Afghan Women Supported in Record Numbers at the Bonn Conference on the Future of Afghanistan

Success in Bonn
In December 2011, representatives of more than 100 nations and international organizations attended the Bonn Conference on Afghanistan's future. The Afghan Women's Network, supported by Inclusive Security and CARE, led a delegation of nine women leaders to meet with representatives of more than a dozen governments.

AWN members delivered some of the most concrete recommendations of the conference, addressing all major issues raised there, including the peace process and the security transition. Recommendations included a national dialogue on reconciliation that would engage ordinary Afghan men and women in defining peace, and civil society-led monitoring of the security transition.

The AWN delegation participated in a breakfast meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Foreign Minister of Canada John Baird, and EU High Representative/Vice President Catherine Ashton. Ambassador Marc Grossman, US special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, facilitated the meeting. Several dozen other Afghan civil society leaders also attended.

AWN also met other high-level policy shapers from the US Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor; the UK’s Home Office; and the Australian, Dutch, and Finnish official delegations to Bonn.

Minister Baird and Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, who met with the delegation, mentioned AWN in their remarks at the conference plenary and pledged continued support for Afghan women, as did Erkki Tuomioja, the foreign minister of Finland.

The official Bonn conference communiqué ultimately stated, "The process leading to reconciliation must be inclusive, representing the legitimate interests of all the people of Afghanistan, regardless of gender or social status."

Preparing for Success
In June, a week before President Obama announced the first withdrawal of surge troops, Inclusive Security partnered with AWN to bring Afghan women leaders to Washington, DC.  In meetings with US decision makers at the White House, the US Departments of State and Defense, and Congress, the approaching Bonn Conference—and the need to ensure women’s inclusion—was a recurring topic of discussion.

On returning to Kabul, AWN continued advocacy and consultations by convening a series of roundtables with senior Afghan and international policy shapers in Kabul. Drawing on those meetings, in early October the Afghan group published a position paper. They also consulted more than 500 women leaders throughout the country, the result of which was the women’s declaration released the morning of the conference.

Women and Civil Society Included in Record Numbers
Due in part to AWN’s advocacy, 13 women from parliament, various ministries, and the High Peace Council joined President Karzai’s delegation to Bonn.

In addition to women’s significant presence at the conference itself, 50 percent of the delegates who participated in the Civil Society Forum that preceded the conference were women.

Selay Gaffar, an AWN and Women Waging Peace Network member, was chosen to be one of only two civil society leaders to speak at the conference plenary on December 5.

US Congress Supports Afghan Women’s Inclusion
The Afghan Women’s Task Force, which met with AWN’s delegation in June, organized a bipartisan, bicameral dear colleague letter to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The December 2 letter called for a “more inclusive” reconciliation process and made the case for women’s meaningful presence “… at every conference, jirga, or negotiation where decisions about their future are being made.” It was signed by 26 members, including Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Donna Edwards (D-MD), as well as Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX).

Elevating Women’s Voices in the Media
AWN’s delegation and their impact in Bonn were chronicled in a number of articles by The Canadian Press, The Associated Press, and Women News Network, among others, in addition to blogs by Inclusive Security that ran in The Daily Beast, Women’s e-News, and The Huffington Post.

For more information on Inclusive Security’s work to support Afghan women peacebuilders, please contact Travis Wheeler.