Justice for women refugees
Women for Refugee Women believes that women who have fled persecution deserve a fair hearing in the asylum process. We are concerned about the number of women fleeing gender-based persecution whose asylum claims are refused because the nature and seriousness of gender-based persecution is often poorly understood by decision-makers.
As well as supporting individual women who have been unfairly refused asylum, such as Lydia Besong, we are working hard to improve understanding of the fact that women are unfairly refused asylum and to encourage reform of the process so that women get a fair hearing when they seek refuge in the UK.
We work through the media, through public events, and through lobbying politicians and policy makers. We recently took a group of destitute women to meet civil servants in the Home Office to discuss how destitution makes women vulnerable, and we launched our Home Sweet Home photography project in Parliament to encourage MPs and peers to understand more about the impact of refusal of asylum. We recently worked with Baroness Joan Bakewell to enable a debate in the House of Lords on why women are refused asylum. Read the debate here.
If you would like to add your voice to our lobbying on behalf of women refugees, please write to your local MP about the growing concern about why women do not get a fair hearing in the asylum process. Template letter here. Find your MP here.
If you would like to support our work with women who are struggling in the asylum process, find out more about What you can do.
I admire the work carried out by Women for Refugee Women. By telling the true stories of women and children in the asylum process they woke a lot of people up to the scandal of child detention.
Michael Morpurgo, author of War Horse
I have been delighted to support Women for Refugee Women since its launch- I've been truly inspired by the great work this organisation does, enabling women who seek asylum to speak out - whether at the grassroots or to government ministers.
Oona King
Many refugees and asylum seekers have fled their home countries because of human rights abuses. The work of agencies like Women for Refugee Women is vital for helping people rebuild their lives and have a voice.
Trevor Phillips OBE, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission
Put the word refugee in front of woman and immediately prejudice and projection arise. Meet a refugee woman, hear her struggles – and her joys – and you encounter a person, like you and me, who has been more than unlucky....
....Women for Refugee Women joins the dots, restores our humanity to ourselves and enables women to fight for theirs. Please support them.
Susie Orbach, psychotherapist and author of Bodies and Fat is a Feminist Issue
