Online | New Directions in Combatting Violence Against Women

About this event

Violence Against Women is widespread, takes multiple forms, and is a human rights violation. Data and reports from the Covid-19 pandemic demonstrate an intensification of Violence Against Women (VAW), particularly in the form of domestic abuse. The UK has enacted the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which seeks to widen the scope and to improve the understanding of the complexities around domestic abuse and VAW more broadly. Internationally, there are calls to address the systemic nature of VAW. However, the legal understanding of VAW is still underdeveloped and poorly engaged with, by the police, courts and state authorities.

UCL Laws will be marking International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November 2021 with a discussion around the new legislative and judicial developments in the UK and internationally. The panel, consisting of academics and practitioners, will consider the structural inequality women face and the various forms of abuse and violence sustained by women.

The event is organised as part of the Faculty of Laws’ engagement with the Athena SWAN process, a framework used across the higher education sector to recognise and celebrate gender equality practices. It is organised in collaboration with the UCL Law Society (Madeline Lee, Head of UCL Women in Law Network) and the Graduate Law Society (Pere Amazige, EDI Officer).

About the speakers

Aleisha Ebrahimi (PhD Candidate and Associate Lecturer (Teaching), UCL Laws) will discuss her research on economic violence against women and the appropriateness of the international human rights law framework to engage with barriers to the workplace, and the subsequent human rights implications as a result of curtailed autonomy.

Dr Hannah Bows (Associate Professor in Criminal Law, Durham Law School) will speak about the under researched phenomenon of violence against older women, drawing on her research which engages with domestic violence, sexual violence and homicide of older women.

Catherine Glew (Project Manger, Against Violence and Abuse) will draw on her expertise in the charity sector to discuss means of improving responses to domestic abuse and involving survivors of VAW and homelessness in strategy, policy influencing and research.

Diana Nammi (Founder and Executive Director of Iranian and Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation (IKWRO-Women)) an NGO providing specialist advice, advocacy, counselling and a refuge to women and girls from Middle Eastern and North African communities in the UK affected by so called “honour” based abuse, including forced marriage, child marriage and Female Genital Mutilation, as well as domestic violence and other forms of Gender Based Violence.

Silvia Suteu (Associate Professor, UCL Laws) as lead for Athena SWAN and her continued commitment to, and progress on, equality and diversity, within UCL Faculty of Laws will chair the events discussion.

Delivery

This event will be delivered via Zoom Webinar. Attendee cameras and microphones will be turned off but they will be able to put questions to the panel via the Q&A box. You will receive your zoom joining link 48-hours before the start of the event. Contact the Laws Events team (laws-events@ucl.ac.uk) if you have not receive the link.

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