INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY OBSERVED AT HEADQUARTERS WITH EVENT

ON THEME ‘WOMEN AND PEACE: WOMEN MANAGING CONFLICTS’

In commemoration of International Women’s Day, a special event entitled “Women and Peace: Women Managing Conflicts” was held at Headquarters this morning, with speakers highlighting such issues as the lack of women in peacekeeping leadership positions, empowering women as a development policy and the connection between protecting women’s rights and peace.

The event, which was organized by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Women and Gender Equality and the Women's Equality and Development Organization, in collaboration with the Department of Public Information, also included a video presentation and panel discussion.

The United Nations has been observing 8 March as the International Women’s Day since 1975 -- the International Women’s Year -- and today’s observance had as its focus the adoption by the Security Council last October of resolution 1325 (2000) on women and peace and security.

In an opening statement, Louise Fréchette, Deputy Secretary-General, said that no strategy, in any United Nations effort, was going to work unless it involved women.  Empowering women was a development policy that worked and no peace was likely to last without the involvement of women at all levels of peacekeeping and peace-building.  In recognition of those facts, the Organization was beginning to take strong measures towards gender equality in all areas, but much more needed to be done.  She urged Member States to put forward qualified women candidates for posts at all levels.

The President of the Security Council, Volodymyr Yel’chenko (Ukraine) asked: How many women occupied the position of permanent representatives to the United Nations?  How many women could be seen on the Millennium Summit photo?  Women needed to play a more important role in the governmental and intergovernmental forums, including the Security Council, where plans and decisions in matters of security, war prevention and conflict management were made.

The Assistant Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, Angela King, said that resolutions did not always lead to de facto action.  Change would not happen overnight.  The first challenge was to have women in leadership positions.  Women’s efforts and abilities in peacemaking had been demonstrated all over the world, and international meetings had raised

awareness of gender issues in peacekeeping.  Research was also needed to bridge the knowledge gap and build up an information base on women in peacekeeping operations.

President of the General Assembly Harri Holkeri (Finland) said that, as women and girls continued to bear the greatest burden of armed conflicts, equality and respect for their human rights were intertwined with peace.  To achieve sustainable peace, it was essential to have full knowledge and understanding of gender issues in transition periods and in nation-building. 

The moderator of the second segment of the event, Shashi Tharoor, Interim Head of the Department of Public Information, said that a new awareness had emerged of the multifaceted roles that women could play in the restoration and maintenance of peace in conflicted communities.  The Council resolution, which called for all aspects of peace operations to be gender-inclusive and gender-sensitive, provided a blueprint for women’s further participation at all levels and in all aspects of peacekeeping.

A DPI/UNIFEM video presentation, entitled "Women, Peace, Security", preceded the opening statement.  The panel discussion on the theme included guest speaker Elisabeth Rehn, former Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as panelists Felicity Hill, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom; Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Arbitrary and Summary Executions for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights; and Theresa Kambobe, United Nations Volunteer Programme.

Also, Women and Peace Petitions were received from the floor, supported by 30,000 cards and 130,000 signatures.  They called for the integration of women into peace efforts and for their protection in conflict situations.

An interactive session followed the panel discussion, with participants asking questions both from the floor and via video conference from De Paul University, Chicago.

Segment I:  Statements

LOUISE FRÉCHETTE, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, welcoming everyone to the occasion, said that steps were finally being taken to end the lamentable state of affairs in which women, who rarely initiated conflicts, were disproportionately its victims.  Such steps included the designation of rape in conflict as a crime against humanity.

Equally important, she said, was the fact that women were now being recognized as a key factor in resolving conflicts and bringing war-torn societies back to health.  Work had begun to assure the full participation of women in all peacemaking efforts, increasing women’s role in both peacekeeping and peace-building.

Women were already crucial to most peacemaking efforts, she said.  They mobilized civil society for those efforts by forming women’s associations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and church groups.  They worked to ease tensions and to get men to accept peace initiatives.  In Somalia, women formed a Peace and Human Rights Network that brought together much of civil society to work for a peace strategy, which contributed greatly to bringing about the ensuing Djibouti accords.  Similarly, in Guatemala, women’s efforts gave voice to civil society and vulnerable groups to help end the violence. 

Much more work must be done, she said, to integrate women’s efforts into every peace strategy.  The United Nations would be more effective in accomplishing that if the Organization itself had more women in leadership positions.  She appealed to Member States to present as many qualified women candidates as possible. 

Broader change in the role of women, she said, was already evidenced in all areas of United Nations work.  Women’s freedom from want and freedom from fear were expressed as millennium goals.  There was a recognition that no strategy, in any effort, was going to work unless it involved women, and that empowering women was a development policy that worked.  Similarly, there was a recognition that no peace strategy was likely to be durable without the involvement of women.  Finally, she looked forward to hearing the outcome of the day’s discussions and wished everyone a happy Women’s Day.

HARRI HOLKERI (Finland), President of the General Assembly, said that the theme of this year’s celebration -- women managing conflict --was very timely.  It implied that women were not and should not be seen as mere victims or deliberate targets of armed conflict.  However, once they became such victims or targets, the perpetrators of such crimes had to be brought to justice.  In that connection, he applauded the historic decision by The Hague Tribunal last month, which ruled that rape was a crime against humanity.  Successful prosecution of gender-based violence set standards and forced the international community to pay more attention to the problem in all its aspects, and in all cases.

Women and girls continued to bear the greatest burden of armed conflicts, he continued.  Studies had confirmed that the participation of women in conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peace-building improved the efficiency of those operations and enhanced their impact.  In order to better manage conflicts, it was crucial to fully implement the commitments made at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, promoting equal participation and opportunities for women to participate in all forums and peace activities at all levels, particularly decision-making levels.  It was also necessary to integrate a gender perspective into the conflict resolution. 

Some progress had been made, he said.  For example, training in gender issues had been enhanced and gender focal points or units introduced in some United Nations peace operations.  Equality and respect for the human rights of women and girls and peace were intertwined.  To achieve sustainable peace, it was essential to have full knowledge and understanding of those issues in transition periods and in nation-building.

He went on to say that special tribute should be paid to the Special Adviser of the Secretary General on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women, the Division on the Advancement of Women and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), as well as numerous NGOs, for their efforts in promoting gender equality in that field.  However, the overall picture, including appointments of women to key positions in peace operations, remained far from desired.  Much more needed to be done to fully utilize women’s potential.  Member States and the United Nations would have an opportunity to discuss how to improve the de facto situation, including the possibility of establishing a gender unit, when they continued to consider the implementation of the Brahimi Report.

Responding to a question about the gender unit, mentioned in Mr. Holkeri’s statement, Ms. FRÉCHETTE then said that the Report of the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations –- the so-called Brahimi Report -– contained quite a number of recommendations on strengthening the Organization’s peacekeeping efforts.  One of the recommendations was to create a small gender unit within the Department of Peacekeeping Operations to increase attention to the gender dimension of peacekeeping.  Unfortunately, the creation of such a unit was not authorized last fall, when the first stage of the Brahimi recommendations was considered by the General Assembly.  It would be considered again later in the year. 

VOLODYMYR YEL’CHENKO (Ukraine), President of the Security Council, said that he wanted to start by paying tribute to the very important, if not decisive, contribution of women from all parts of the world to protecting humankind.  He applauded the efforts and dedication of all the courageous women serving the United Nations peacekeeping and humanitarian missions under very difficult and quite frequently dangerous circumstances in conflict and post-conflict areas. 

The United Nations Charter held a far-sighted promise of equality for women and men, he continued.  However, even now, more than half a century after the writing of that document, women’s wisdom and talents had not yet received the appropriate recognition.  The potential contribution of women to peace and security remained severely undervalued.  Women were still grossly under-represented in the areas that the Security Council and other United Nations bodies were dealing with.  The participation of women at senior levels of leadership -– both national and international -- had been limited for far too long.  How many women occupied the position of permanent representative to the United Nations? he asked.  How many women could be seen in the Millennium Summit photo? 

“Let us have a critical look at this still very man-dominated organ that has the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security –- the Security Council”, he said.  Women needed to play a more important role in the governmental and intergovernmental forums, where plans and decisions in matters of security, war prevention and conflict management were made.

Another issue was the fact that women and children were the first victims of conflicts, he continued.  As a major part of refugee and internally displaced populations, they were often deliberately targeted and exploited.  With the rapid proliferation of conflicts, civilians more and more often represented the overwhelming majority of all victims of war, with women and girls targeted for the most brutal forms of attack, including rape, sexual mutilation, sexually humiliating treatment and forcible impregnation.  They also continued to be at risk after the conflict. 

As the world celebrated International Women’s Day, it was necessary to spread the message that women’s rights were the responsibility of all, he said.  Combating all forms of violence against women was the duty of the whole of humankind.  As President of the Council, he was proud that that body had already made the first steps, which had been reflected in the President’s statement on the occasion of last year’s International Women’s Day and in resolution 1325.  On those occasions, the Council had not only addressed the suffering of women, but also supported women’s participation in peace processes. 

The issue of women and peace required the Council’s sustained attention, he continued.  In that context, he wanted to inform the delegates that in today’s statement of the Council, the need for early and full implementation of resolution 1325 was called for.  The Council also urged all relevant United Nations agencies and bodies to take that resolution into account in their respective areas of work.  It was also important to urge national governments to set concrete measures and timetables to secure equal representation of women at all levels of conflict prevention and resolution.  With active integration of the gender dimension, with the promotion of women’s rights, the United Nations and national governments would enrich the freedom, justice, social progress, tolerance and dignity in the world.

ANGELA KING, Assistant Secretary-General, Special Adviser on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women,  said that women’s important role in peace operations was being recognized by many United Nations activities, and it was even on the agenda of the Security Council.  But, it was also recognized that women were still very much on the periphery of peacekeeping operations.  The Windhoek Declaration emphasized women’s equal participation at all levels and called for a gender perspective to be integrated into all stages of peacekeeping operations.  The special session, Beijing + 5 and the Millennium Assembly brought further advances.

She said that resolutions, however, did not always lead to de facto action.  Change would not be overnight. The first challenge was to have women in leadership positions.  A gender perspective in peace operations was also important.  Women’s skills must be integrated into all operations.  Women’s efforts and abilities in peacemaking had been evidenced all over the world.  International meetings on all those issues had raised awareness.  But, there was a third challenge -- the need to do research.  Some institutes were beginning to remedy that lack and programmes had been funded in the United Nations and elsewhere to bridge the knowledge gap and build up a research base on women in peacekeeping operations.  

The indictments that concerned events in the former Yugoslavia also sent a powerful message, she said.  Systematic rape in times of war was clearly an indictable offence.  She urged participants to not think of the day’s work as a one-day effort, but to think of it as a motivator for year-long action.  Human rights and equality must, she said, underpin justice and peace.  Thanking the United Nations leaders who had distinguished the gathering with their vision, she then closed the first segment.

Segment II:  Statements

The moderator for the second segment, SHASHI THAROOR, Interim Head, Department of Public Information (DPI), welcomed participants.  He said that, thanks to the recent efforts on the national, international, and civil society level, a new awareness has emerged of the multifaceted roles that women could -– and must -– play in the complex effort to maintain or restore peace in conflicted communities.  Last October’s Security Council resolution on women, peace and security provided a blueprint for women’s further participation at all levels and in all aspects of peacekeeping.  It called for all aspects of such operations to be gender-inclusive, gender-sensitive, and contain a gender perspective.

Today, he said, participants would hear from four women from different parts of the world who would tell their stories about how women’s integration into peacemaking could and were being turned into reality.  They were witnesses to conflict and violence and were personally involved in the struggle to maintain peace.  They would share experiences that had made the campaign against violence against women and for the participation of women in the peace process such a powerful and compelling force for change.  He also recognized the women and NGOs who were being honoured with the Millennium Peace Prize organized by the NGO International Alert and UNIFEM.

He then introduced the guest speaker, Elisabeth Rehn, former Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the panellists:  Felicity Hill, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom; Asma Jahangir, UNIFEM/International Alert Millennium Peace Prize recipient; and Theresa Kambobe, United Nations Volunteer Programme.

ELISABETH REHN, former Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Bosnia and Herzegovina, said that the topic of today’s celebration was very important.  Last year, there had been significant efforts to recognize the role of women in peace work.  Seminars had been held around the world, and the adoption of Council resolution 1325 (2000) was an important step forward.

Why was it so important to include women? she asked.  Why couldn’t men continue to lead international efforts, as they had done for centuries?  In the peace negotiations, which were conducted by men, industries and infrastructure were at the top of the list.  However, all material reconstruction was useless, unless efforts were made to recognize the humanity of suffering people.  Women and children could be increasingly found among the victims of war.  In times of danger, women and their organizations gave an early warning, if only somebody would listen to them seriously.  Currently, there was a terrible distance between the peace negotiations and the real situation at the grass-roots level.  It was important to listen to those who really knew what was going on.

There were always more women than men in any population after the war, she continued, and it was necessary to provide for their specific needs.  Women needed to be actors, instead of passive victims.  In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended a war, did not take into account the gender issues and that was one of the reasons for its slow implementation.  Another important aspect was resources.  The world had heard enough words; now money was needed to implement the important decisions.

More women needed to be represented at decision-making levels, she said.  The United Nations must show that it was not merely on a mission, but that it cared about people.  In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Organization had lost much of its image, and she had tried to put a human face behind its every action.  Working there, she had been concerned with individual people and their particular problems.

FELICITY HILL, Executive Director, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, said that the issue of women and peace was urgently relevant.  It was a relief that issues long ignored were being recognized, including institutional exclusion of women, women as victims of wars and the undervalued contribution of women to peace-building and peacekeeping.  After many years of “knocking till our nuckles bled”, the doors were beginning to open.  Obvious injustices against women were being recognized, and Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) was important in that respect. 

Women all over the world were making their voices heard, she said, and the Council had recognized their efforts.  The doors were opening just wide enough to let women in, and it was important to open them even wider.  Women came with a willingness to work, with an agenda and with a track record of successes.  They were here and they were not planning to leave.  Words about women’s representation at the highest levels, justice, reducing military spending, reducing the armaments and providing economic security must be turned into action.

ASMA JAHANGIR, Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Arbitrary and Summary Executions for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and a recipient of the UNIFEM/International Alert Millennium Peace Prize, said that she wanted to address the question of women and security from the point of view of traditional society.  Women traditionally acted as messengers of peace, but they also paid the price in cases of conflict.  Now it was time to stop looking at women as victims.  They needed to be seen as activists who wanted peace. 

Women did not lack courage in situations of armed conflict, she continued.  For example, in East Timor, a woman approached the peacekeepers, saying that she was the wife of a militia leader and she wanted to tell where the rest of the militia were.  She just could not bear the silence, feeling that it was important to ensure that conflict would not be repeated.  Women could cry and show sorrow where it should be seen and recognized.  Women would not tolerate violence.  They were not prepared to forgive and forget; perpetrators of violence needed to answer for their actions.

She went on to say that India and Pakistan were historically enemies, but her women friends had come to her country with a message of peace.  Receiving her award, she would share it with her sisters in India, for the enemy syndrome must die.  Women shared the same culture and the same language, as well as feelings.  The new message of peace needed to be taken forward.  It was very upsetting to those who believed in the politics of hatred.  The “bus diplomacy” between the women of India and Pakistan would continue.  Zero tolerance for militarization was the message today. 

THERESA KAMBOBE, United Nations Volunteer Programme, said the women of East Timor, where she was currently stationed, were also celebrating International Women’s Day.  The Day’s theme was particularly timely for East Timor, and for the ongoing celebration of volunteerism.  Four thousand volunteers had participated in 19 peacekeeping operations since 1992.  The percentage of women among them was   40 to 60 per cent.  She, therefore, proposed looking at the roles of women on the volunteer level of peacekeeping operations, as well. 

Recent resolutions, she said, had had a great impact on women’s roles in the East Timor operation.  After the post-referendum violence, women were among the first volunteers who had come into East Timor to help provide food and shelter.  There now were eight gender focal points in the operations in East Timor.  The challenge was how to ensure that local women did not lose some of the gains they had made in East Timor.  Women who had been raped were being ostracized, and there had been a rise in domestic violence due to the dire economic situation.

 Women, it was true, were not a homogenous group, she said.  But, from Africa to Timor, she saw a lot of similarities in the roles of women and attitudes towards them.  It was important to use those similarities.  Timor was very patriarchal, as was her native Africa.  But, African women had been trying to be heard.  Women around the world had to make sure the voices of women emerging from conflict were also heard.

A petition was then presented to Ms. KING, Assistant Secretary-General, Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, who said that the petition was supported by 30,000 cards and 130,000 signatures.  It called for the integration of women into peace efforts and for their protection in conflict situations.  She said the United Nations would do everything in its power to incorporate that call into its efforts.

Question-and-Answer Session

Audience questions followed, both from the floor and via video conference with De Paul University, Chicago. 

Among the issues raised were training programmes, defending women’s newly acquired rights, governmental action to integrate a gender perspective in the national policies, and the agenda of the Human Rights Commission. 

Regarding peace-building efforts, a panellist said that reconciliation without justice was impossible and perpetrators of violence needed to answer for their actions.  Another speaker added that women on the ground worked in very difficult circumstances, and that they needed to be supported.  The media was controlling the minds of the people by creating the image of the enemy, another panellist said.  The enemy syndrome should be overcome and women’s efforts were very important to that end.  

It was important to understand that women were prepared to defend their countries, a panellist added.  Still, people were able to come together, however, even over ethnic borders.  The sorrow of mothers who had lost their sons was the same everywhere, although it would take time for them to forget the harm caused to them.

Responding to a question about the role of universities in promoting women’s participation in peacekeeping, a speaker said that the United Nations system had been preparing materials to assist elections and provide information about democratic development.  Empirical research was needed to prove that women’s contribution to peacekeeping could make a difference, and additional studies were needed in that respect.  Members of the academia could participate in such research.

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