Women Beyond Walls: On 18 March, we co-hosted an official UN side event with Penal Reform International, Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies, and partners — bringing together Member States, UN agencies, civil society, and leaders with lived experience.

We were honoured to welcome Mary Robinson as keynote speaker, who delivered a powerful call to action:

“Justice cannot mean punishing poverty, nor criminalising survival… If we are truly committed to gender equality, our justice systems must not penalise women for surviving poverty or for simply being women.”

The discussion explored gender-specific pathways to criminalisation — including poverty, inequality, and structural discrimination — and the disproportionate harms women face within criminal legal systems.

You can watch the event below and read the full report here