Updates Archive - Countering Backlash

Event: Digital gender backlash: strategies to counter it

Gender-based violence affects women, girls, and queer people in all their diversity, both online and offline. Digital tools and platforms are frequently used to target individuals and communities, spreading hate, abuse, and disinformation. These online attacks often mirror or amplify offline violence, creating a cycle that restricts participation, visibility, and safety across all areas of life.

For the 16 Days of Activism 2025, the Countering Backlash programme is leading a conversation examining the context of this digital abuse and strategies to push back. Experts from the Institute of Development Studies, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (UK), NEIM (Brazil), BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (Bangladesh), WOUGNET (Uganda), and Özyeğin University (Turkey) will explore different forms of online gender backlash in their respective contexts and discuss how intersectional feminist perspectives can inform research, policy, and collective action to foster safer, more inclusive online environments globally.

The webinar will conclude with time for an audience Q&A.

Speakers

Maíra Kubík Mano, NEIM
Sandra Aceng, WOUGNET
Becky Faith, Institute of Development Studies
Rachel Grant, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
Iffat Jahan Antara, Consultant, Countering Backlash
Çimen Günay-Erkol, Özyeğin University
Chair: Chloe Skinner, Institute of Development Studies

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“It’s about dividing society”- Countering Backlash featured in Welt-Sichten

Thirty years after the International Women’s Conference in Beijing, where the international community committed itself to, among other things, true gender equality, an end to sexual violence against women, and greater political participation of women, many of these achievements or their implementation are now being questioned or reversed.

Jerker Edström, who heads the Countering Backlash programme, was interviewed by Welt-Sichten’s Melanie Kräuter, and explains how such setbacks occur and who is driving them. In the interview, Jerker speaks to:

The causes of backlash
Who the driving forces behind them are
Why backlash groups rely so heavily on traditional values and outdated gender roles
Why the regressive backlash movement is so popular

You can read the full interview on Welt-Sichten’s website (article is in German. Your web browser may translate it into English or another language).

Read the interview here

Podcast mini-series: Gender Justice – Episode 3

Countering Backlash in association with CREA is working with ‘The Stop, Collaborate and Listen Agency‘, and their podcast ‘Connecting Citizens to Science’, to explore the intersecting challenges of rising patriarchal backlash, silencing of marginalised voices and resistance in the Global South.

The third episode explores what allyship really means in the fight for gender justice. Co-host Ishrat Jahan (BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health) is joined by Dr Abhijit Das (SAHAYOG) and Professor Cecilia Sardenberg (NEIM), who reflect on allyship within health systems, across movements, and in the face of patriarchal and political backlash in Brazil and India.

I have to take commitment towards the equalisation, not only as a legal principle, not only as a principle which the state has to do, but something that I have to take individual commitment for.

Dr Abhijit Das, SAHAYOG

Listen

Listen to the third episode below, or visit the Stop, Collaborate and Listen agencies website.

Podcast mini-series: Gender Justice – Episode 1

This first episode discusses how crises becomes fertile ground for anti-gender backlash. Co-host Ishrat Jahan (BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health), is joined by Nay El Rahi (Arab Institute for Women) and Alfred Makabira (ADSOCK), who share stories, reflections and analysis from their work on the Countering Backlash programme and beyond.

If crises can be imagined as spaces where traditional values are going to be anchored, I think they can also be reimagined as a space where our collective resistance can grow and where feminist responses cut across issues, address climate change, address deep economic and political crises.

Ishrat Jahan, BRAC JPGSPH

Listen

Listen to the first episode below, or visit the Stop, Collaborate and Listen agencies website.

Event: Understanding Discourse Capture in Anti-Gender Politics

Countering Backlash researcher Tessa Lewin is speaking at Stellenbosch University about the concept of ‘discourse capture’ as a analytical tool to help us understand the nature of contemporary anti-feminist and anti-queer politics.

This is a concept that grew from an observation of the field at a time when public debate on state capture was particularly prevalent. Borrowing from definitions of state capture, Tessa argues that discourse capture is a key backlash mechanism, characterised by its intention, scale, and undercover nature.

Discourse capture occurs where progressive discourse is co-opted and manipulated to serve right-wing agendas. Tessa outlines four forms of discourse capture in practice – re-signifying, shifting, mimicking, and twisting; and, in the context of existing feminist counter backlash strategies, Tessa explores what a counter discourse capture strategy might comprise.

You can find out more about discourse capture by reading her article ‘Nothing is as it seems: ‘discourse capture’ and backlash politics‘.

When

18 June 2025
13:00 (South Africa time) / 12:00 (UK time)

Where

Online

Register

Please email [email protected] to RSVP for this event

Partner Event: WOUGNET at the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum 2025

Countering Backlash partner WOUGNET are hosting a session at the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum 2025, 1 May, on Reclaiming Gender Justice in the Digital Age: Countering Backlash and Advancing Digital Rights and Equity’.

The global progress towards gender equality is under threat, with political and social shifts fuelling patriarchal backlash that seeks to undermine women’s rights and shrink civic space. From online harassment and censorship of gender discourse to restrictive policies on reproductive rights and women’s leadership, gender backlash takes many forms. This growing backlash is infringing on the digital rights of women and girls, limiting their access to online opportunities and excluding them from the benefits of the digital space.

This session will explore strategies that undermine gender equality in digital spaces, strengthen counter-backlash efforts, share key research project findings, and disseminate key insights from the 2024 policy mapping and observatory research reports.

When:

1 May, 07:40 UK time

Speakers:

David Iribagiza, WOUGNET
Iffat Jahan Antara, BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD)
Peninah Igaga, Barefoot Law
Peter Ongom, WOUGNET
Wala Mohammed, Hopes and Actions Foundation

Register to attend

Event: Countering Backlash – Towards a Feminist Future

The very ideas – let alone the possibilities – of gender and social justice are under attack the world over. These attacks are becoming increasingly acute, multi-layered, and globally resonant, seeking to erase language, movements, legal frameworks, and even entire communities.

The front cover of our 'Cards Against Backlash'. There are cartoon images of people in various positions, and holding various tools and items such as LGBTQI+ flags, books, loudspeakers. There is text that reads 'Cards Against Backlash: Forwards to a Feminist Future - Strategies for Surviving and Countering Gender Backlash'

This event from Countering Backlash asked: how can gender and social justice activists survive this current moment? And how can we strategise and organise – not only to counter and resist – but also to build the queer, decolonial and feminist futures that have never yet been realised?

The event discussed the toolkit ‘Cards against Backlash – towards a feminist future’, which draws upon real-life tactics identified across the Countering Backlash programme. Speakers from India, Kenya, Lebanon, Brazil, Bangladesh and the UK addressed themes of survival, resistance and creating just futures, discussing careful digital practice, the use of language, holding the line, and creating coalitions.

A plenary discussion allowed for a broader sharing of strategies and tactics, exploring together our collective push for a feminist future.

Speakers:

Tessa Lewin, Institute of Development Studies
Becky Faith, Institute of Development Studies
Nay El Rahi, Arab Institute for Women
Iffat Jahan Antara, Consultant, Countering Backlash
Maíra Kubík Mano, NEIM
Gender at Work Consulting – India

Chair

Chloe Skinner, Institute of Development Studies

Countering Backlash partner AIW wins prestigious award

We are excited to announce that our partner organisation the Arab Institute for Women (AIW) at the Lebanese America University (LAU) has won at the Times Higher Education (THE) Awards Arab World 2024.

Winning in the category of ‘Research Project of the Year: Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences’, judges of the THE Awards said that “some social science projects provide the knowledge a society needs at a vital moment in time. AIW’s entry is a great example – with solid academic research and a collaborative approach to engage with society, their work is having a real-world impact in an area of vital importance”.

Myriam Sfeir, executive director of AIW shared that “it’s very gratifying to receive this award, especially at such a critical time for our country and our region. It gives us greater visibility, opens more doors and highlights the Institute’s day-to-day efforts to develop a culture of change”.

A photo of four people standing on a stage. The person in blue is holding a gold award. The stage is black, with gold graphics with the writing 'THE Awards Arab World 2024'. — Myriam Sfeir, Executive Director of AIW, accepts their award.

This award comes at a pivotal moment as LAU celebrates 100 years of Education, Empowerment, and Innovation and AIW half a century of leading the charge to mainstream gender issues within the institution and bridging the gap between academia and activism to advance gender justice.

AIW was established in 1973, building upon the Lebanese American University’s rich history as a school for women. At that time, it was the first such institute in the Arab region, working at the intersection of academia and activism. It remains one of the first globally and one of the few in Lebanon. The Institute advances gender equality and advocates for gender justice concerns nationally, regionally and globally through research, education, development programmes, and outreach.

“It fills me with immense pride to belong to this institution, which has always been a strong supporter of AIW and continues to be,” adds Myriam. “AIW is a small but mighty institute, and we promise to always walk the walk.”

AIW’s research on the Countering Backlash programme focuses on improving the understanding of gender backlash in Lebanon, and strengthening strategies to counter. They have published research on ‘Backlash in the Lebanese Media’, ‘Understanding Backlash in Lebanon’ and ‘Deconstructing Anti-Feminist Backlash: The Lebanese Context’, as well as numerous opinion-pieces – all available on the Countering Backlash website.

Event: Eliminating gender-based violence: Strategies to counter backlash

A graphic card with cartoon figures attending a protest, holding signs against gender injustice. In the background are flames.

Violence against women and girls remains a global human rights violation, with the UN reporting that almost 1 in 3 women have been subjected to physical and/or sexual violence. Along with the ever-growing forces catalysing backlash against gender justice worldwide, understanding the reasons, strategies and evidence of what – and who – is behind these acts of violence is crucial how we can counter this backlash.

This Countering Backlash event on the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women discusses this. We were joined by gender practitioners, academics, and activists from Bangladesh, Brazil, Lebanon, and Uganda. The event spoke to how violence against gender activists manifests, how gender backlash actors undermine state efforts to address violence, how feminists are countering this backlash to ensure gender-based violence (GBV) is addressed, and more.

The moderated event is based on the insights drawn from Countering Backlash research in these countries on feminist voice and mobilisations against backlash – and marks the launch of the country paper series that is synthesising findings on how to counter backlash.

Speakers

Nay El Rahi, Activist and Researcher, Arab Institute for Women, Lebanese American University
Josephine Ahikire, Professor, Makerere University and Centre for Basic Research
Maheen Sultan, Senior Fellow of Practice, BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD)
Cecilia Sardenberg, Professor, Nucleus of Interdisciplinary Women’s Studies of the Federal University of Bahia (NEIM)

Discussant

Professor Naomi Hossain, Department of Development Studies, SOAS

Chair

Sohela Nazneen, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies

Watch

Countering Backlash panels at the DSA Conference 2024

Countering Backlash researcher Sohela Nazneen (IDS), Nay El Rahi (AIW), Maheen Sultan, Md Mohaiminul Islam and Shamsad Navia Novelly (BIGD) took part in the Development Studies Association’s 2024 annual conference.

The hybrid conference was organised and hosted by the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, and was convened by Michael Jennings, Professor of Global Development, with the theme of ‘Social Justice and Development in a Polarising World’. The Countering Backlash team delivered a number of exciting sessions, designed to engage attendees on key research from the programme. Two of these were part of a larger panel, organised by Deepta Chopra and Samreen Mushtaq (IDS) titled ‘Seeking Gender Justice and Rights Amidst Backlash: Challenges and Responses by Women’s Struggles‘:

Deconstructing Anti-Feminist Backlash: The Lebanese Context
Nay El Rahi, from the Arab Institute for Women, delivered a novel and nuanced understanding of the context specific challenges of women’s groups in Lebanon, as they try to further their demands in a constricted ‘sextarian’ political system.
Countering Backlash Through Coalition Building: Compromises, Contentions and Sustaining Struggles in Bangladesh
Sohela Nazneen, along with BIGD colleagues, explored how women’s struggles in Bangladesh use coalition building strategies to counter backlash and how impact of this strategy varies by the coalition’s focus, and space it engages in, leadership composition, and form, and what lessons it entails for building sustainable movements.

Feminist Foreign Policy vs Development: Which Way to Social and Gender Justice?

Sohela Nazneen participated as a discussant on a panel for this additional session, which explored whether and how feminist principles and social justice concepts can help countries with feminist foreign and development policies, such as Germany or Chile, to address developmental challenges and transforming unequal global systems in times of polycrisis.

Countering Backlash researcher Sohela Nazneen contributes to new book ‘Fifty Years of Bangladesh’

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) organised a launching programme for the book titled “Fifty Years of Bangladesh: Economy, Politics, Society and Culture”, on Thursday, 18 April 2024. The volume has been published by Routledge and co-edited by Professor Rehman Sobhan, Founding Chairman, CPD and Professor Rounaq Jahan, Distinguished Fellow, CPD.

The book portrays the multi-faceted dimensions of Bangladesh’s development journey, its economic and social transformation and political and cultural contestations. It presents new empirical data supplemented with critical analysis of processes, actors and actions that have been the drivers of Bangladesh’s transformation and offers new ways of understanding Bangladesh. This book should be viewed as a successor publication to a similar volume prepared on the occasion of Bangladesh’s 25th anniversary, ‘Bangladesh: Promise and Performance’ edited by Professor Rounaq Jahan, and published by Zed Books, London.

Countering Backlash researcher and IDS Senior Fellow, Dr Sohela Nazneen, produced a chapter for this book entitled ‘Contentious Empowerment?: Women, Development and Change in Bangladesh‘. Dr Nazneen presented her work during the official launch of the book, and underscored that ‘despite advancements, restrictive social norms still limit women’s mobility, sexual autonomy, and presence as a collective group’.

Find out more about the book and the launch event by reading CPD’s summary.

Event: Financing a gender justice infrastructure to counter anti-gender ideology and anti-rights movements

How gender is being weaponised across contexts as a means to undermine human rights and threaten democracy? Countering Backlash co-convened a parallel event with the Ford Foundation and the Global Philanthropy Project for the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) 2024.

The event explored the current philanthropic response and identify critical strategies – and the resources required – to meet the urgency of the moment and respond at scale to this threat. We brought together key stakeholders for a timely discussion on countering anti-gender ideology and anti-rights movements in order to realise a more gender-just world.

Through two dynamic panel discussions, the event explored the current philanthropic response and identify critical strategies – and the resources required – to meet the urgency of the moment and respond at scale to this threat.

Participants were welcomed by words by Hilary Pennington, Executive Vice President of Programs, Ford Foundation, and the event was closed by Sarita Gupta, Vice President of US Programs, Ford Foundation.

When

19 March 2024

Speakers

Sohela Nazneen, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies (IDS)
Adeline Azrack, Managing Director, Fondation CHANEL
Angelika Arutyunova, Co-Founder, CEECCNA Collaborative Fund
Caroline Kouassiaman, Executive Director, Initiative Sankofa d’Afrique de l’Ouest (ISDAO)
Chivuli Ukwimi, Deputy Director, International Trans Fund (ITF)
Elena Rey Maquiera Palmer, Co-Executive Director, Fondo Lunaria Mujer
Hilary Pennington, Executive Vice President of Programs, Ford Foundation
Jac sm Kee, Co-funder and Cartographer, Numun Fund
Matthew Hart, Executive Director, Global Philanthropy Project (GPP)
Monica Aleman, International Program Director for Gender, Racial, and Ethnic Justice International, Ford Foundation
Sarita Gupta, Vice President, US Programs, Ford Foundation

Event: Sustaining and expanding south-south-north partnerships and knowledge co-construction on global backlash to reclaim gender justice

We are living in a time of global unrest and division stoked by increasing polarisation in politics, authoritarianism and backlash on gender equality, inclusion and social justice.

This event, during the UN’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) 2024, explored how effective south-south-north partnerships can develop better and more nuanced understandings of gender backlash, to inform strategies for defending gender justice.

Based on research from the Countering Backlash programme, this event was a discussion between researchers, civil society activists, with bi- and multi-lateral development agencies. It provided insights from research and policy spaces on how we can work together more effectively to reclaim gender justice.

Starting in a panel format, speakers were asked to reflect on key insights from partnering in research on backlash, in activism and in international policy spheres. The co-chairs facilitated a dialogue between panellists and then opened up the discussion with the audience.

This event was hosted by the Lebanese American University, and co-sponsored by the Government of Sweden.

When

13 March 2024

Where

In person – Lebanese American University, New York

Speakers

Nay El Rahi, Activist and Researcher, Arab Institute for Women, Lebanese American University
Phil Otieno, Executive Director, Advocates for Social Change Kenya (ADSOCK)
Tessa Lewin, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies
Jerker Edström, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies
Ida Petterson, SIDA – Sweden
Karen Burbach, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands
Constanza Tabbush, Research Specialist, UN Women

Co-chairs

Myriam Sfeir – Arab Institute for Women, Lebanese American University
Sohela Nazneen – Institute of Development Studies

Event: How is backlash weakening institutional contexts for gender justice globally?

Gender backlash is continually gaining momentum across the globe, and social and political institutions and policies are being dismantled. Gender justice activists and women’s rights organisations are having to mobilise quickly to counter these attacks.

With speakers from Bangladesh, Uganda, Lebanon, Serbia and India, in this official NGO CSW68 event we asked, ‘how is gender backlash weakening institutional contexts for gender justice globally?’ Speakers discussed: stalling and lack of implementation of the Domestic Violence Prevention and Protection Act (2010) in Bangladesh; the infiltration of conservative religious and political actors in democratic institutions in the context of Serbia and neighbouring countries; anti-feminist backlash as institutional by default in Lebanon; and the legislative weakening of institutional contexts in Uganda, examining Acts which exert control over Civil Society Organisations.

When

11 March 2024

Speakers

Pragyna Mahpara, BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD)
Sandra Aceng, Executive Director, Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET)
Nay El Rahi, Activist and Researcher, Arab Institute for Women (AIW)
Nađa Bobičić, Researcher, Center for Women’s Studies Belgrade (CWS)
Santosh Kumar Giri, Director, Kolkata Rista
Jerker Edström, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies (IDS)

Chair

Chloe Skinner, Research Fellow, IDS

Event: Understanding Gender Backlash: Southern Perspectives

The 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995, and the 10th anniversary of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), are fast approaching. And with global progress on gender justice on the rise around the world, we must find ways to combat gender backlash now.

The Countering Backlash programme has produced an IDS Bulletin on ‘Understanding Gender Backlash: Southern Perspectives’. It includes contributions, insights, and expert knowledge from programme partners in diverse locations including Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Kenya, Lebanon, Uganda, and the United Kingdom.

This Bulletin addresses the urgent question of how we can better understand the recent swell of anti-gender backlash across different regions, exploring different types of actors, interests, narratives, and tactics for backlash in different places, policy areas, and processes. In this event — ahead of International Women’s Day 2024 — speakers reflected on their articles and shared key findings from their research. The panel dthen answered questions from the audience.

When

7 March 2024

Speakers

Josephine Akihire, Centre for Basic Research
Amon Mwiine, Centre for Basic Research
Ishrat Jahan, BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health
Sudarshana Kundu, Gender at Work Consulting – India
Shraddha Chigateri, Gender at Work Consulting – India
Sohela Nazneen, IDS
Jerker Edström, IDS

Chair

Andrea Cornwall, King’s College London

Partner Event: BRAC JPGSPH and BIGD hosts Stakeholder Roundtable on Online Anti-Feminist Backlash

Countering Backlash partner BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health (BRAC JPGSPH) held a roundtable discussion on ‘Anti-feminist Backlash in Online Spaces and Creating Counter-Moves’ in collaboration with BRAC Institue of Governance and Development (BIGD) in Dhaka, Bangladesh on 28th November, 2023.

The roundtable was moderated by Nazia Zebin, and the event featured research presentations by Raiyaan Mahbub and Israr Hasan from BRAC JPGSPH and Iffat Jahan Antara from BIGD which set the context for the discussion. The discussions focused on the current challenges of navigating gender justice agendas in the face of rising organised backlash and the delegitimisation of feminism in the consciousness of the mass populace on social media platforms.

Critical insights were shared by experts and lawyers working on issues of digital safety and justice, seasoned NGO personnel, activists, and young movement organisers who are at the forefront of experiencing online backlash as they work on ensuring democratise, safe and gender-friendly digital environments.

Read the press release for further details

Podcast: Politicising masculinity and its politics in the global context

Countering Backlash’s Jerker Edström joined Satish Kumar Singh on the Azad Foundation’s ‘Masculinities in focus’ podcast to discuss ‘Politicising masculinity and its politics in the global context‘. They unravel the politicisation of masculinity and its wide-ranging implications for politics, gender equality, and power relations in the global context, in a discussion moderated by Mr. Shrinivas Rao, National Lead, Azad Foundation.

Recent years have seen a rising concern over the politicisation of masculinity impacting global politics. Masculinities politics often emphasises traditional gender roles, maintaining male dominance in politics. This manifests in the underrepresentation of women in leadership and the perpetuation of gender stereotypes promoting male dominance and aggression. Additionally, the politicisation of masculinity is evident in populist movements and nationalist ideologies, relying on exaggerated hyper-masculine narratives that create a toxic political environment, reinforcing stereotypes and undermining gender equality.

This episode aims to delve deeper into the politicisation of masculinity and its global implications, explore strategies for mobilising resources to engage with men amid the current dilemma with feminist organisations, and recommend a way forward for civil society actors.

Listen Now

Event: Counting the cost: funding flows, gender backlash and counter backlash

Major political and social shifts are stifling the possibility of gender justice across the world. Analysing this backlash as operating on global, regional and local scales in this webinar, we ask, where is the money?

While predominant anti-gender backlash movements and actors appear well financed, those countering backlash face significant financial challenges, heightened in the context of rising authoritarianism and shrinking civic space.

In this event, we were joined by leading experts and partners from Countering Backlash and beyond. Isabel Marler from the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID) presented a mapping of sources of funding for anti-rights actors, and interrogate what is effective in countering anti-rights trends, while Lisa VeneKlasen (Independent Strategist, Founder and Former Executive Director of JASS), explored ‘where is philanthropy on anti-gender backlash’? Turning to national restrictions, Sudarsana Kundu and Arundhati Sridhar from our partner organisation Gender at Work Consulting – India focused on the impacts of funding laws for women’s rights organising in India.

When

12 December 2023
13:00 – 14:30 UK time

Speakers

Lisa VeneKlassen, Independent Strategist, Founder and Former Executive Director of JASS (Just Associates)
Isabel Marler, Lead, Advancing Universal Rights and Justice, Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)
Sudarsana Kundu, Executive Director, Gender at Work Consulting – India
Arundhati Sridhar, Gender at Work Consulting – India

Discussant

Rosie McGee, Research Fellow, IDS

Chair

Chloe Skinner, Research Fellow, IDS

Watch the recording

Partner event: BIGD discuss the implementation of Bangladesh’s Domestic Violence Prevention and Protection Act

Countering Backlash partner BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) hosted an engaging and important workshop with representatives of the Bangladesh Government and advocates. The workshop was hosted by BIGD in partnership with the Citizen’s Initiative against Domestic Violence (CIDV) at the BIGD offices in Dhaka’s Azimur Rahman Conference Hall.

The session discussed the implementation of the Domestic Violence Prevention and Protection Act (DVPPA) 2010, and shared key findings and recommendations from BIGD’s Countering Backlash policy brief ‘Backlash in Action? Or Inaction? Stalled Implementation of the Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act 2010 in Bangladesh‘. Despite being approved in 2010, the Act remains underutilized and commitment to its implementation has been low, often treating domestic violence as a family matter. There is an immediate need for changed norms and attitudes among those who are implementing the Act, along with better victim support, procedural revisions for effective implementation of the DVPPA.

The session featured a presentation by Maheen Sultan, Senior Research Fellow, and Pragyna Mahpara, Senior Research Associate, both from BIGD. Expert insights were provided by Dr Shahnaz Huda, Professor of Law at the University of Dhaka.

The event offered crucial insights and perspectives, emphasizing the ongoing effort to combat domestic violence and create a safer environment for all.

Read BIGD’s update about the session on their website

Countering gender backlash in Africa and Asia

Countering Backlash partner, Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET), recently participated in the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum (DRIF) in Nairobi, Kenya and RightsCon in Costa Rica. During the two events, WOUGNET led discussions on the challenges faced by women’s rights advocates and the broader gender justice movement in the face of increasing online gender-based violence and shrinking civic space.

Joined by Countering Backlash partners BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD – Bangladesh) and NEIM (Brazil), along with a representative from the Ugandan police force, sessions highlighted the emergence of new forces and alliances that are actively pushing back against the progress made in achieving gender equality and justice, both globally and in Africa.

Participants discussed the various manifestations of gender backlash, such as the formulation of restrictive laws and legal frameworks, attacks on human rights and defenders, and the use of digital technology to propagate misogynist narratives.

WOUGNET spoke about the continuous attacks on gender activists and human rights defenders in Uganda, where laws and policies are enacted that restrict their activities, such as the recent Anti-homosexuality Act 2023 and amended Computer Misuse Act 2022. The blocking of online platforms also further erodes gender justice, minimising the potential for collective action and the amplification of marginalised voices.

Countering Backlash partner BIGD reported on their recently published research on online gender-based violence and backlash against women gender justice actors in Bangladesh. Currently, the south-Asian country is seeing a rapid increase in internet usage, particularly on Facebook, though evidence shows that almost 68% of Facebook users are men. According to Iffat Antara (Senior Researcher at BIGD), digital space has become an essential medium for activists and individuals to reach global audiences with messages on human rights, gender justice, and other critical social issues. They also addressed opposition from religious leaders towards comprehensive sexuality education policies and the push for discriminatory legislation such as the Anti-homosexuality Act 2023 of Uganda which argues that children’s understanding of their sexual rights makes them ‘pro-sexual’.

WOUGNET’S role in Countering Backlash

Sandra Aceng, Executive Director of WOUGNET, introduced the organisation’s work. WOUGNET has focused much of its research on online gender-based violence, and is currently implementing a project supported by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) called Our Voices, Our Futures, which aims to improve civic space online in Uganda for the women human rights defenders and feminists. WOUGNET’s goal through this project is to enhance its research on online gender-based violence and empower women actively to actively participate in shaping inclusive policies.

Efforts by the Ugandan Police Force

Francis Ogweng, Assistant Superintendent of Police in Uganda, shared the initiatives undertaken by the Uganda Police Force to promote gender justice. He said that the police are making progress towards promoting gender equality, thanks to the establishment of several directorates and departments that have an objective of reporting, analysing and tackling online gender-based violence, including the Gender Policy 2018. Besides these, there has been increased engagement with men on gender equality work as a strategy to reduce gender backlash in policing. Ogweng reported that senior officers have been promoted to higher ranks as a strategy to promote gender equality.

Ogweng is a He-For-She champion of UN Women and Uganda Police where he has promoted positive masculinity within the police. His role as champion resulted from the Uganda Police’s negative image when it comes to working with women and girls.

Despite the recent Anti-Homosexuality Act, Ogweng noted that there are a number of male-led organisations and Government initiatives promoting gender equality and ministries and other non-governmental organisations have programmes targeting male involvement in gender equality work.

Professor Maira Kubik, a Countering Backlash research partner NEIM in Brazil, defined gender backlash as a setback on rights that have not yet been achieved.

What are the trends in online gender backlash?

Antara’s research in Bangladesh explored online hate and threats of violence towards advocates for gender justice, and women in general, causing them to lose confidence and an interest in speaking out. The findings indicate that the violence women experience online has some common forms. These mainly focus on sexually explicit hate comments labelling women as sex workers, and particularly targeting women feminist activists, lawyers, and journalists. She then suggested the need to identify the severity of online gender-based violence against women on gender backlash and to improve the legal frameworks.

What are some of the achievements in gender justice?

Some of WOUGNET’s work on gender backlash is conducting research to understand the challenges that the communities we work with face. This research has shaped the capacity building work done over the years for women, and our community of practice around laws such as Uganda’s Computer Misuse Act 2011 as amended 2022, Data Protection and Privacy Act 2019, and the Anti-Pornography Act 2014 – three policies that significantly affect the meaningful participation of women in online spaces. WOUGNET also has a toll-free line 0800 200510 in place for the public to report cases of online harassment against female journalists.

Recommendations

In order to reduce gender backlash in digital spaces, laws and policies, panellists recommended conducting evidence-based research on gender backlash, building the capacity of men as anti-backlash actors, and training police officers on online gender-based violence so they can respond effectively to cases reported to their desk for investigation. Additionally, they recommended that the communities should know about some of the existing laws/policies so as to be able to fight for their rights, and to counter backlash.

Authored by: Isaac Amuku, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, and Irene Marunga, Communications associate, WOUGNET