A local women’s rights advocacy group has teamed up with an international foundation in a three-year programme to reach out to victims of domestic violence in the city. That includes new arrivals from the mainland, the lesbian community and young students who suffered from what was called “dating violence”, said Linda To Kit-lai, founding member and executive director of HER Fund, a Hong Kong-based non-governmental organisation.

Initially founded in August 2011, VLW focuses on the political, economic, and social empowerment of women. Since then, the organization completed a national assessment focusing on women in security—the first and only of its kind in Libya—as well as conducted interviews with key stakeholders and organized our annual One Voice conference, which brings together the acting head of state, members of Parliament, international ambassadors, and more than 150 local activists to address women's role in the increasingly complex security situation in Libya.