The Fiji Women's Rights Movement (FWRM) is a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural organisation based in
Suva
Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...
,
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
, that works to remove discrimination against women through attitudinal changes and institutional reforms. FWRM believes in the practice and promotion of
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
,
democracy
Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...
,
good governance
Good governance is the process of measuring how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources and guarantee the realization of human rights in a manner essentially free of abuse and corruption and with due regard for th ...
and
human rights
Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...
.
FWRM is known for its public opposition to military rule in Fiji since the first
coup in 1987,
and for its innovative approaches and core programmes related to intergenerational women's leadership in Fiji, particularly young, indigenous and locally-born women.
In 2016, FWRM launched ''Girls Digital Stories'', a project aimed at challenging bullying and discrimination, through the narratives of 10-12 year old girls, using storytelling and digital art.
History
The Fiji Women's Rights Movement was founded by 56 women in 1986, including those who had set up the first support organisation against gender-related violence in Fiji, the
Fiji Women's Crisis Centre The Fiji Women's Crisis Centre (FWCC) is a non-government organization (NGO) in Fiji. Established in 1984, it offers counselling and legal, medical, and practical support to woman and children victims of violence in Fiji.
History
The Women's Cri ...
(FWCC). They were determined that their group would "seek to change laws and policies which discriminated against women or that failed to adequately address their concerns".
The founding members included FWCC's
Shamima Ali
Shamima Ali is a Fijian political activist of Indian descent. As of July 2015, she is the Coordinator of the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre (FWCC), a post she has held for many years. She has also been a member of the Fiji Human Rights Commission (FH ...
, human rights lawyer
Imrana Jalal
Imrana Jalal, also known as Patricia Jalal is a Fijian lawyer and activist of Indian descent, born on June 3, 1960 in Suva, Fiji to Sayed Abdul Jalal and Rosemary Jalal. She served as a Human Rights Commissioner on the Fiji Human Rights Commissio ...
,
Adi Kuini Bavadra,
Alefina Vuki,
Helen Sutherland,
‘Atu Emberson-Bain and
Penelope Moore (who became FWRM's first Coordinator or Executive Director).
Political activist
Virisila Buadromo
Virisila Buadromo (born 1972) is a Fijian political activist and former journalist, who was the executive director of the Fiji Women's Rights Movement (FWRM) from 2001 to 2015. She used to be the news director for FM96.
Political positions
...
was the organisation's Executive Director from 2001 till 2015, when Tara Chetty took over.
Achievements
The Fiji Women's Rights Movement is noted for its work on promoting the political participation of women, including through constitutional reform.
FWRM, with its partners
FemlinkPACIFIC, the
National Council of Women (Fiji), and
Soqosoqovakamarama iTaukei, formed the
Fiji Women's Forum in 2012 to increase women's participation in leadership. While Fiji has one of the highest proportions of women in parliament in the Pacific (16% in 2014), FWRM and the Fiji Women's Forum have been determined to improve women's representation in political and public life.
FWRM's programme for the empowerment of girls, known as ''GIRLS'' (Grow-Inspire-Relate-Lead-Succeed) has been called "one of Fiji’s, if not the region’s, finest feminist-based gender equality projects for 10-12 year girls."
This is part of the organisation's significant efforts at supporting intergenerational feminist leadership in Fiji and the Pacific.
References
{{reflist
External links
Official website
Feminist organisations in Fiji
Women's rights in Fiji