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Why consent must be the legal baseline: insights from the Pelicot case Calling FGM what it is: a global health emergency How coalitions are powering legal reform across regions
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| Dear John
At Equality Now, we believe that changing the law is just the beginning. Behind every reform is a movement, built by survivors, lawyers, activists, and advocates.
As Global Executive Director of Equality Now, I bring you this month’s digest as a reflection of what we’ve achieved together, and the work still ahead. From New York to Nairobi, we’re seeing the power of collective action in turning promises into progress. |
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| This month, we honoured the Pelicot family with our Courage Award at our Make Equality Reality Gala. Their bravery in speaking out about Gisele’s decade-long abuse has reignited calls for legal reform. Their case exposed a deep flaw: under French law, rape still requires proof of force or coercion, not lack of consent. It’s a standard that fails survivors.
At Equality Now, we’re calling for consent to be the global legal baseline. Silence is not a yes. Survivors shouldn’t have to prove the use of force to be believed.
At the World Health Summit, we and our partners called on health leaders to not treat female genital mutilation (FGM) as a cultural issue, but as the global health crisis it is.
The medicalisation of FGM is rising in Asia, yet FGM remains absent from many national health agendas. We’re urging governments to act: integrate strategies to end FGM into health systems, end its medicalisation, and provide survivor-centred care. This isn’t just a harmful tradition, it’s a human rights emergency.
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| Legal reform doesn’t happen in isolation. Behind every change in law or policy is a web of relationships, between survivors, activists, legal experts, governments, and movements. At Equality Now, we don’t just advocate for change. We convene the people who make it happen. This past month, our global convening power was on full display: At the UN General Assembly, we helped ensure that feminist voices were heard and rights-based solutions put forward. We brought legal tools, regional evidence and survivor voices into spaces where decisions are made, and where feminist participation is often sidelined.
At our Make Equality Reality Gala, we saw what community looks like when joy and justice meet. We celebrated over $1 million raised, but more than that, we celebrated the people behind the work: from youth advocates to frontline experts, from donors to artists, from trailblazers to the next generation. We also recognised the incredible contributions of our own Antonia Kirkland, whose tireless advocacy has shaped so much of Equality Now’s global legal work.
Across 38 coalitions, from SOAWR in Africa, to SAMAJ in South Asia, to the Hurra Coalition in the Middle East and North Africa, we are helping to build ecosystems of change. Our role is often less visible, connecting actors, amplifying local efforts, pushing legal frameworks into policy agendas, and helping movements scale.
This is what it means to be a catalyst: not the loudest voice, but the spark that connects others and accelerates momentum. Our Theory of Change is grounded in this principle: sustainable reform comes from coordinated pressure, shared strategy, and long-term partnership. And while backlash grows stronger, so does our movement. Because together, we go further. Together, we change the law. |
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| | “Movements don’t just demand change, they show what change looks like. Building SAMAJ taught me that when survivors, lawyers, and activists work together across borders, we don’t just reform laws. We shift what’s possible.” Julie Thekkudan,
South Asia Consultant, Equality Now |
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In Kyrgyzstan, we’ve spoken out against proposals to reinstate the death penalty. Alongside local partners, we’re urging leaders to uphold human rights standards, not roll them back. Read our joint statement.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, a landmark court ruling has finally delivered justice to survivors of wartime sexual violence. It’s a powerful step forward in a region where impunity has prevailed for too long.
In India, we welcomed a major recognition by the, Chief Justice of India which acknowledged the existence of FGM in the country for the first time. It’s a vital move toward protecting survivors and catalysing legal reform. Read our response.
In Kenya, our podcast A Roving Podcast: Gender Justice Conversations has been named a finalist in the Anthem Awards. Created with local influencers and partners, it highlights the gap between progressive laws and the lived realities of survivors. We’re also nominated for the Anthem Community Voice Award, which is determined by public vote. Cast your vote by 30 October.
Across Eastern and Southern Africa, we’ve launched two new policy briefs with the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF), providing urgent guidance on ending child marriage. These briefs address both emerging drivers, including climate change, migration, conflict, and digital technology, and protection measures for children already in marriage.
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| 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence Begins 25 November, stay tuned for actions, stories, and ways to engage.
Webinar: Exploring the links between child marriage and family laws in South Asia Join us on 5 November with the Global Campaign for Equality in Family Law, for a regional webinar to examine how personal and family laws impact efforts to end child marriage among minority communities in South Asia. Register here.
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