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Martha’s Story: the Struggle for Gender Equality and Land Rights in Liberia

By Tyler Roush, Director of Communications, Landesa, a global land rights organization.

Woman on farm

Liberia in the 1990s was a place of turmoil, host to a brutal civil war that would kill at least 250,000 people and leave many thousands more displaced.

The war uprooted Martha* from her farm in Lofa County. Her husband, Joseph, was a rebel fighter aligned with one of the factions vying for control, and had taken her and the couple’s four children away from the family’s land, to a city closer to the rebels’ base.

On the day in 1996 that he was killed, Martha felt her own life slipping away.

“I wanted to die that day,” Martha says. “Nobody was there to help me take care of the children – it was me alone.”

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How We Creatively Used the Law to Protect Women’s and Girls’ Rights

Our creative use of the law in Colombia protected the sexual and reproductive health of women in the department of Norte de Santander, one of Colombia’s regions that borders Venezuela.

By: Valeria Pedraza| Staff Attorney at Women’s Link Worldwide

Reposted with permission from Women’s Link Worldwide, with adjustments by the author.

Artwork on wall

“Borders are in the mind” – Photo: Laura Martínez, Women’s Link Worldwide

At Women’s Link, we have been using the law creatively to achieve justice for women and girls for more than 20 years. We are convinced that it is a valuable tool to bring them closer to justice, to a life free of violence and discrimination, and to full autonomy over their bodies and decisions.

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Effective, Accountable, and Inclusive Institutions are the Backbone of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

By Leslie Tsai, Director of Social Investment, Chandler Foundation

SDG 16 Peace and justiceThe United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 16 focuses on “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”, but what are “Strong Institutions”?

What are the qualities that make some governments stronger, better performing, and more responsive to their citizens’ well-being? How do those inside and outside of government measure success? And what is the role of civil society to ensure that strong institutions actually result in better lives for the people institutions should serve?

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