October 2005 – In This Issue:
Security Council Resolution 1325 Turns 5
October 2005 marks the fifth anniversary of landmark Security Council resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. The resolution (commonly referred to often as "1325") addressed, for the first time ever, the impact of conflict on women, recognizing women's role in preventing and resolving conflict, and calling for the equal participation and full involvement of women in all efforts to maintain and promote peace and security. The watershed political framework that resolution 1325 provides recognizes the relevance of women, and a gender perspective, to negotiating peace agreements, planning refugee camps and peacekeeping operations and reconstructing war-torn societies.
Since its adoption, resolution 1325 has served as a catalyst for women all over the world to mobilize in their efforts to achieve equal participation. Women at the grassroots level in many conflict-ridden countries have used this resolution as an advocacy tool to lobby for their inclusion in peacebuilding and reconstruction processes in their countries, including in elections and constitution-making bodies. The resolution has been translated into 70 languages with 10 more in the pipeline. Gender advisors in peacekeeping operations have now become a standard feature. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the European Union, and the Organization of American States have all adopted resolutions endorsing resolution 1325, while a few countries are developing concrete national action plans to implement it.
While previous reviews of the level of implementation have revealed progress achieved in a number of areas, these reviews have also clearly shown that much stronger and coordinated efforts are needed to reach the goal of full implementation. At the recent World Summit held in September 2005, world leaders reiterated the importance of women's role in peacebuilding and the prevention and resolution of conflict, reaffirming their commitments to full implementation of resolution 1325. They also explicitly condemned "all violations of the human rights of women and girls in situations of armed conflict and the use of sexual exploitation, violence and abuse," and committed to "elaborating and implementing strategies to report on, prevent and punish gender-based violence."
For more information, see:
Resolution 1325 (2000) holds out a promise to women across the globe that their rights will be protected and that barriers to their equal participation and full involvement in the maintenance and promotion of sustainable peace will be removed. We must uphold this promise.
— UN Secretary-General's 2004 report on women, peace and security
Activities Around the Globe to Commemorate 1325
Over the last five years, October has become a month of celebration and commemoration of women's efforts to build peace and resolve conflict, with hundreds of organizations around the world holding events and activities.
To mark the anniversary, UNIFEM also launched a report entitled Securing the Peace: Guiding the International Community towards Women's Effective Participation throughout Peace Processes (PDF, 677KB). The publication highlights the importance of women's involvement at all stages of peace processes in order to ensure sustainable and long-term peace. The opportunities afforded in the transition from war to peace open a window to address root causes of conflict and to transform institutions, structures and relationships within society. Concrete recommendations are offered to support women's effective participation at all stages of a peace process, promote gender-sensitive peace negotiations and agreements, and encourage the mainstreaming of a gender perspective throughout the implementation of peace accords.
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1325 in Action
Women at the Centre of Somalia's Post-Conflict Joint Needs Assessment
The United Nations and the World Bank have placed gender and human rights at the centre of policymaking in the post-conflict needs assessment for Somalia that is currently in progress. UNIFEM will provide technical leadership to the process, drawing from its experiences in Liberia, Sudan and other countries emerging from conflict.
The importance of imbuing post-conflict needs assessments with a gender perspective cannot be understated. Sustainable reconstruction and rehabilitation in post-conflict societies demands women's participation, while such healing and rebuilding are also opportunities for reducing gender inequalities. Key issues to be considered when attempting to mainstream gender perspectives in needs assessments include ensuring that commitments to gender concerns are reflected in all processes and structures, articulated in all policy documents, and included in all accountability measures of the needs assessment. In addition, gender and human rights experts need to be deployed from the outset, to contribute to building core knowledge and technical facilitation. Resources must be made available to encourage women's effective participation in all consultative processes, and specific and concrete actions on gender equality and rights must run throughout the different "cluster" areas of assessments. Finally, the costing of gender issues and rights must be concrete and measurable so that resource requirements can be adequately met.
The Somalia Joint Needs Assessment will place an emphasis particularly on the participation and involvement of Somali women in post-conflict reconstruction. This acknowledges the role that Somali women played in the IGAD-facilitated Peace and Reconciliation Conference for Somalia, which resulted in 34 women sitting at the peace table and the adoption of affirmative action in the transition Charter. To further support the participation of Somali women, UNIFEM intends to organize with IGAD and the government of Sweden a high-level Expert Group Meeting of Somali women to develop a coherent national women's agenda for peace and development.
For more information, contact Hendrica Okondo, UNIFEM Programme Manager for Somalia, hendrica.okondo[at]undp.org
Celebrating the Fifth Anniversary in the Southern Caucasus
UNIFEM is supporting several activities in the Southern Caucasus to commemorate the fifth Anniversary of SC resolution 1325. These include a public service announcement (PSA) and TV programme for national broadcast in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and a high-level conference and several public peace street events in Georgia.
The TV show, called "Cross Roads" and developed by InterNews in partnership with the Regional Coalition "Women for Peace," is a popular Russian-language programme depicting life in the three countries and focusing on issues of peace. In October, the show will feature a storyline that discusses 1325 and the work of women in building peace in the region.
In Georgia, many people are expected to take part in peaceful public events. Women dressed in white single letter T-shirts will stand hand in hand in front of key municipal buildings, forming the sentence "Unity of Women for Peace." The peaceful demonstration will draw attention to 1325 and women's role in conflict resolution, and photos will be taken and put on display in front of the Parliament building for a week after the event. For more information, contact Yelena Kudryavtseva, yelena.kudryavtseva[at]undp.org
Gender Perspectives to Strengthen Demobilization and Reintegration Programmes
in the Greater Great Lakes Region
A consultation will take place in Kigali, Rwanda, from 31 October to 2 November 2005 to identify ways to integrate gender concerns into demobilization and reintegration programmes in the African Great Lakes Region. The meeting is being co-organized by UNIFEM and the Secretariat of the World Bank's Multi-Country Demobilization and Reintegration Program (MDRP).
The MDRP was established in 2002 to support the return of ex-combatants to civilian life. It is designed to contribute to the peace processes in the region by helping governments to meet commitments made, and helping to improve the security environment to allow for sustainable development efforts in countries emerging from conflict. The countries targeted under the MDRP include Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda.
The consultation, which will bring together civil society organizations, DDR experts, female ex-combatants and international partners, is intended to produce concrete actions that will inject the MDRP with gender perspectives critical to addressing the particular impact of conflict on women and girls. To date, some questions have been raised about the gender equity of the MDRP. For example, national programmes and special projects under the MDRP have not yet produced sufficient gender-disaggregated data and analysis on the different impact of the programme on women, men, girls and boys. Too little is known about the different needs, roles and responsibilities of women and men coming from the various armed groups in MDRP countries. These unknown variables present challenges for designing appropriate reintegration support, for assessing the potential levels of social and economic assistance that ex-combatants might be able to access, and for strengthening crucial community participation and support for reintegration. Furthermore, women and girls throughout the region have been largely marginalized or excluded both as recipients of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) programmes, and as key community actors in reintegrating and rehabilitating ex-combatants back into society.
UNIFEM is co-organizing this workshop as part of its Great Lakes strategy that promotes gender equality in policymaking processes on peace and security and supports advocacy for gender-sensitive DDR programmes that take into account women's special needs for economic, physical and psychosocial support, vocation and skills training, and reproductive health care.
For more information, see the MDRP website and UNIFEM's Issue Brief on Gender and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration.
Expert Meeting on Sexual Violence Prevention and Treatment
A conference, chaired by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and UNIFEM, was held in New York from 10 to 12 October 2005, bringing together more than 40 experts in sexual violence prevention and treatment. Representatives of UN humanitarian agencies, peacekeeping missions, universities and foundations, local and international NGOs, as well as delegations from Guatemala and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, agreed to strengthen collaboration at all levels to end sexual violence in situations of conflict, post-conflict, displacement, and natural disaster settings. The meeting served as the launch for an agreed set of guidelines (PDF, 1.9MB) for a coordinated approach to sexual violence prevention and care in emergency settings.
"Women and girls in post-conflict situations are facing a major justice deficit," said UNIFEM Executive Director Noeleen Heyzer. "Having survived wars and conflict, they are living with gross injustices that fill their past and are haunting their present. We must break the cycle of violence in women's lives and ensure that the UN is part of the solution, not part of the problem."
Gender, Conflict and Peace Building Course
The Initiative for Inclusive Security (formerly known as Women Waging Peace) and the Organization of American States (OAS) partnered to host a course on Gender, Conflict and Peace Building from 3 to 7 October 2005 in Lima, Peru. Thirty-five men and women from the Andean countries of Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela, and Ecuador, representing government ministries, the security sectors, and civil society, spent five days learning why it is important to include women and gender perspectives in conflict analysis, negotiations and processes of political dialogue and how to develop processes that do so. For more information, visit the Initiative for Inclusive Security website.
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UNIFEM Around the World
Haitian Women Build Solidarity to Tackle Gender-Based Violence
Dissatisfied with a history of "transactional" leadership heavily based on reward and punishment, 30 women from across 10 departments in Haiti sat down together in September 2005 to ask themselves and each other how to change their society through "transformational leadership." The women were participating in a workshop organized by UNIFEM called ''Women Building Peace and Justice through Transformational Leadership," where they were asked to identify the main challenges facing Haitian communities, and the role that women's organizations can play in promoting the change needed to overcome these challenges.
There is a vibrant and highly committed group of women's organizations and other civil society groups working on gender and social equity issues all across Haiti. However, divisions and alliances that characterize the socio-political landscape have often affected these organizations, resulting in limited partnership and collaboration among them to address similar challenges. The workshop's main objective was to encourage participation and collaboration by diverse civil society organizations, especially in defining collective strategies to increase the prospects of security and peace in Haiti. At its conclusion, many agreed the meeting was an important step towards sharing knowledge and building a culture of leadership based on solidarity, not only between the international community and Haitian women, but between Haitian women themselves.
All participants pointed to violence against women as the biggest problem facing their communities, a problem needing the combined efforts of all women's organizations throughout the country to solve. Related challenges such as poverty, a culture of impunity and a flawed justice system were also cited as fuelling the epidemic of violence and requiring urgent attention. Since February 2004, Haiti has been ravaged by escalating levels of crime and violence, increased poverty, and various forms of political, social and economic destabilization. In the month of April 2005 alone, approximately 130 kidnappings were reported, and since that time 6-10 kidnappings occur per day, accompanied by a sharp increase in the number of rape cases.
Tanzania's National Labour Survey to Include Measurement of Women's Time in Household Economy
Over the last few years, in cooperation with the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP), the Ministry of Community Development, Women and Children, and the Vice President's Office, UNIFEM has supported lobbying for the inclusion of a Time Use Survey in Tanzania's National Labour Survey by the National Bureau of Statistics. The survey is a statistical exercise that provides national data on labour sectors, demographic trends and economic participation. The inclusion of the Time Use Survey will go a long way towards providing important quantitative statistical data on women's and men's contribution to the often unrecognized and undervalued household and social economies. Survey results are expected in 2006.
UNIFEM and other UN partners are working with Tanzanian national institutions and civil society organizations to address the gender dimensions of poverty in the country. A review of Tanzania's previous Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) identified inadequacies in the way issues related to gender relations and the status of women were addressed. The second phase of the PRSP, known as Mkukuta, places an emphasis on reducing the incidences, complexities and experiences of poverty, particularly by women and girls, by increasing opportunities, capacities and resources for women. UNIFEM is currently piloting a project on gender and poverty in Tanzania that focuses on increasing gender-disaggregated data; increasing women's access to property, land and income through entrepreneurship development; and conducting legislative and policy review to enable communities to demand implementation and action. For more information, contact Linet Miriti, linet.miriti[at]undp.org
Women Raise Concerns About Possible Negative Effects of Free Trade Treaties in the Andean Region
"Negotiations on free trade agreements are going on within the region with practically no participation from civil society. They are among the least transparent and most hermetic of economic and political processes." This is one of the conclusions reached at an international panel discussion on "The Impacts of Free Trade Agreements in the Andean Region — The Women's Movement Answers,” organized by UNIFEM on 5 October 2005 in Quito, Ecuador. The panel discussion was part of a seminar on "Gender and Commerce" organized by the International Gender and Trade Network (IGTN), the Network on Women in Development Europe (WIDE), the Latin American Social Sciences University (FLACSO) and UNIFEM's Andean Regional Office.
Panellists pointed out that, on the surface, free trade negotiations seem to address market access issues only, but in reality they affect many different aspects of life and could seriously affect the ability of women in the region to enjoy certain basic human rights. For example:
— Right to Food, Right to Culture. Measures proposed for the agricultural sector might leave the indigenous population — a majority of the Andean population — not only without a means of subsistence, but also without a "way of life."
— Right to Work. Obligations to open government purchases at all levels to international competition could affect negatively small and medium local enterprises — especially textile and food-related ones — that cannot compete at the same level as transnational or multinational businesses.
— Right to Health. The insistence on maintaining intellectual property standards to protect the interests of the pharmaceutical industry, together with the urge to privatize health care systems, could jeopardize access to health care for a large portion of the population.
— Right to Sovereignty. The "conditions" or "prerequisites" that are attached to these treaties could harm the sovereignty of countries. For example, Bolivia will not be allowed to enter bilateral negotiations with the United States unless the Bolivian government approves the law on hydrocarbons, a law that has already caused extensive political unrest.
The panel ended with concrete proposals to address the potentially negative effects of free trade agreements in the region. These proposals include the creation of alliances between governmental and nongovernmental organizations; the establishment of civil society oversight mechanisms to monitor these processes; the recovery of human rights instruments and push for enforcement mechanisms; and communication campaigns to raise awareness among the general public.
First Crisis Centre for Men Opened in Kazakhstan
A men's crisis centre, the first of its kind in Kazakhstan, was opened in September in Almaty by Public Union "ErAzamat." Although UNIFEM is not directly supporting this initiative, it and several civil society organizations have long raised the need for such a centre in various forums, to respond particularly to the escalating rates of alcoholism and male suicides in the country. In Kazakhstan, the rate of suicides among men is six times higher than that of women, and alcoholism is fast becoming the primary outlet for stress relief.
At present there are 39 crisis centres for women in the country. Men's psychological and psychosocial difficulties are typically ignored and/or downplayed in Kazakh society due to social taboos and gender stereotypes about masculine behaviour. The negative effects of this have manifested in compensation-type behaviour such as increased levels of aggression, which are leading in turn to increased levels of domestic violence. The crisis centre provides help lines and legal advice, and runs public awareness activities on non-violence and healthy forms of stress relief. For more informationa, contact Laila Akhmetova, Public Union "ErAzamat," Kazakhstan, laila_akhmetova[at]mail.ru
Graduation certificates presented to graduates of the Talfeet Women's Centre, West Bank, Occupied Palestinian Territory. |
One Hundred New Role Models – Women Graduate at the Talfeet Women's Centre
The Women's Centre in Talfeet, a village in the northern part of the West Bank was busier than usual in September. The centre was preparing for the graduation ceremony of women who had taken part in the centre's training and activities. Most of the women, who live in rural areas, had never organized a ceremony before, and excitement ran high as they worked day and night to find a venue, arrange for transport, send out invitations, order decorations and finish more than 25 home furnishing products, which they had been trained to make at the centre, to sell at their graduation.
The ceremony itself was a major event in Talfeet. More than 50 invitees turned up, from the local authorities, UN agencies and NGO partners. Graduation certificates were presented to the graduates, most of whom had never been on a stage before, had never heard their name announced in public in front of so many people, and had never been given a certificate as proof that they had accomplished something important. For these women, whose daily lives are largely led behind the scenes and in the shadows of the men in their community, this was an empowering moment.
More than 60 per cent of the home products made — which included bed sheets, bed covers, curtains, table cloths, and baby accessories — were sold during the ceremony. After the event, villagers from Talfeet and neighbouring villages came to offer congratulations and buy up the rest of the products to support the women. The graduates were able to go home to their families with a certificate in their hands, money in their pockets, and pride in their hearts. More than 20 older women, who had taken literacy classes at the centre and are now able to read the newspaper, were delighted to read about their own graduation the next day in the daily Al Ayyam newspaper. Women working at the centre agree that the secret of its success is more than just the activities and training it provides — it has transformed 100 ordinary rural women into 100 new role models, a truly life-changing experience for everyone involved. For more information, contact Samah Jaouny, samah.jaouny[at]undp.org
Monitoring Public Spending in Brazil
Sustained advocacy for months by UNIFEM and the CFEMEA (Feminist Centre for Studies and Advisory Services) has paid off: The Women's Budget will be included in Brazil's SIGA Brasil (FOLLOW Brazil) system. The Federal Senate will make the selection of budgetary programmes and actions proposed by CFEMEA available in the system.
In June 2005, the Senate made the SIGA BRASIL system, an initiative aimed at giving greater transparency to public spending at the federal level, available on the Internet. SIGA BRASIL is a web-based information system through which any individual can have easy access to different databases containing federal public plans and budgets. The system collects data from SIAFI (Financial Follow-Up System) and other databases in a single portal, and provides a simple tool for consultations and the dissemination of information on the public budget. The Women's Budget is the first corporate consultation, based around advocacy by the women's movement. It was prepared by CFEMEA on the basis of selected programmes and actions of the Federal Budget that relate to the lives of Brazilian women.
Visit SIGA Brasil online. The Women's Budget can be found by clicking on "Gastos Públicos Federais" and then on "LOA 2005 – Despesa Execução do Orçamento Mulher."
'The City Beautiful' Documentary Continues to Win International Film Awards
A poignant documentary about a small working class colony on the margins of India's capital city, Delhi, is winning award after award for its portrayal of a community of weavers whose livelihoods are slowly eroding due to the pressures of globalization. The film — "The City Beautiful" — explores the relationships and tensions among two families as they struggle to make ends meet and respond to changing traditional family structures and social norms such as gender roles and attitudes towards masculinity and femininity. After winning awards at festivals in India (Jeevika National Documentary Festival) and Paris (Cinema du Reel) last year, the film's latest accolade is the Basil Wright Prize at the RAI International Film Festival held in the United Kingdom this year.
David MacDougall, renowned ethnographer and filmmaker described the film: "'The City Beautiful' treats the subject of a class of traditional workers who are increasingly being displaced by modern technology. It does this through a sensitive and nuanced exploration of the situation of two families and the material and social world in which they live. Furthermore, it does so with great respect for the individuals involved. Finally, we feel it is a fully achieved work of documentary and ethnographic cinema, with strong aesthetic and structural qualities, and one that reflects the distinctive vision and sensibility of a talented filmmaker."
"The City Beautiful" was made by AAKAR, with support from UNIFEM and Zonta International. For more information, contact Gita Gupta, gita.gupta[at]undp.org
Affirmative Action Quota Benefiting Women Approved for Ecuadorian Justice System
For the first time in its history, Ecuador has approved an affirmative action quota in the justice system that benefits women. On 22 September 2005, the committee in charge of selecting new members for the Supreme Court of Justice established a 20-per-cent quota for women, thus complying with national and international human rights standards.
This historic achievement for Ecuadorian women was the result of a carefully planned strategy conducted over the past six months by the women's movement — including the national women's machinery, CONAMU, and various NGOs — with financial and technical support from UNIFEM's Andean Regional Office. The basic strategy was to mainstream gender throughout the whole process. It began with the struggle to include Ketty Romoleroux, a women's rights lawyer, in the selection committee. Once this was achieved, it continued with the creation of a national oversight committee, formed entirely by women. The oversight committee worked with an international oversight committee consisting of representatives of the UN and OAS, among others, to ensure that gender equity was considered among the general selection criteria. Efforts will continue to make sure that affirmative action is implemented effectively and that the newly selected women judges include women's rights on their agendas.
The Supreme Court in Ecuador has been vacant since April, when the new government declared the former court — entirely appointed by the government of Lucio Gutierrez in December 2004 — unconstitutional. The new court will be fully functional before the end of 2005.
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