International Association of Women Judges

The International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ) is a feminist non-profit non governmental organization founded in 1991 whose members are judges from around the world committed to equal justice for women.

International Association of Women Judges
AbbreviationIAWJ
Founded1991
HeadquartersWashington, D.C., United States
President
Vanessa Ruiz
President-Elect
Susan Glazebrook
Vice-Presidents
Binta Nyako
Margarita Beatriz Luna
Executive Director
Shawna Wilson
Websitewww.nawj.org

History

The IAWJ was founded in 1991 after fifty female judges from around the world were invited to participate in the tenth anniversary meeting of the United States National Association of Women Judges.[1] It was decided that gender discrimination in the judiciary would be easier to combat with the forming of an international alliance. In October 1991, women judges in 15 countries approved the inaugural constitution of the IAWJ.[1] Its first meeting was held in October 1992, bringing together 82 judges from 42 different countries in San Diego. The issue that interested them most was family violence.[2] Female judges sponsored workshops and conferences around the world to teach about the prevalence of domestic violence, how to prevent it, and how to enact laws to define it as a crime with penalties.[2] The IAWJ also took on a project to educate judges on how to apply international human rights instruments to cases affecting women in local courts.[2]

The IAWJ's first president was Arline Pacht.[2] In May 1994, it held a conference on Rome on domestic violence.[2]

In 2010, when the UK's Baroness Hale was elected President of IAWJ, it had over 4,000 members from over 90 countries.[1] By 2017, it had over 5,000 members.[3] By 2019, it had over 6,000 members.[4]

Structure

The IAWJ is based in Washington DC and is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation. Its members represent all levels of the judiciary worldwide. It seeks to pioneer judicial education programs to advance human rights, uproot gender bias from judicial systems and promote women’s access to courts.[5] It has a ten member Board of Directors and a seven member Executive Council.[5]

The IAWJ holds a biennial conference, meeting in London 2012 and in Arusha, Tanzania in 2014, where Teresita de Castro from the Philippines became President.[6][5]

The IAWJ is credited with creating the term "sextortion" in 2009 to describe the pervasive form of sexual exploitation that occurs when people in positions of authority seek to extort sexual favours in exchange of something within their power to grant or withhold.[7][8]

The IAWJ works with national associations in five regions to develop and implement training on issues concerning discrimination and violence against women, including its judicial training initiative, the Jurisprudence of Equality Program.[9]

Presidents
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References
  1. Coogan, Laura (21 May 2010). "Lady Hale becomes President of the International Association of Women Judges". UK Supreme Court Blog. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  2. Mann, Judy (13 April 1994). "Making the Law Fair for All Aomen". The Washington Post. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  3. "DISE's Shaheen Shariff delivers address to International Association of Women Judges". McGill University News. 1 June 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  4. "Judge Mary Margaret Rowlands to speak at the United Nations". Akron Legal News. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  5. "SC justice De Castro is IAWJ president". University of the Philippines Diliman. 9 June 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  6. "International forum encourages judges to 'mind the gap'". The Supreme Court. 31 May 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  7. Jaques, Ken (26 July 2016). "Democracy that Delivers podcast #26: Nancy Hendry Discusses the Pervasive, but Often Ignored Problem of "Sextortion"". Centre for International Private Enterprise. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  8. Fatoorehchi, Cléo (27 February 2011). "Time to Drag Sextortion into the Light". Inter Press Service. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  9. Barberet, Rosemary (2014). Women, Crime and Criminal Justice: A Global Enquiry. Routledge. p. 73.
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