Training in advocacy for women’s human rights offers practical support to those who back change “from below”

The rice fields and forests  of the Morang district in eastern Nepal lie far from the splendid halls of the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. But for three weeks this autumn, Yagya Gautam, project manager for the Lutheran World Federation in Nepal, is taking part in a Geneva-based human rights training program to learn how to become a more effective advocate for the rights of women and girls at the UN level.

Gautam is one of more than 70 people taking part in the annual Women’s Human Rights Defenders training, which was held from 26 October to 13 November 2020. The course is jointly led by the LWF and five ecumenical partners — the World Council of Churches (WCC), Act Alliance (ACT), ACT Church of Sweden (CoS), Finn Church Aid (FCA) and Mission 21, the mission society of the Reformed Protestant churches in Switzerland.

Normally all participants travel to Geneva and visit the Palais des Nations to see for themselves how international human rights law is developed and how decisions are made to hold governments around the world accountable. This year, in view of the Covid-19 restrictions, the course was partly available online and only partly in person, but participants feel that even so they gained a valuable opportunity to learn more about effective gender-equality advocacy.

The context of women’s rights

The LWF is “committed to defending women and girls, persons with disabilities, Dalits, people at risk, people affected by disasters, former bonded laborers and indigenous communities,” notes Gautam. “The training has given me very practical skills,” he continues, especially an understanding of “the contexts of women’s rights and the many factors that drive their oppression and the stripping away of their dignity.”

At the heart of the training are the challenges faced by those working in the field of gender equality, including the rise in violence against women that has been reported in countries around the world in connection with Covid-19 and the related quarantine measures. “I came to understand how important religious communities and institutions are, which can be a powerful force for change in empowering women and in fostering an appreciation of the value of gender justice,” says Gautam.

These sessions also provide practical training on how to develop an advocacy plan, how to prepare reports for the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process and how to engage with the reporting mechanisms of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

From grief and pain to hope and life

Colleen Cunningham of the Moravian Church in South Africa (MCSA) is also taking part in the three-week training. “After all the trauma associated with Covid-19,” she says, “I have a chance to do and to think about something else, moving from grief and pain to hope and life.” Cunningham, a member of the planning committee for the 13th LWF Assembly in Kraków, Poland, said: “I thank you from my heart for changing my life and my thoughts at this crossroads in life.”

LWF Advocacy Officer for Gender Justice Sikhonzile Ndlovu adds: “When it became clear that we would be living under certain travel restrictions for most of the year during Covid-19, we decided to reshape the training to offer a virtual, enriched learning experience for those who could not travel to Geneva. With the rising resistance to gender equality, we could not afford to waste any time.”

The aim of the training is to equip participants with the skills and resources to carry out gender-equality advocacy from the local level to the global level and back to their own local situation,

LWF Advocacy Officer for Gender Justice Sikhonzile Ndlovu

Ndlovu adds: “The aim of the training is to equip participants with the skills and resources to carry out gender-equality advocacy from the local level to the global level and back to their own local situation.” Despite the physical constraints, this year’s training sessions have given participants valuable opportunities to learn about best practices in the field of gender equality that have proved successful in various Lutheran communities around the world.

In his work to secure justice for Nepal’s most marginalized women, Yagya Gautam says: “A mobile court system to improve women’s access to justice really is a new and workable intervention, and I will try it out in my own area too.” He concludes: “The training has inspired me to stand up for those who are discriminated against, oppressed and undervalued in Nepali society.”

GENEVA, Switzerland

13.11.2020.

Pictured: LWF project manager in Nepal, Gautam Yagya, briefs the local community on the LWF’s COVID-19 response while handing over medical equipment at the Morang hospital in Nepal. Photo: LWF Nepal

Source: Lutheran World Federation News