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Home Publications Contacts Projects	0	Changing Legislation on Violence Against Women (CLVAW)





		Vision:	Literature Review on VAW in Samoa (download)
		To improve legislation to protect women through the implementation of quality lobbying campaigns for Violence Against
		Women (VAW) and Family Law reform in 6 Pacific Island Countries.

		The project will build a cadre of skilled national level legislative supporters and lobbyists specializing in VAW and Family Law
		legislation, through the provision of timely and individual technical assistance in advocacy, lobbying and law reform in each
		of the countries. This approach is based on established networks and significant trust relationships with MPs, judges,
		magistrates and CSOs already developed by RRRT. These internal champions from Government and internal/external
		lobbyists, who would consist of MPs/legislators, policy makers, police, judiciary and civil society actors, would be equipped to
		and civil society actors, would be equipped to effectively campaign and lobby, including provide policy and legislative advice
		(including the use of model legislation) in order to expedite legislative change towards comprehensive Family Law, including
		VAWC legislation in the Pacific. RRRT can affect advanced steps to legislation being passed because it already has these
		partnerships developed. Draft legislation, based on global model legislation will be developed in partnerships with the
		country groups. If it is developed by RRRT and thrust upon them during the first year it will be both insensitive to Pacific
		culture and be regarded as yet another foreign, Western imposition. If developed in partnership it is more likely to be
		accepted and passed by Parliament. RRRT has affected the passing of several pieces of legislation in the Pacific through
		this tried and tested method and has a significant comparative learning advantage.

		Main Short Term Outcomes	The project aims to contribute, through lessons learned with the Pacific key skills
		(i) draft working model	and strategies in legislative lobbying, using model legislation as a key lobbying
		legislation/amendments	tool. The main changes that we envisage at the conclusion of the project is the
			implementation of effective lobbying campaigns by core lobbying groups in each
		(ii) the development of quality	of the six project target countries and country specific legislative drafting
		lobbying processes	instructions based on local realties.

			These core groups are to be established in each country with the capacity to
			undertake a sustained lobbying campaign, including monitoring in order to keep
			the issue of VAWC on the agenda of both the government as well as prominent
			in the public domain.

		Long Term Vision:
		Advancing the processes of legislative
		change that affords such protection,
		effective implementation of new laws and
		greatly increased commitment and
		understanding by key players to the
		legislative reform process

		This long term aim leans towards providing greater legal protection to complaints of violence through the development of
		protective legislation whereby women can seek redress against violence. Through lobbying for legislative change, lobby
		groups will increase awareness among general public of VAWC issues, learn to use the media in progressing this awareness
		and provide education and training for service providers, for instance the judiciary, uniformed personnel judiciary, uniformed
		personnel, health care workers and others who have protective functions of the State

		In the short term the project will increase awareness and education, and in the long term legislation can be developed
		and implemented that will provide protection for women, promotion for women's equality and fulfillment of women's rights.


		This project will cover nine Pacific Island	Tuvalu , Tonga , Cook Islands, Solomon Islands , Kiribati , Vanuatu ,
		Countries:	Nauru , Federated States of Micronesia and Samoa.

Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development