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Dear John,
As Equality Now heads into 2025 with renewed resolve to protect women’s and girls’ human rights around the world, we have rounded up our top policy and practice resources from 2024.
Our legal and policy experts across five continents campaigned against child marriage, female genital mutilation, sexual violence, and sexual exploitation, contributed to legal changes to end sex discrimination, made submissions to the UN, and participated in global events to advocate for women’s and girls’ rights everywhere. Learn more about our work ([link removed]) .
** January 2024: Online Sexual Exploitation: Deepfakes ([link removed])
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We kicked off 2024 with the Alliance for Universal Digital Rights (AUDRI) ([link removed]) releasing a research brief, "Deepfake image-based sexual abuse, tech-facilitated sexual exploitation and the law ([link removed]) ," with support from law firm Hogan Lovells. To support this research, AUDRi and Equality Now co-hosted a webinar, Unmasking Deepfakes, Real Life Impacts and the Legal Labyrinth ([link removed]) , featuring Sophie Compton and Reuben Hamlyn, founders of the My Image My Choice ([link removed]) campaign and co-directors of award-winning film Another Body ([link removed]) .
We discussed the importance of amplifying the voices of survivors of deepfake-based exploitation, the experiences of women navigating a complicated legal landscape in order to achieve justice, and their campaign to encourage governments and regulators to block websites that disseminate sexually explicit deepfake content. Read more here ([link removed]) .
** April 2024: FGM in the US: A Guide for Journalists ([link removed])
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FGM is internationally recognized as a human rights violation ([link removed]) , a form of violence against women and girls, and a manifestation of gender inequality and discrimination. In the US, FGM is prohibited at the federal level, but more needs to be done to ensure that at-risk communities have effective legal protections at the state level ([link removed]) , where they need them most.
Our media guide, “Reporting on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) - US Factsheet ([link removed]) ,” is a resource for communications and media professionals to aid them with the ethical and reliable reporting of FGM in the US.
** May 2024: Family Laws in Africa: An Overview ([link removed])
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Our report, “Gender Inequality In Family Laws In Africa: An Overview Of Key Trends In Select Countries ([link removed]) ,” assesses the current status of family laws in 20 African countries, analyzing their compliance with the Maputo Protocol, CEDAW, and other relevant global and regional human rights treaties. It found discrimination against women and girls remains widespread in family laws across Africa and states a list of recommendations for legal reform in the continent.
Learn more about family laws in Africa ([link removed]) in our blog.
** July 2024: Sexual Exploitation in Kenya: A Judges’ Guide ([link removed])
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Together with the International Association of Women Judges Kenya Chapter, we launched our “Kenya Judicial Bench Book On Trafficking For Sexual Exploitation ([link removed]) ” to add to the knowledge and understanding of sex trafficking in the country, amplify survivor voices, and advocate for legal change.
While there have been strides in the enactment of national legislation and policies on trafficking globally, there are still gaps, particularly when it comes to effective implementation.
** October 2024: Child Marriage in Eurasia: Legal Roadblocks ([link removed])
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Our report on child marriage in Eurasia, “Breaking Barriers: Addressing Child, Early and Forced Marriage in Eurasia,” delves into the underlying causes, ramifications, legal and policy frameworks, and potential intervention strategies to address the practice in seven Eurasian countries.
At the current rate of progress, it will take over 200 years to eliminate child marriage globally. Against this bleak backdrop, Sierra Leone hit big and finally banned the practice in the country. Our legal experts have broken down what this law could mean for women and girls in the country ([link removed]) .
The progress on ending child marriage globally is slow but steady. Read our blog to learn more ([link removed]) .
** November 2024: Rape Laws in Africa: Barriers to Justice ([link removed])
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Rape is a devastating violation of a person's dignity, bodily autonomy, and will. It strips an individual of control over their body and ignores their right to make personal, sexual choices. Yet, many legal frameworks fail to fully encapsulate this reality, often falling short of providing justice and accountability for survivors.
Our groundbreaking report, “Barriers to Justice: Rape in Africa, Law, Practice, and Access to Justice ([link removed]) ,” examines laws on rape and related enforcement practices across Africa and assesses how these laws align—or fall short—of regional and international human rights standards, offering guidance to those jurisdictions still working to meet these standards.
Explore our full resource center, with over 280 publications, including 157 submissions, 33 fact sheets, 13 court documents, and 11 toolkits.
Visit Equality Now’s resource center ([link removed])
** Coming soon
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We are launching two of our five-yearly flagship resources: the Global FGM Report ([link removed]) and the Words and Deeds: Beijing +30 Report ([link removed]) in the first quarter of 2025. Our upcoming report on FGM is the second in the series, sharing the latest updates and calling for global action to end the practice.
The Words and Deeds report series has been marking the five-year anniversaries of the 4th UN Conference on Women on advancing women’s rights in 1995. We have been highlighting explicitly sex discriminatory laws that need to be reformed, with recommendations from our legal experts.
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PS: We’d love to know how you use our resource center. Take 5 minutes to fill out this survey to help us to understand the wider impact of our research ([link removed]) .
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