Changing Colombia's Domestic Violence Laws Through Research and Advocacy
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Type: CLE
Issues: Education , Gender-Based Violence , International Advocacy , Women's Rights
Colombia enacted a new domestic violence law in August 2021 to protect women from intimate partner violence. Major portions of the new law can be directly traced to the research conducted in 2015 to 2017 by University of Minnesota Associate Professor Greta Friedemann-Sanchez and Margaret Grieve, who is also a member of The Advocates for Human Rights' Board of Directors. With The Advocates for Human Rights, they launched an advocacy campaign to bring their research, findings, and recommendations for change to the United Nations during Colombia's Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council (2018) and review by the Committee on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (2019). Based on this advocacy, the Committee made two priority recommendations to Colombia, leading to continued advocacy with high-level Colombian government officials. The new law strengthens the Office of the Family Commissioner, the judicial provider charged with issuing protection orders to victims of violence, providing women and girls in Colombia better access to justice and protection. One Standard CLE credit to be applied for.
Presenters:
Dr. Greta Friedemann-Sanchez
A native of Colombia, Greta Friedemann-Sánchez is Associate Professor at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota. She holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology (2002) from the University of Minnesota, and she completed postdoctoral training at the Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, VA Medical Center. Friedemann-Sánchez’s research portfolio aims to understand how and why gender equity or inequity is generated inside of families. Along with her collaborator Margaret Grieve, she recently published the book titled Comisarías de Familia y Violencia Contra las Mujeres en Colombia: Puerta de Acceso y Retos Institucionales (2019 Taller de Edición Rocca). The book and presentation are part of the same public scholarship research project, which has resulted in Colombia’s passage of Law 2126 this past August improving access to justice for women victims of domestic violence.
Margaret Grieve, JD/MA
Retiring from a successful career as a financial services lawyer to manage her family’s business interests, Margaret (Peggy) Grieve went on to earn a Masters in Public Affairs at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota (2015) with a minor in Human Rights and a certificate in Nonprofit Management. There she begun her research collaboration with Dr. Greta Friedmann-Sanchez, which led to the publication of the book Comisarías de Familia y Violencia Contra las Mujeres en Colombia: Puerta de Acceso y Retos Institucionales (2019 Taller de Edición Rocca) and advocacy at the United Nations (with The Advocates for Human Rights) and within Colombia. As an outgrowth of her work with The Advocates for Human Rights, Ms. Grieve has continued to work with The Advocates and joined its Board. She also serves as a Director of The Child Mind Institute and The Central Asia America Education Foundation.
Presentation materials:
- Submission to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women Relating to Access to Justice, Discriminatory Gender Stereotypes, and Violence Against Women in Colombia, 2019 (also available in Spanish)
- One-pager on Access to Justice, Discriminatory Gender Stereotypes, and Violence Against Women in Colombia, 2019 (English)
- Comentarios al Proyecto de Reforma a las Comisarías de Familia (“Proyecto de Ley”) presentado en octubre de 2019 a la Procuradora Delegada de los Derechos de la Infancia, Adolescencia y la Familia
