8 December 2005 Nearly 200 women’s rights and human rights defenders from approximately 70 countries worldwide gathered from 29 November to 2 December in Colombo, Sri Lanka, to hold an historic global gathering on women human rights defenders. The consultation was attended by the First Lady of Sri Lanka, Shiranthi Rajapakse, and opened with a welcome address by Nimalka Fernando, from the Women’s Alliance for Peace and Democracy in Sri Lanka.
Front Line sponsored a two-day workshop for selected Women Human Rights Defenders immediately prior to the International Consultation. The workshop was led by Cecilia Jimenez and sought to develop appropriate methodology and resource materials for addressing the specific needs of women human rights defenders. The workshop drew heavily on the input from the participants and considered a number of case studies. 
