First Participants Complete the “Law from a Feminist Perspective” Programme

The MONFEMNET National Network successfully concluded its three-day “Law from a Feminist Perspective” training, with the programme’s first participants receiving their certificates upon completion.

Over the three days, participants explored key concepts in feminist legal theory and practice and examined how laws and legal systems interact with people’s lived realities and experiences.

Why is it important to look at law through a feminist lens?

Laws may appear to apply equally to everyone, but their effects in practice are not always the same.

A person’s gender, social position, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and other circumstances can influence how they experience laws, policies, institutions, and access to justice.

A feminist legal approach therefore looks beyond what is written in laws and regulations and asks a broader question:

“Who benefits from this law in practice, and who may face barriers because of it?”

Throughout the training, participants explored how laws can affect women, children, persons with disabilities, LGBTIQ+ people, and other diverse groups in different ways. They also discussed how hidden discrimination and inequality can emerge through the implementation of laws and policies, and whose experiences and voices may be overlooked in decision-making processes.

These discussions helped participants reflect on substantive equality — the idea that equality is not achieved simply by treating everyone in exactly the same way, but also by recognising people’s different circumstances, needs, and barriers and responding to them accordingly.

Connecting law with lived experience

Across the three-day programme, participants examined issues including gender expectations and social norms, patriarchy and systems of power, discrimination, and substantive equality through a feminist legal lens.

Theoretical concepts were discussed alongside real-life cases, legal and judicial practice, and participants’ own personal and professional experiences. This helped create space to examine the impact of law not only through legal texts, but also through the everyday realities of the people affected by them.

The programme was not only about gaining new knowledge. It also created a space for participants to learn from one another, question familiar assumptions, broaden their perspectives, and reflect collectively on what a more inclusive, equitable, and human rights-based legal system could look like.

At the conclusion of the programme, participants received their certificates, marking the completion of three days of shared learning and reflection.

Feminist legal analysis begins not only by asking, “What does the law say?” but also, “Who does this law affect, and how?”

We extend our sincere appreciation to all participants, facilitators, and speakers who contributed to the programme.

The “Law from a Feminist Perspective” training was implemented with the support of the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD).