Sudan Consultation 2007
As
Sudan's Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) remains imperiled and
Darfur negotiations flounder, it's more important than ever to enable and support local movements for peace.
Members of The Initiative for Inclusive Security recently returned from
Khartoum, Sudan where they:
• held a consultation with Darfurian women leaders in preparation for peace negotiations in
Libya;
• convened more than 60 women to discuss concrete ways to consolidate the CPA; and
• facilitated strategic planning with the National Assembly Women's Caucus.
Darfur Women Leaders
Initiative staff brought together more than 25 influential Darfurian women leaders representing all three states, various political parties, civil society, displaced communities, and government ministries. The women articulated a platform of common priorities for the talks and models for women's inclusion.
Inclusive Security created opportunities for participants to present these to Abdul Mohammed, chair of the Preparatory Committee for the Darfur-Darfur Dialogue and Consultation, influential policymakers in the United Nations (UN) and African Union's (AU) Joint Mediation Support Team, ‘The Elders', a group of senior statesmen and women led by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and others. Several participants participated in Libya talks at the invitation of the AU and UN mediators.
CPA Coalition
Members of a group of women leaders convened by Inclusive Security in November 2006 met to refine priorities and broaden their coalition. The over 60 participants included leaders and parliamentarians from various parties, the Governments of National Unity and Southern Sudan, and civil society.
They reflected on the past year's achievements including uniting to successfully advocate for a quota in proposed electoral legislation and creating a women's caucus in the national assembly. The expanded group resolved to continue working together to increase women's participation in CPA implementation.
National Assembly 
Women's Caucus Inclusive Security met with the executive committee of the newly formed Women's Caucus to identify priorities and begin strategic planning. The group is the Assembly's only cross-party caucus. Its executive committee includes members of four political parties, including the majority National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudanese People's Liberation Movement (SPLM). All 86 women parliamentarians in the Assembly comprise its membership.
Members are focused on working as a coalition, developing a strategic plan, building capacity, and institutionalizing the caucus within the National Assembly.
History
The Initiative for Inclusive Security has worked with women peace builders in Sudan since 1999: Over 100 Sudanese women leaders are members of Inclusive Security's Women Waging Peace Network. In Washington DC, at the United Nations, in Sudan, and elsewhere, the Initiative advocates for women's participation in the implementation of the CPA and in the Darfur peace process. In the past two years alone, we have convened five consultations with diverse groups of women in Sudan, hosted four multi-party delegations to the U.S., and connected hundreds of policymakers with women leaders.
A program of Hunt Alternatives Fund, Inclusive Security advocates for the full participation of all stakeholders, especially women, in peace processes. Creating sustainable peace is achieved best by a diverse, citizen-driven approach. Since 1999, Inclusive Security has connected more than 500 women experts with over 5,000 policy shapers to collaborate on fresh, workable solutions to longstanding conflicts across the globe.
Initiative in the News
Click here to read op-eds by Carla Koppell, director of the Initiative for Inclusive Security:
"Who Belongs at Darfur Talks?" Christian Science Monitor, October 22
"Darfur Negotiations," Washington Times, October 25
Click here to see models for women's inclusion designed by Darfur consultation participants.