By AdvocAid's Legal Fellow Willietta V. J. C. Hughes | Legal Fellow
Feminist attorneys are the instrument that deconstructs the master's home.
AdvocAid incorporated a new partner this year: the Clooney Foundation for Justice, an international human rights organisation dedicated to promoting justice by holding accountable those responsible for human rights violations. AdvocAid's overarching goal is to ensure that the justice system in Sierra Leone upholds and safeguards the human rights of women and girls. By empowering them to assert their rights and hold the system accountable, this partnership underscores the critical nature of constructing justice systems that protect the most vulnerable members of society, including women, from the perils that courts all too frequently inflict.
By this collaboration, AdvocAid was chosen as one of the African organisations to accommodate an inaugural Waging Justice for Women (WJW) fellow. By means of strategic litigation, this initiative seeks to reform discriminatory laws and increase accountability for gender-based abuse to combat injustice against women. Intending to fortify the feminist legal foundation in Sierra Leone, this fellowship provides AdvocAid with the means to execute the goals outlined in our feminist strategic plan for the next five years. A Legal Fellow joined AdvocAid in July with the dual purpose of bolstering the organization's efforts and advocating for justice in Sierra Leone so that women and girls' human rights are safeguarded. During her time here at AdvocAid, the legal fellow has consistently conveyed her elation at being a component of an organisation whose mission is to promote feminist policy and legal reform while ensuring that women and girls have access to justice.
The fellow expressed that the Waging Justice for Women fellowship has furnished her with a supportive atmosphere that encourages young female solicitors, such as herself, to advocate for concerns that impact women and girls. As a woman, a feminist, and an attorney who is cognizant of the injustices that women and girls face, the experiences of African women have influenced my legal practice. As Simone de Beauvoir once put it: "Our motivations for action and our fortitude to live must be derived from an understanding of the authentic circumstances that surround us. "Therefore, if we desire justice for our women and girls, securing their rights and the rights of girls is a global effort in which we should all invest, and this fellowship's support for the development of more feminist lawyers throughout Africa merely reinforces this point."
Between July 23rd and 27th, 2023, the legal fellow participated in an engagement in Nairobi, where she interacted with fellows and members of the Clooney Foundation for Justice team.
The fellow shared her reflections of the engagement : “The training and simulations that included, among other things, strategic litigation, feminist lawyering, conducting trauma-informed interviews, and yoga-based reflections, were among the main attractions of this gathering. A fundamental insight gleaned from these sessions is that feminist lawyering transcends mere legal analysis and individual convictions. It requires vigilance regarding our interactions and modes of labour, with a particular focus on the most marginalised members of society. Participating in this inaugural WJW fellowship has provided me, an early-career female lawyer, with the chance to advance my legal career. Having undergone and continuing to undergo this, I eagerly anticipate the opportunity for more young women to partake in a similar fellowship. In light of Sierra Leone's inadequate representation of female lawyers and paralegals who would enhance the gender responsiveness of the justice system, I am optimistic that this can be remedied through the implementation of such initiatives, which furnish specialised guidance and instruction to young female attorneys (as myself) who are dedicated to advocating for the rights of women and girls”.
"Because the master's tool is incapable of dismantling the master's dwelling." While they might grant us a momentary advantage over him in their own competition, they will never empower us to effect authentic transformation. This is Audre Lorde. Upon reflection of this statement, I am compelled to inquire...Is it possible to deconstruct the master's residence? Yes! I am convinced that feminist lawyers are the instrument necessary to demolish the master's home, and that this partnership between two human rights organisations is the means by which this can be accomplished.
As AdvocAid, we sincerely express appreciation for each contribution by our donors which enables us to participate in vital engagements which in turn help us to continue working towards to improving as an organisation. Your continued support for our mission and readiness to accompany us on this endeavour is appreciated .
By Thabile Cele | Fundraising & Communications Manager
By Rebecca Mweru Kabejja | Advocacy Specialist
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