Norwegian Women's Lobby
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The Norwegian Women's Lobby (NWL; ) is a feminist policy and
advocacy Advocacy is an Action (philosophy), activity by an individual or advocacy group, group that aims to influence decision making, decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to infl ...
organization in
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
and works for "the
human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
of girls and women in all their diversity, to eliminate all forms of discrimination against all girls and women and to promote a gender equal society." It is described as the country's "main, national,
umbrella organization An umbrella organization is an association of (often related, industry-specific) institutions who work together formally to coordinate activities and/or pool resources. In business, political, and other environments, it provides resources and iden ...
" for
women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...
. NWL understands women's human rights and discrimination in an  intersectional perspective and works to represent the interests of all those who identify as women and girls. NWL is funded by the government over the national budget. The mission of the organization is to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women and girls on the basis of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. Described as an international bill of rights for women, it was instituted ...
, the Beijing Platform for Action and other fundamental international agreements relating to women's human rights. It works to integrate women's perspectives into all political, economical and social processes. The implementation of the CEDAW convention is a major focus for NKL, and it works to enhance the implementation, visibility and relevance of CEDAW within politics and society. It states that it "brings together both the key women’s organisations and the leading experts on women’s rights in Norway" and that it has a focus on being a "cooperation partner for the government ndto contribute to the representation of the Norwegian women's movement in international forums." NWL has ten member organizations with a total of nearly 50,000 members and was founded in 2014 by the Norwegian women's organisations on the initiative of the
Norwegian Association for Women's Rights The Norwegian Association for Women's Rights (; NKF) is Norway's oldest and preeminent women's rights, women's and girls' rights organization that works "to promote gender equality and all women's and girls' human rights through political reform, ...
, and in accordance with the recommendations of the government-appointed Gender Equality Commission. It was inspired by the European Women's Lobby and also corresponds to comparable umbrella organizations in other countries such as the German Women's Council and the CEDAW Alliance Germany, and the National Women's Council of Ireland. Its member organizations include the
Norwegian Association for Women's Rights The Norwegian Association for Women's Rights (; NKF) is Norway's oldest and preeminent women's rights, women's and girls' rights organization that works "to promote gender equality and all women's and girls' human rights through political reform, ...
and the Norwegian Women's Public Health Association, the oldest and largest women's organizations in Norway, respectively. __TOC__


History

The Norwegian Women's Lobby was founded on 27 January 2014 by eight nationwide women's rights organisations and several experts on the initiative of the
Norwegian Association for Women's Rights The Norwegian Association for Women's Rights (; NKF) is Norway's oldest and preeminent women's rights, women's and girls' rights organization that works "to promote gender equality and all women's and girls' human rights through political reform, ...
(NKF), Norway's oldest and preeminent women's rights NGO, founded in 1884. Its establishment was initiated by NKF Presidents
Margunn Bjørnholt Margunn Bjørnholt (born 9 October 1958 in Bø, Telemark) is a Norwegian sociologist and economics, economist. She is a Academic ranks in Norway#Research professor, research professor at the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Stud ...
, Karin M. Bruzelius and Torild Skard. The establishment of NWL was in accordance with the recommendations of the government-appointed Gender Equality Commission, whose chair Hege Skjeie was actively involved with NWL. Its founding president was
Margunn Bjørnholt Margunn Bjørnholt (born 9 October 1958 in Bø, Telemark) is a Norwegian sociologist and economics, economist. She is a Academic ranks in Norway#Research professor, research professor at the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Stud ...
, a professor of sociology and the NKF President at the time. In 2017 Ragnhild Hennum, a professor of public law, pro-rector of the
University of Oslo The University of Oslo (; ) is a public university, public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation#Europe, oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick Univ ...
and director of the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, was elected president of the organisation. The founding organisations were described by the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud Sunniva Ørstavik as "the very foundation of the efforts to promote women's rights in Norway." NWL is led by the executive board. The organisation is advised by an independent body of experts, the Expert Committee that includes some of Norway's main experts in this area, e.g. CEDAW expert Anne Hellum. From its establishment NWL worked to increase awareness and understanding of the CEDAW, promote the participation and influence of women’s organizations in political decision-making processes and address areas where gender equality efforts were lacking, such as gender budgeting. In line with its human rights focus NWL opposes
racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...
,
homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, Gay men, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or ant ...
,
transphobia Transphobia consists of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender or transsexual people, or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger towards people who do not conform to socia ...
and
ableism Ableism (; also known as ablism, disablism (British English), anapirophobia, anapirism, and disability discrimination) is discrimination and social prejudice against physically or mentally disabled people. Ableism characterizes people as they a ...
. Following negotiations between the Socialist Left Party and the Støre government, NWL was awarded government funding over the national budget. The member organizations include Norway's oldest women's rights organization, the
Norwegian Association for Women's Rights The Norwegian Association for Women's Rights (; NKF) is Norway's oldest and preeminent women's rights, women's and girls' rights organization that works "to promote gender equality and all women's and girls' human rights through political reform, ...
and Norway's largest women's organization, Norwegian Women's Public Health Association. It also includes organizations such as Legal Aid for Women (JURK), the Norwegian Female Lawyers' Association and the Secretariat of the Shelter Movement (Krisesentersekretariatet). Most of the member organizations are also participating in the Forum for Women and Development, which focuses on development issues in the
Global South Global North and Global South are terms that denote a method of grouping countries based on their defining characteristics with regard to socioeconomics and politics. According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the Global South broadly com ...
. NWL by contrast has a broader focus on women's human rights nationally and internationally, with an emphasis on international human rights instruments. In 2018 NWL and five other key NGOs organised the customary torchlight parade in Oslo in honour of that year's
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
laureates, Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad, who were awarded the prize for their work to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war.


Activities

NWL works for the
human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
of girls and women in all their diversity, to eliminate all forms of discrimination against all girls and women and to promote a gender equal society, on the basis of human rights instruments and policy frameworks related to women's rights and gender equality, such as the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. Described as an international bill of rights for women, it was instituted ...
and the Beijing Platform for Action.Gratulerer, Norges kvinnelobby!
, Gender Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud, 29 January 2014
The Norwegian Women's Lobby has a particular focus on the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
system and prepares shadow reports to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women on Norway's implementation of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. Described as an international bill of rights for women, it was instituted ...
; the 2017 report was coordinated by Supreme Court Justice Karin Bruzelius."Foreword," in ''Shadow Report to the CEDAW Committee, 2017: Supplementary information from the Norwegian Women’s Lobby to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women in relation to the 9th Periodic Report of Norway'', Norwegian Women's Lobby, 2017


Expert Committee

NWL's expert committee is a permanent body of experts tasked with making policy recommendations in fields that affect women and girls and gender equality, and works under the sponsorship of the Norwegian Women's Lobby. Established in 2016, the expert committee was initially chaired by professor of sociology Cathrine Holst. The initial committee members also included supreme court justice Karin Bruzelius, professor of public law Anne Hellum, and professor of political science Hege Skjeie, the former chair of the government-appointed Gender Equality Commission. In 2020 Nita Kapoor, Helga Eggebø, Johanne Sundby and Mari Teigen were appointed to the committee.


See also

* National Council of German Women's Organizations * National Women's Council of Ireland


References


External links

* {{Norway topics Feminist organisations in Norway Women's rights organizations Organizations established in 2014 2014 establishments in Norway