In March of 2018, Najia Sadiq joined Women for Afghan Women (WAW) as an experienced defense lawyer that now tirelessly serves many of our Family Guidance and Women’s Protection Center clients.
Najia came to WAW because she felt that WAW offered a more effective platform for her to litigate and win more cases that restored the rights and dignity of the many survivors of gender-based violence and other rights abuses that WAW serves. Najia made a decision to work at WAW because she believed that not only do all of WAW’s clients receive equal access to justice without discrimination, but also that staff members are hired without bias and are also treated with a high level of respect.
She says, “The FGC and WPC cases I litigate include rape, domestic violence, and so many other harsh abuses that are harrowing and bitter enough to move any human being to tears. What’s more, many of these cases take much time to get resolved through the courts. Sometimes it can take years—but we will take care of these women until their cases are resolved, and we do not give up. As importantly, we always make sure that our clients will be safe after their cases are resolved and they leave our shelters.
See the 6-minute clip that features our heroine, Najia, in this powerful documentary produced by Al Jazeera’s 101 East program, entitled, “The War on Afghan Women.”
“I would like to tell the world that WAW is an organization that is defending women’s rights, mediating between family members so that families can stay together if it is possible, and when it is not, it provides safe shelter to women, girls, and children who are at risk. Without WAW, so many women in Afghanistan would suffer and never receive the justice they deserve.”—Najia, one of WAW’s defense lawyers working in Afghanistan.
Najia is one of 39 defense lawyers employed by WAW who tirelessly litigate our clients’ cases through the judicial system in Afghanistan. Our lawyers are diligently winning cases, day after day and year after year, that bring perpetrators to justice and restore the rights of women who have suffered from forced marriage, rape, domestic violence, or are survivors of other forms of brutal gender-based violence and rights abuses.
Click here for more about the services and programs provided to WAW’s Transitional House clients and how your support makes this all happen!
WAW changes all client names and removes any identifying information, features, and characteristics when relaying their stories in order to protect their and their families’ identities, privacy, and safety.
