Walaa Olabi

About Walaa

Walaa Olabi is a defense lawyer from Aleppo committed to advancing justice and supporting individuals who lack access to legal information and assistance. Her background includes taking courses given by IBJ. She believes that people, especially vulnerable groups, must be able to understand their rights and must know how to exercise them in order to reduce the number of human rights violations. 

The Challenge

Ms. Olabi highlights that there is insufficient knowledge of legal rights among both the public and state actors. This has led to two main issues: individuals fear seeking justice, and it has enabled government employees to commit further violations.

Innovation: Early Access to Justice and Legal Aid for Those in Need

Ms. Olabi’s project aims to raise legal awareness across Aleppo and its countryside. The initiative focuses on providing legal awareness sessions to help citizens and government employees understand better legal principles, human rights, and legal procedures. Through these sessions, the project seeks to strengthen legal knowledge, improve interactions with the judicial system, and ensure that individuals, especially women and children, are better represented and protected before the courts. In addition, the project supports early access to legal representation for people involved in common legal issues such as marriage, divorce, and lineage cases, which often affect vulnerable families the most.