UN Security Council urges women's participation in peace making.
Subject: Women (Political activity)
Women (Crimes against)
Peace (International aspects)
Peace (Demographic aspects)
Violence (Prevention)
Violence (International aspects)
Women and peace (Political activity)
Women and peace (Crimes against)
Pub Date: 12/01/2007
Publication: Name: Sister Namibia Publisher: Sister Namibia Audience: Academic; General Format: Magazine/Journal Subject: Social sciences; Women's issues/gender studies Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2007 Sister Namibia ISSN: 1026-9126
Issue: Date: Dec, 2007 Source Volume: 19 Source Issue: 5-6
Topic: Event Code: 290 Public affairs; 980 Legal issues & crime
Organization: Organization: United Nations
Geographic: Geographic Scope: United States; Namibia Geographic Code: 1USA United States; 6NAMI Namibia
Accession Number: 176563154
Full Text: Recognising the recent progress towards including women in the search for peace, justice and reconciliation, the United Nations Security Council urged countries to enhance female participation in decision-making and to take specific steps to protect women and girls from gender-based violence during conflicts.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed the need to appoint more women in leadership positions in UN peace operations. He also added that in order to address discrimination against women, no effort must be spared in putting more women in senior level positions and operational roles in military and policing so as to encourage local women to take on similar roles and ensure the development of a national protection system once the mission leaves.

Despite the Council's repeated condemnation of gender-based violence, and its demands to all parties to conflict to cease such actions, Rachel Mayanja, the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, pointed out that sexual violence remains pervasive. She urged all governments, parliaments, international organisations and civil society to join a worldwide campaign on violence against women and girls to be launched by Mr. Ban later this year, saying that "only by acting together can we create more equal relationships and more peaceful societies."

Source: UN News Service
Gale Copyright: Copyright 2007 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.