"The naming of non-State torture is crucial for women's healing"

At FiLiA2025 , Linda MacDonald, Mariane da Cunha, Elizabeth Gordon and Jeanne Sarson presented a panel on non-State Torture. An idea that emerged from this panel was the creation of a Network Against Non-State Torture (NNST), with its official launch on February 3 and a global conference planned in Lisbon in November.

This podcast explores the crime and human rights violation of Non-State Torture (NST), committed by non-state actors, often within criminal informal networks. These include families, as well as networks involved in human trafficking, prostitution, pornography, gangs, and organised crime.

#nonstatetorture #womenunsilenced #NST #NNST

'I asked her: do you hate men? She said: ’This thing about hating men is really more about standing up to male dominance WITHOUT apology.

Meet Andrea Dworkin!

In this episode, Roberta Pyzel discusses her documentary DWORKIN: a close-up portrait of the brilliant, compassionate, and courageous feminist icon. Dworkin’s lifelong commitment to elevating the voices of women who suffer under the brutal domination of patriarchy infuses the film with passionate intensity. She continues to inspire us all to fight—and to fight hard—for a different world.

Roberta Pyzel https://www.jaxsplace.com/

Nanette Natal http://www.benyomusic.com/ 

'It's important to say that even today we know that children are in the court systems and their voices are not being heard in a way that is respected.
If you can't name something, you can't heal from it.'

In this episode Sally Jackson from FiLiA talks to Jeanne Sarson, Co founder Non-State Torture and Linda McDonald Co founder of Non-State Torture .

Linda and Jeanne have pioneered the work on non state torture, defining it, understanding it and most importantly helping Women to heal from it. Find out more about their work, what's missing from the - Global Torture Index and what you will gain from their session at FiLiA2025.

 "What it has meant to me is that I haven't seen my children for over 10 years." 

In this episode, Anita Gera explains the work of Hague Explained, a registered non-profit organisation that provides customised workshops to help internationally mobile families understand the legal and emotional risks of relocating children across borders. 

Anita also shares the deeply personal trauma she experienced—an ordeal that ultimately led her to co-found the organisation. Her story highlights the urgent need for awareness around international child abduction and the 1980 Hague Convention. 

Website: https://hague-explained.org/
Email: [email protected]
LinkedIn: Hague Explained on LinkedIn
Twitter: @HagueExplained 

“I don't ever want to make the mothers have to be the ones to gatekeep for who comes in. I'm going to do that for them.”

La Leche League is a charity that was set up to offer mother-to-mother breastfeeding support and to protect the natural course of breastfeeding and the mother-baby dyad.

Ruth, Rej, and Loreto all had their accreditation as LLL breastfeeding counsellors removed by LLL International for “breaches of the LLL Code of Conduct” and “actions that led to the public discrediting of LLL.” This occurred after they made a public statement and spoke to journalists as trustees about the conflict that had been exposed between the policy of supporting male lactation and the LLLGB charitable objects and beneficiaries, which do not include males.

In this episode the former LLLGB trustees and breastfeeding counsellors have a conversation with Julie Bindel about how gender ideology has captured the world’s oldest breastfeeding organisation to the point that it has abandoned its mission. You might think that something as essentially female as breastfeeding would be safeguarded for women ‒ think again!

 We are increasingly hearing about cases of strangulation of women, both in relationships and, thanks to porn culture, increasingly in our sex lives. In this episode, Sally Jackson, FiLiA Trustee; Bernie Ryan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Institute for Addressing Strangulation (IFAS); and Marianne McGowan, Survivor Liaison and Research Worker for IFAS, discuss the dangers, who it affects, and what we can do to raise awareness of the realities of the danger it presents.

Please note this podcast episode references a conference event with a date that has since passed. We apologise for any confusion this may cause and encourage listeners to check for updated information on upcoming events at IFAS Tackling Strangulation - Working Together to Save Lives.

 "I don't feel that loneliness anymore. I feel part of something."

After attending FiLiA in Portsmouth, one woman returned to her workplace determined to set up a women’s group. Two years later, the group has grown in size and confidence. In this interview, Kiri Tunks discusses with the women how they set up the group, what they do in their meetings, and how it has transformed their relationships and lives.

Episode Note: When there is a large group in the room, issues with sound quality are inevitable. We’re sure you’ll agree that it’s far more important to share these women’s voices. Thank you for your understanding.

Does prison work for Women? What alternatives are being tried and how successful are they - what do we even mean by 'success'?

"The short answer to How many Women are in prison, is far too many! The biggest challenges are funding and investment"

In this episode FiLiA trustee Sally Jackson, Dr April Smith, a criminologist and psychologist, and Rhona Hotchkiss, ex-governor of Cornton Vale Women's prison, discuss the issues for Women caught up in the criminal justice system designed for men.

FiLiA is a member of Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE)

In this podcast we find out more about WAVE's work. Sally Jackson interviews, Stephanie Futter Orel Executive Director WAVE, Branislava Aradjan Project and Youth ambassador Coordinator and Beverly Mtui, Communications Coordinator of WAVE

WAVE is a network of over 170 European women’s NGOs working towards prevention and protection of women and children from violence. "We build the capacity of our members, advocate for better legislation, conduct research and raise awareness on violence against women and girls. Celebrating 30 years of activism this year."

https://wave-network.org/toolkit-for-victim-friendly-judicial-practice-in-child-custody-contact-and-visitation-matters/  

In this episode Luba Fein, FiLiA volunteer, Alyssa Ahrabare, Advocacy Manager for European Network of Migrant Women and Hema Sibi, advocacy coordinator for The Coalition for the Abolition of Prostitution discuss a huge legal victory in France.

The European Court of Human Rights upholds France's right to ban the purchase of prostitution. France enforces a law that aims to abolish prostitution, while helping its victims exit. A group of individuals, supported by pro-prostitution organisations, appealed against this law to the ECHR. According to the appellants, this legislation radically damaged their right to dignity, private life, personal autonomy and sexual freedom. 

The court ruled that the problems related to prostitution raise sensitive moral and ethical questions, which gave rise to different, sometimes contradictory opinions. That said, the French authorities were at their legitimate discretion in enacting the ban. Among other things, the judges stated they were aware of the multitude of problems identified with the phenomenon of prostitution (such as the violence of the sex buyers towards the people in prostitution). Still, they were not sure whether this was the result of the law or a phenomenon inherent to prostitution.

Sex trade survivors and feminists globally celebrate this vast achievement.