollo.

Únete a nosotrxs

Наша группа не имела ежегодного финансирования в период с 2021 по 2023 год. Можем ли мы пройти опрос?

Да, мы хотим получить ваш ответ, независимо от того, сколько раз (один, два или три) вы получали финансирование в период между 2021 и 2023 годами.

Carmen de la Cruz

Carmen tuvo una larga carrera en la defensa de los derechos de las mujeres tanto en organizaciones no gubernamentales como en el sistema de las Naciones Unidas.

Dio clases en varias universidades españolas y latinoamericanas y publicó numerosos artículos e informes sobre mujeres, género y paz en países en desarrollo. Sus escritos y reflexiones críticas repercutieron en toda una generación de mujeres jóvenes.

En sus últimos años, fue responsable del Área Práctica de Género en el Centro Regional para América Latina del Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo (PNUD), desde donde apoyó iniciativas muy valiosas en favor de la igualdad de género y los derechos humanos de las mujeres.


 

Carmen de la Cruz, Argentina/ Spain

Snippet FEA Principles of work Transparency (FR)

Un parapluie rose

TRANSPARENCE

2003: se celebra el primer Diálogo de Alto Nivel

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

Uno de los mecanismos de seguimiento de la Conferencia de Monterrey fueron los Diálogos de Alto Nivel sobre la Financiación para el Desarrollo organizados cada dos años por la Asamblea General de la ONU. En total, ya se realizaron ocho mesas redondas en las que se ha continuado el Diálogo acerca de distintos temas como los subsidios a la agricultura, el comercio, el alivio de la deuda y la financiación para los ODM. En todas ellas se prestó especial atención a los obstáculos estructurales que colocan en desventaja a las naciones ‘en desarrollo’.

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.

Calling all artists & creative activists to come together in a new Slack community!

Our thoughts are with the many people all around the world who are most affected by the repercussions of the global COVID-19 pandemic, especially marginalised communities that are historically oppressed.

This is an invitation for artists and creative activists to join a virtual space to connect, build community, and support each other through these challenging times. For this we have created a new Slack community to safely share insights, learnings, life-hacks, resources, advice, fears and anxieties, hopeful and joyful reminders, and in general chat about how we’re doing.

Join us on Slack

After filling out the form, we will send you a personal invitation to the community.


About this community:

For those who are new to Slack, we’ll have orientation sessions and materials available after you sign up.

Since we are working in three languages (English, Spanish, French) we invite you to write in the language you are the most comfortable with and use online translation tools (Google Translate or others) to participate in discussions.

Co-creating welcoming and safe spaces:

Please refer to the Community Guidelines

The co-creation of our feminist realities starts with ourselves and how we treat each other. We are dedicated to creating and protecting safe and supportive spaces for our communities both online and in person.  We also consider that safe and welcoming spaces are co-owned and co-created. We expect our members to act in a manner that is ethical, responsible and consistent with the values of AWID and assume collective responsibility to ensure an atmosphere of mutual respect and solidarity.

Weekly Prompts: 

As part of our ongoing discussions, we will offer weekly prompts in Slack with the intention to gently facilitate dialogue and inspire art-making processes. This can be an introspective process, but to make the most out of this community, we welcome you to interact with other community members and share thoughts as part of our discussions. The intention is to invite folks to respond freely and gradually by writing or making art in whatever way feels best. 

We hope to have relevant and timely discussions with you, so we invite your suggestions and feedback. In general, the themes will center the experiences and perspectives of artists, writers, and creators -- and they will make space for folks to vision into and beyond the current global climate through the lens of feminist realities.


Join us on Slack

Contributors of toolkit (WITM landing page)

Nous tenons à remercier les personnes qui ont contribué à ce projet et qui ont fourni de précieux conseils :

  • Angelika Arutyunova
  • Cindy Clark
  • Kamardip Singh
  • Martin Redfern
  • Pei Yao Chen
  • Srilatha Batliwala
  • Veronica Vidal

Télécharger la Boîte à outils en PDF

Porque é que são necessários o nome e as informações de contacto do grupo/organização e/ou movimento que preencher o inquérito?

Pedimos estes dados para facilitar a revisão das respostas, para evitar respostas duplicadas e para poder entrar em contacto com o seu grupo caso não tenha conseguido completar o inquérito e/ou tenha dúvidas ou perguntas adicionais. Para mais informações sobre como utilizamos as informações pessoais que recolhemos através do nosso trabalho, clique aqui.

Efua Dorkenoo

Affectueusement connue sous le nom de « Mama Efua », Efua a lutté contre les mutilations génitales féminines (MGF) pendant trois décennies et a contribué à attirer l'attention et l'action de la communauté internationale pour mettre fin à cette pratique néfaste.

En 1983, Efua a cofondé FORWARD (fondation pour la santé, la recherche et le développement des femmes), qui est devenue une organisation de premier plan dans la lutte contre les MGF. Son livre intitulé « Cutting the Rose: Female Genital Mutilation »  (couper la rose), publié en 1994, est considéré comme le premier ouvrage sur les mutilations génitales féminines. Il figure parmi « Les 100 meilleurs livres africains du XXe siècle » de l’Université de Columbia.

Originaire du Ghana et infirmière de formation, Efua a rejoint l'OMS en 1995 et a réussi à faire en sorte que les mutilations génitales féminines fassent partie des agendas politiques des États membres de l'OMS. Elle a également travaillé en étroite collaboration avec le gouvernement nigérian pour élaborer une politique nationale globale qui servirait de base légale aux lois nigérianes contre les mutilations et qui est toujours en vigueur à ce jour.

Son travail de pionnière a abouti à une campagne menée par l'Afrique intitulée « The Girl Generation », qui s'est engagée à mettre fin aux MGF en une génération. Efua a montré comment une seule personne peut devenir la voix unificatrice d'un mouvement : « Une identité partagée peut aider à rassembler des activistes d'horizons différents dans un but commun ». Ces mots, emplis de sagesse, sont plus pertinents que jamais.


 

Efua Dorkenoo, Ghana

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2010: le quatrième Dialogue de haut niveau a lieu

  • 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.