The Women and Law in
Southern Africa Research and Educational Trust traces its origins to
a workshop that was held in 1988 in Nyanga Zimbabwe which brought
scholars and activists from six countries of the Southern African
Sub-Continent to discuss the legal situation of women in those
countries. The countries were Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique,
Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The question
posed at the gathering was why were women experiencing problems in
the areas in which the laws in these countries provide redress? Was
it due to ignorance of the law, or attitudes of the people, or did
the answer lie elsewhere?
This set the stage
for action oriented research approach to the first two topics which
were agreed to at the first meeting. These were Maintenance and
Inheritance.
WLSA
has evolved from a project to an organization over the years. It has
grown from one core programme of action research to an organization
with six programmes which include:-
Action Research
Information Dissemination and Documentation
Legal Advice and Services
Lobbying and Advocacy for Policy, Legal Reform and Change
Networking
Training and Education on Women's Rights as Human Rights
