Strategic Litigation

“We litigate to influence the public discourse”

As pioneers in transnational abortion care, we have seen firsthand how the fight for abortion access has moved into online spaces. Since 2019, Women on Web has faced ongoing government censorship of our websites, limiting our ability to reach abortion seekers who are facing obstacles to care in their country. In total, our web pages have received six separate government orders to be blocked. These extreme restrictions cut off access to vital care and information, violate people’s right to access health information, and undermine democratic principles. This violation of our right to freedom of expression has serious consequences for those who may have no other options for abortion care. 

We pursue strategic litigation not only to challenge this censorship, but to affirm that freedom of expression is fundamental to safe abortion access. Open and unrestricted online spaces are vital public spheres where people exercise their rights and seek, share, and receive accurate information about healthcare. When these digital spaces are restricted or fragmented, the ability to make informed decisions about one’s body and life is compromised. We are working with legal partners around the world to protect these spaces and ensure that everyone can access the abortion information and care they need. 

What is strategic litigation?

Strategic litigation is carried out with the intent to bring about systemic and societal change, and to address injustices that have not been adequately addressed by a state’s laws or politics. Litigation is “strategic” when it is intentionally designed to provide clarification, protection, or fulfillment of rights.  

Strategic litigation allows people who have been impacted by rights violations to have their case heard, and triggers discussions around the aspects of the violations that occurred. If successful, strategic litigation can lead to important legal, societal, and political shifts.  

Strategic litigation is never an end itself, but rather a means to an end. Winning can produce revolutionary results, but losing can also be turned into an influential campaign, build movements, and change narratives.  

Why is Women on Web using strategic litigation?

Women on Web is engaging in strategic litigation in Spain, Turkey, and South Korea, with the first case starting in 2020. In each case, government agencies blocked access to Women on Web’s main website or anti-censorship blogs, where abortion seekers could access information on medication abortion and request abortion pills by mail. 

For example, in South Korea, Women on Web created the following domains/sites after several instances of censorship (the first two sites now redirect to women-on-web.kr):  

• abortion-korea.org 
• abortion.kr  
• womenonweb.kr   
• women-on-web.kr  

While this method can help to restore short-term access to abortion care and information, this whack-a-mole tactic is unsustainable and can exhaust organizational resources. As a trusted and reputable abortion provider that has facilitated access to abortion pills to over 130,000 people in the past 20 years, Women on Web should not be subject to arbitrary government orders that block access to vital health information and services. Furthermore, the censorship of Women on Web’s site violates a multitude of rights, including:

• The right to freedom of expression 
• The right to access to information 
• The right to freedom of association 
• The right to be free from discrimination on the basis of sex 
• The right to life and personal integrity 

We seek justice where we are censored not only for ourselves and care seekers, but to pave the way for other organizations that may face similar injustices in the future. By taking legal action, we seek to make strategic litigation a more accessible strategy and tool to combat censorship, and we use it as a key part of our digital rights work.  

Related content

Human Rights Watch: “South Korea Still Blocking Abortion” 

Women’s Link Worldwide: “Online abortion service, Women On Web, continues to fight censorship in Spain” 

Open Democracy: “Governments are blocking abortion info online. Here’s how we’re fighting back” 

Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI): “On the blocking of abortion rights websites: Women on Waves & Women on Web” 

Open Net Korea: “Groups call for action to address South Korea’s delayed commitment to abortion rights” 

Open Net Korea: “Standing in solidarity with the Women and People of South Korea as the Government Denies Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights”