Across the region, women are forging alternative paths to real peace and security, rejecting militarisation and violence. They do this at great personal risk. Español

Lejos de la militarización y la violencia, y a costa de enormes riesgos personales, las mujeres están abriendo vías alternativas hacia una verdadera paz y seguridad en toda la región. English

Protection of women human rights defenders must be based on recognizing not only their existence, but also their contribution to creating better societies.

It is easy to think of impunity as a sin of omission. The hand not raised in protest appears genteel alongside the hand stained with the blood of the victim. Yet we learned from the testimonies of women on the frontlines of battle for gender justice that impunity not only perpetuates crimes against women, it teaches generation after generation how to continue the practice.

Women human rights defenders in Mexico are increasingly targeted, often by government forces, since drug war violence and militarisation provide a cover for attacking leaders of grassroots movements, says Laura Carlsen

Blogging from the Nobel Women's Initiative conference, Laura Carlsen sees the strength in the women gathered there and voices a collective hope about meeting the challenge of ending sexual violence in conflict.