Airdate: Motley’s Law

Documentary Motley’s Law screens on iwonder on Thursday, profiling Kimberley Motley, an audacious former beauty queen who left her family in the USA to become the first and only Western lawyer –and woman – licensed to practice law in Afghanistan.

iwonder CEO, James Bridges, says of the film: “The world is watching with concern as Afghanistan is consumed by fear and uncertainty. Motley’s Law offers a unique and eye-opening portrait of one incredible woman’s desire to deliver justice in a place where the most dangerous thing for many people, particularly women and girls, could soon be the law itself.”

As the Taliban rapidly reasserts control over the embattled country, fresh fears arise around the world for the treatment of its citizens, most worryingly – women. Now residing in North Carolina, Motley’s network of contacts still in Afghanistan have already told her of shocking scenes in the days following the Taliban’s resurgence, with Motley telling Variety magazine: “We’re seeing in real time the erasure of women from society”.

Motley left the USA for the first time in 2008, leaving behind her husband and three kids in order to work as a defence lawyer in Kabul. Motley’s Law tells the story of what happened next, and how for five years human rights cases and troubled expats motivated her to keep fighting for justice, as personal threats and the general condition in the country brought fresh challenges every day.

With the help of her Afghan assistant and a group of specially trained legal translators, Kimberley defends Western and Afghan clients accused of criminal acts from adultery to drug-smuggling, while navigating the trying Afghan system of justice. Not ashamed to admit she initially arrived for the money, that all changed as Motley saw how poorly the legal system in Afghanistan was run and how parts of Afghan society had been neglected by the international community.

Now, with the Afghan way of life under greater threat than ever, and the safety of women far from certain, Motley’s Law provides an in-depth look at the daily battle for justice.

Thursday 26th August on iwonder.

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