A Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Helen Ogunwumiju has commended the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC) for its leading role in providing justice for indigent victims of various crimes across the country.
Delivering a keynote address at the as 25th anniversary ceremony of the centre, the justice highlighted transformative work of WARDC, which included providing legal aid to thousands of women, trained judges, magistrates, police officers, and community leaders; successfully advocating the passage and implementation of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act; and conducting groundbreaking research shaping national policy;
Ogunwumiju identified other achievements as empowering communities with knowledge of their rights, championeinggender budgeting and accountability, and building networks of male allies who understand that women’s rights strengthen, not threaten households, communities and the nation.
She said: ‘WARDC has played a crucial role in shifting the conversation from charity to rights, from sympathy to justice, and from token inclusion to institutional transformation. For these contributions, the nation is grateful. In spite of these long strides, there is still a lot of work to be done. As we say, it is not yet uhuru.
‘This remarkable institution conceived and born in 2000 by Dr. Abiola Akiyode- Afolabi with courage, clarity of purpose, and an unshakeable belief that women deserve justice has grown into one of the most respected voices for gender equality, human rights, and institutional reform across Africa’.
Ogunwumiju, however, charged the centre to note that, marking 25 years of operations should not only be seen as a celebration, but as a renewal of commitment, just as she encouraged all stakeholders to rise boldly to this task.
She pointed out that, when the world is grappling with profound political, economic, technological, and social changes, one truth remains constant. And that is a society cannot progress when half of its population is left behind, unheard, unprotected, or undervalued.
‘Nigeria stands at a pivotal moment. We are a nation rich in talent, culture, resilience, and brilliance especially the brilliance of our women and girls. Yet, too many still wake up each day navigating systems that do not fully protect them, structures that do not hear them, and institutions that do not serve them equally.
‘To build a future that works for everyone, including women and girls in Nigeria, we must start by reimagining access to justice not as a privilege, not as an afterthought, but as a fundamental promise of nationhood’, she said.
Ogunwumiju lamented that, despite constitutional promises, legislative advances, and institutional reforms, women and girls in Nigeria continue to face serious challenges when seeking justice.
The guest lecture stated that, while many discriminatory laws had been repealed, discriminatory practices rooted in custom, social norms, and institutional culture still impede actualisation of women’s rights.
‘A society cannot thrive when half its population live in fear—fear of gender-based violence, fear of stigma for reporting, fear of not being believed, or worse, fear of being blamed. This is still the reality for domestically abused wives, sexually assaulted young girls and sexually harassed women at the workplace’ she said.
Ogunwumiju explained that reimagining justice means ensuring that the first response to a woman in distress is support, not suspicion; protection, not prejudice.
‘A system that shames survivors, delays cases, or pressures women into silence is not justice—it is harm. Justice should be trauma-informed, survivor-centered, and delivered with dignity because dignity is free. We can afford it’, she emphasised.
Ogunwumiju noted that when women are economically empowered, they are better able to assert their rights and protect their children’s futures, stressing that true justice means a legal system that understands the realities of women in rural communities, urban settlements, Internally Displaced Persons’ camps, markets, schools, and workplaces.
‘No legal reform will succeed without cultural and religious shifts that advance women’s rights. Access to justice is not only a legal question, it is a social one. Families, communities, religious institutions, and traditional rulers shape norms that either open the doors of justice or shut them’, she stated.
