In 1996, the Moscow office of the American Bar Association Central and European and Eurasian Law Initiative (ABA CEELI) established the Gender Justice Program in recognition of the fact that promotion of the rule of law in Russia must also include improving the legal status of women. The period of transition to democracy and a market economy has resulted in political, legal and economic changes affecting all sectors of society. Women, however, have not benefited equally from such reforms and, in fact, are disproportionately affected by poverty and violence and continue to encounter discrimination in many settings.
Domestic violence is one of the most commonly occurring forms of violence against women around the world and is recognized by the international community as a violation of fundamental human rights. In Russia, statistics suggest that domestic violence is a common occurrence, but it has unfortunately received little attention from the legal community. Furthermore, impediments in the legal system itself make it extremely difficult for victims of violence to receive justice. CEELI has recognized that the lack of legal solutions to the problem of domestic violence is an area of critical concern in Russia and has carried out a number of projects which attempt to improve this situation.
The “Social Advocates” program is one of the most successful of these projects. The Social Advocates program aims to increase the basic knowledge of local partner nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), activists, law enforcement, the procuracy, the judiciary and other government officials about the problem of domestic violence as well as other issues that disproportionately affect women in Russia. The program itself consists of a series of trainings, the goal of which is to create a group of “advocates” who are equipped with the fundamental legal skills and knowledge necessary to provide competent legal aid and effective advocacy for Russian women when the services of professional paid attorneys are unavailable.
Over the years, the Social Advocates program has become known throughout Russia and in other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). After receiving requests for basic information about the history, design and content of the Social Advocates training, the Gender Justice Program decided to create a simple resource containing the essential elements of the program. This manual contains a basic introduction to the program, templates to each of the core subjects taught to the Social Advocates, written by the trainers, as well as sample materials referred to in the text.
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