Women’s Link Worldwide (WLW)

Background

Women’s Link Worldwide was founded in 2001 by Viviana Waisman. ² Prior to creating the organization, Waisman was a consultant for the United Nations Population Fund in New York and attorney for the pro-abortion Center for Reproductive Rights. ³ Waisman is also a professor of law and visiting scholar at the American University – Washington College of Law Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. ³

Finances

In 2022, Women’s Link Worldwide received $1,894,573 in contributions of its $1,907,692 in total revenue, spent $2,650,263, and held $3,130,266 in net assets. ⁴

In 2023, WLW announced that MacKenzie Scott, ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, provided a “transformative” donation to the organization. ⁵ WLW’s website does not list the amount, and MacKenzie Scott’s website Yield Giving, which provides a generally transparent financial records of her contributions, lists that the disclosure of the amount is “delayed for [the] benefit of recipient.” ⁶

Activism

Abortion

Women’s Link Worldwide advocated for access to abortion, including elective abortions, throughout South America, including in Argentina, Colombia, and Mexico. ⁷

WLW also lobbied the United Nations to include pro-abortion interpretations of human rights law. ⁸ In 2015, WLW submitted a “contribution to discussion” on proposed revisions to comments interpreting Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which states that: “Every human being has the inherent right to life. This right shall be protected by law.” ⁸ WLW’s contribution to discussion argued that Article 6 of the ICCPR should not be interpreted to advocate for pro-natalist positions vis-à-vis abortion. ⁸

Human Trafficking

Women’s Link Worldwide lobbied the United Nations to advocate for international laws that deter human trafficking, deter violence towards women, and weaken sovereign criminal and immigration laws. ⁹ WLW states that reforms to prevent human trafficking must be drawn from an international human rights framework that prioritizes the safety of trafficked human beings. ⁹ WLW concludes that national immigration and criminal law frameworks must cede to human rights law and prioritize the safety of trafficked individuals over the enforcement of national laws. ¹⁰

In 2020, WLW and the Centre for Women, Peace and Security at the London School of Economics and Political Science submitted recommendations to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to revise the formal guidance provided by the UN on how states can align their laws with international human rights law. ⁹

WLW’s argued for weakening immigration and asylum laws, and purported that many states enable violence towards women by “leaving trafficking victims vulnerable to traffickers through restrictive immigration laws or by closing safe and legal migration routes.” ⁹

Leadership

Jovana Rios Cisnero is the executive director of Women’s Link Worldwide. ¹¹ Prior to joining WLW, Rios Cisnero was the regional advocacy and campaigns manager for Save the Children International. ¹¹

Cisnero has held appointments from the United Nations Secretary General, including appointment to the high level steering group of the United Nations – Every Woman, Every Child initiative as well as the initiative’s Independent Accountability Panel. ¹¹