Misun Woo, APWLD Regional Coordinator

A Feminist Greeting to you all!

It has been over ten years since I first joined Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD) as a Programme Officer and then as Deputy Regional Coordinator. Within APWLD, I grew and (re)formed myself into a person who is deeply committed to a feminist movement building, a movement that increases our collective power to dismantle patriarchal structures and systems that are violating women’s human rights, deepen inequalities and fuel conflicts and has the capacity and solidarity to work with other diverse social movements.

As I start my new role as the Regional Coordinator of APWLD, I look to understand more deeply the early vision of our founding members and supporters, and how it has developed over times in our 30 years of herstory.  A vision to empower women to use law as an instrument of change for equality, justice, peace and development; a vision to promote, protect and fulfill women’s human rights; a vision to strengthen women’s rights movements and feminist activism.

APWLD believes in the power of people’s movements, and our work is designed to develop capacities, feminist analysis and tools, claim opportunities for advocacy, and foster networks and spaces for our members and partners. We will continue to do so, particularly by:

  • Consolidating Development Justice framework and its foundational elements by convening spaces and opportunities to translate and claim Development Justice in diverse local, national and constituency contexts.
  • Organising and leading powerful cross-movement collaborations particularly to challenge unprecedented power of corporations and unaccountable governments; and reclaim people’s sovereignty.
  • Fostering cross continental feminist movements and solidarity.  The recent ‘movement mapping’ exercise APWLD conducted gave us an urgent call for solidarity building among grassroots, local, national, regional and global feminist movements.  Women, Law and Development (WLD) sister networks may play a critical role in calibrating, strategising and visioning our collective feminist future.

It would not be true if I say I am not nervous. However the strength, power, support and solidarity from APWLD membership, my colleagues, our allies and supporters gives me abundant courage to continue this collective journey.

I invite you to join us in building a brave, feminist future to end power, resource and wealth inequalities between men and women, between rich and poor and between countries.

In solidarity,

Misun Woo

Regional Coordinator

Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD)