Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Natural Justice Statement of Support

Natural Justice: Lawyers for Communities and the Environment is a not-for-profit association registered in South Africa since 2007. We work at the local, national, regional, and international levels with a wide range of partners, including in several countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, in support of Indigenous peoples’ and local communities’ self-determination and the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and natural resources. Much of our work aims to ensure that procedural and substantive rights of marginalised peoples and communities, as well as responsibilities of duty-bearers, are represented and realised at all levels of law and policy.

One of our Fellows in India, Stella James, recently made a personal decision to write about her experience with sexual harassment. This was published online in the Journal of Indian Law and Society  on 6 November 2013 (http://jilsblognujs.wordpress.com/2013/11/06/through-my-looking-glass/) and was subsequently featured in numerous online, national and international news outlets. On Monday 18 November, she made a statement before a 3-member Committee established by the Supreme Court of India to investigate the allegations. On Thursday 21 November, she wrote a second statement in the Journal of Indian Law and Society to clarify recent events (http://jilsblognujs.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/statement-of-stella-james-21-11-2013-2/). We request media to refer to her original statements, which clearly state her views on the issue.

We condemn every form of harassment, assault and abuse of women, including in the legal profession itself. Women who face such attacks and decide to come forward with their experiences in the hopes of preventing others from facing the same are extraordinarily brave and must be supported in their individual struggles as we collectively strive for a world free of discrimination and injustice. We stand in solidarity with our team member and request all media to respect Stella’s privacy. Natural Justice will not respond to requests for comments or further information.

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For information about Natural Justice, please see: www.naturaljustice.org
For Stella’s original statements, please see:

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