Networks
providing litigation support, capacity strenghtening activities and publications
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Our innovation and primary method of working is through our knowledge-sharing networks.
The purpose of the Feminist Litigation Network (FLN) is to build a pool of effective African feminist litigators within civil society organisations who are embedded in movements and the communities whose rights they seek to defend and who have a sophisticated understanding of the issues that they litigate on.
The FLN provides long-term, quality, in-depth support and capacity building to partner individuals and organisations working on strategic litigation within our thematic areas. We do this by investing in partner organisations that seek to hold state and non-state actors accountable for women’s rights violations through multiple activities, mechanisms and processes, to establish a new or strengthen an existing Strategic Litigation Unit or function.
The Network’s desired impact is to see strong movements working on gender and sexuality empowered in and actively using strategic litigation as a viable tool for social change.
- Network Development to build the Feminist Litigation Network as a coalition of feminist litigators and communities most affected by the issues being litigated on as an integral part of the movements working on these issues.
- Relationship management to establish and sustain relationships with past, present and potential partners so that their institutional, thematic and litigation capabilities are strengthened through the multiple mechanisms, processes, activities and tools offered by the FLN.
- Institutional Strengthening to create an enabling environment for strategic litigation by mobilising commitment in and support civil society organisations to provide sustained leadership and management in building effective feminist strategic litigation units within their institutions.
- Capacity Strengthening to provide sustained support to lawyers in civil society organisations to understand and use feminist approaches to strategic litigation and to engage in case development for strategic litigation on women’s human rights as an integral part of communities and movements working on these issues.
Get Involved With The Feminist Litigation Network
- Sexual Rights Litigation Network
- The 4 Core Pillars and Objectives of The Sexual Rights Litigation Network
The Sexual Rights Litigation Network aims to build a body of actors who can hold states accountable for violations against people based on their gender and/or sexuality. The network creates partnerships between organisations who want to draw on strategic litigation and lawyers willing and able to defend LGBTQI. We employ an anchor hub model through which we coordinate activities, develop relationships, share knowledge and strengthen lawyers’ skills and capacities as well as providing support to organisations. The network also creates an environment required to support strategic litigation, beyond the courtroom.
The Network works with organisations or individuals on sexual rights broadly and on SOGIE human rights issues in particular. It is LGBTQI-led and the work is located in the sexual rights social movements. We identify partners that have a clear focus on human rights broadly and sexual rights specifically and who view strategic litigation as a clear priority in line with a social movement-led approach to legal mobilisation.
For more information on the Sexual Rights Litigation Network please contact the Legal Programmes Coordinator using the form below.
- Network development to enable activists and movement lawyers and their organisations within the network to build strong relationships and a shared political orientation, by collaborating with and supporting each other on strategic litigation done in the name of social movements
- Relationship management to actively contribute towards and invest in building and organising a movement culture which is collaborative and accountable, recognising and harnessing the knowledge, skills and experience of the plural leadership within an effective strategic litigation agenda.
- Institutional strengthening to offer sustained support to local LGBTIQ partner organisations so that their institutional cultures, policies, systems and practices would enable their success, including creating an enabling internal environment for effective strategic litigation on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression. We work with social movement institutions by strengthening the capacity of local partner organisations to do strategic litigation through their human rights programmes, and monitoring how the work affects changes at the institutional level within the social movement context
- Strengthening the capacity to litigate strategically by working with network partners to strengthen skills for lawyers and civil society organisations to use critical analysis and to engage in strategic litigation on sexual rights as an integral part of communities and movements.
Get Involved With The Sexual Rights Litigation Network
About Us
Founded in 2014, the Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa (ISLA) is a Pan-African and feminist initiative with a timely remit: to strengthen strategic human rights litigation across the African continent. Essentially, we aim to change the way that strategic litigation is used so as to enable broader access to justice and to support those who seek to hold states accountable for violations of women’s human rights and sexual rights.
Contact Details
Contact Number:
+27 11 338 9028
Fax: +27 11 338 9029
Address: 208-211 Rahima Moosa Street, Marble Towers, 15th Floor Johannesburg, 2001 Gauteng, South Africa