July 2010 Newsletter
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News from The Institute for Inclusive Security - July 2010
I. Recent Activities
Holding the UN and Member States Accountable for Commitments to Women, Peace, and Security (June – July 2010)
Inclusive Security hosted the second meeting of the Civil Society Advisory Group to the UN on Women, Peace, and Security at its Washington, DC offices on June 8, 2010. Advisory group members reported on their activities around the globe, calling on UN member states and the UN system to take urgent action to meet their decade-old commitments to UN Security Council Resolution 1325. CSAG reasserted its recommendation that three events be held in fall 2010 to leverage the tenth anniversary of UNSCR 1325 to accelerate change within the UN, and released a working paper on "Preventing and Responding to Sexual Violence Against Women Displaced by Conflict."
http://www.huntalternatives.org/pages/8439_july_2010_update_civil_society_advisory_group_to_the_un_on_women_peace_and_security.cfm
Inclusive Security Testifies in US House of Representatives (June 2010)
In testimony before the US House of Representatives, on June 8, Inclusive Security Chair Ambassador Swanee Hunt and Women Waging Peace Network member Mishkat Al Moumin joined representatives of the Obama Administration, the International Republican Institute, and the National Democratic Institute in urging Congress to expand US support of women leaders in other countries.
http://www.huntalternatives.org/pages/8431_inclusive_security_and_women_waging_peace_network_testify_in_us_congress_june_9_2010.cfm
http://international.edgeboss.net/real/international/OI06092010.smi (Webcast)
Supporting Afghan Women Peace Builders at a Critical Time (May – June 2010)
In both Kabul, Afghanistan, and Washington, DC, Inclusive Security worked with dozens of Afghan women peace builders to influence the National Consultative Peace Jirga held in early June. Inclusive Security traveled to Kabul in May for a consultation with 35 Afghan women leaders preparing for the jirga in which four hundred women ultimately participated. Afghan women contributed to each of the jirga's 28 working groups and presented the final recommendations to the plenary; a women also served as deputy chair of the entire event. Inclusive Security worked with Afghan women leaders in DC in May to advocate to US decision makers.
http://www.huntalternatives.org/pages/8437_supporting_afghan_women_peace_builders_at_a_critical_time.cfm
II. Training
A busy May to July saw Inclusive Security’s training team working with:
III. New Publications
Gender Symposia During Donor Conferences: A Model to Guarantee Women Leaders a Voice in Setting Priorities for Reconstruction (July 2010 update on Afghanistan)
Despite women’s central importance to reconstruction, they are regularly marginalized by the donor assistance pledging process. A gender symposium held in conjunction with an international donor conference can help provide women and civil society with a voice in reconstruction. In conjunction with recent donor conferences for Afghanistan, Liberia and Sudan, Inclusive Security organized gender symposia that focused attention on female leaders and on women’s needs and priorities in reconstruction. This policy brief assesses those symposia and offers recommendations for replicating their success. (8 pages)
http://www.huntalternatives.org/pages/8440_gender_symposia_during_donor_conferences_july_2010_update.cfm
IV. Inclusive Security in the News
Inclusive Security Director Carla Koppell published commentary on “Afghanistan’s Most Valuable Resource” in Reuters AlertNet in July.
Inclusive Security Chair Ambassador Swanee Hunt was mentioned in the June – July 2010 issue of Horn of Africa Bulletin.
Inclusive Security’s training was lauded in the blog North-South Jennifer in June.
V. Upcoming Events
For an up-to-date list of future events, please visit the events page of the Inclusive Security Web site.
VI. Select News from the Women Waging Peace Network
Click to read the expanded July 2010 update on the Network members’ activities summarized below.
Afghanistan
Samira Hamidi and Najla Ayubi svpoke at an event in Washington, DC about the recent National Consultative Peace Jirga. Ayubi appeared on NPR to explain what reintegration of the Taliban could mean for Afghan women.
Wazhma Frogh authored "Afghanistan's politics should be local" in Foreign Policy in July.
Cambodia
Mu Sochua announced she will not pay any fines associated with her recent guilty verdict for defaming Cambodia’s prime minister, a verdict which she asserts was unjustified. She attended the New York premiere of Redlight, a film featuring her anti-child-trafficking work. Global Exchange announced that she is the recipient of the 2010 Human Rights Awards People's Choice Award.
Fiji
Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls and her organization convened women leaders from across Fiji to broaden understanding and use of UNSCR 1325. She spoke in Australia and submitted a concept paper to the US State Department for the Secretary’s Innovation Award for the Empowerment of Women and Girls.
India
Ashima Kaul participated in a conference on religion, women, and peace organized by Georgetown University’s Berkeley Center and the the US Institute of Peace.
Iraq
Mishkat Al Moumin testified before a US House of Representatives committee, where she discussed her experiences challenging Al Qaeda, including surviving a suicide bomb attack, as Iraq’s first minister of the environment.
Hearing video: http://international.edgeboss.net/real/international/OI06092010.smi (Al Moumin begins about 1:39:40)
Liberia
Precious Dennis Mitchell co-led a course in June as part of American University's Peacebuilding and Development Summer Institute in Washington, DC, and spoke at a roundtable about Liberia's truth and reconciliation process.
Northern Ireland
Mari Fitzduff participated in a conference on religion, women, and peace organized by Georgetown University’s Berkeley Center and US Institute of Peace.
Monica McWilliams submitted testimony to the June 9 "Women as Agents of Change" hearing.
Kenya
Jane Wanjiru Maina, Joy K. Mbaabu, Karambu Ringera, E. Njoki Wamai, and Sarah Mbere Wanjiru submitted concept papers to the US State Department for the Secretary’s Innovation Award for the Empowerment of Women and Girls.
Kyrgyzstan
Nurgul Djanaeva traveled to Osh City and organized women’s groups to ensure women’s security in the region. She helped document acts of violence against women in refugee camps in southern Kyrgyzstan.
Pakistan
Mossarat Qadeem submitted a concept paper to the US State Department for the Secretary’s Innovation Award for the Empowerment of Women and Girls. She joins four other Pakistani women, including Kishwar Sultana, to form the Women Action for Peace network.
Kishwar Sultana facilitated an Open Day on UNSCR 1325 in Pakistan and presented recommendations from women’s civil society organizations.
Palestine
Naila Ayesh was featured in an LA Times article about women's rights in Gaza.
The Philippines
Amina Rasul-Bernardo participated in a conference on religion, women, and peace organized by Georgetown University’s Berkeley Center and the US Institute of Peace. She is working on a project that encourages Muslim women religious scholars and civil society organizations to collaborate on peacebuilding efforts in the Philippines.
Sudan
South Sudan’s president named seven women ministers including Awut Deng, Anne Itto, Jemma Kumba, and Mary Jervas Yak to the new regional cabinet.
Sri Lanka
Visaka Dharmadasa submitted written testimony to the US House of Representatives as part of the June 9 "Women as Agents of Change" hearing.
Click to read the expanded July 2010 update on the Network members’ activities summarized above.
About The Institute for Inclusive Security
The Institute for Inclusive Security uses research, training, and advocacy to promote the inclusion of all stakeholders, particularly women, in peace processes. We work with a global network of well over 1,000 women leaders from more than 40 conflict regions. Our research gives policymakers new strategies to drive inclusion by examining tangible contributions of women peace builders. Our training provides leaders the specialized skills and knowledge to direct local, national, and international peacebuilding. Our advocacy to high-level policymakers promotes change that makes peace processes more broad-based, and thus sustainable.
The Institute for Inclusive Security
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information@huntalternatives.org
www.InclusiveSecurity.org