Women, Peace and Security: GlobaL & REGIONAL Initiatives

Archived Initiatives

Regions:  Africa | East Africa-Horn | Great Lakes | Southern Africa | West Africa | South - Central America | South Asia | South East Asia | Middle East / West Asia | Central - Eastern Europe

Disarming Domestic Violence
The International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) Women's Network

The first international campaign to protect women from gun violence in the home. The main goal is to ensure that anyone with a history of domestic abuse is denied access to a firearm, or have their licenses revoked.

During the 2009 Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence events will be held in 85 countries to draw attention to the human toll of small arms proliferation and misuse. Perhaps most shockingly, the greatest risk of gun violence to women around the world is not on the streets, or the battlefield, but in their own homes.

Women are three times more likely to die violently if there is a gun in the house. Usually the perpetrator is a spouse or partner, often with a prior record of domestic abuse. Gun violence can be part of the cycle of intimidation and aggression that many women experience from an intimate partner. For every woman killed or physically injured by firearms, many more are threatened. This is why IANSA has launched a campaign to demand policies which would keep women safe from gun violence.

IANSA women from over 28 countries are already involved and collecting information about the scale of the problem in Argentina, Brazil, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Colombia, DR Congo, El Salvador, Haiti, Liberia, Macedonia, Mali, Mexico, Namibia, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

Of the 800 million small arms in the world today, more than 75% of them are in the hands of private individuals – most of them men. Given this, women are paying an increasingly heavy price for the dangerously unregulated multi-billion dollar trade in small arms.

Core campaign members are based in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, El Salvador, Namibia, Nepal, Portugal, Serbia and Uganda.

* Argentina: Asociación para Politicas Públicas
* Brazil: Viva Rio
* Canada: Project Ploughshares
* Colombia: Colectivo Humana Dignidad
* Namibia: Breaking the Wall of Silence
* Nepal: SAP Nepal
* Portugal: Centre for Peace Studies/Observatory on Gender and Armed Violence
* Serbia: Victimology Society of Serbia
* Uganda: The Centre for Conflict Resolution (CECORE)

But many other IANSA members around the world are taking part in countries such as: Burundi, Cameroon, DR Congo, Haiti, Liberia, Macedonia, Mali, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Togo, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

To read more about this initiative, please click here.

The urban women's listserve

The Urban Women's Lisrserve is an international forum with the objective of facilitating an exchange of information and sharing of experiences, resources, and strategies to advance women's rights and gender equality in local governance and local governments. The listserve is open to all womens's groups, activists, institutions, equality-seeking organizations, women in local government - elected officials, administrators, staff, partners, women urban professionals, etc.

Men are also welcome. You are encouraged to post listings pertinent to this subject and to engage with participating members. Please be respectful of the diversity of opinions and experiences of all participants. A short description of your interests and focus of work will help to keep the list clean of SPAM. The listserve is moderated by Toronto Women's City Alliance (TWCA).

To subscribe write to: urban_women-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

International 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence 2009:
November 25 - December 10, 2009

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence is an international campaign originating from the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute sponsored by the Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL) at Rutgers University in 1991. Participants chose the dates, November 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women, and December 10, International Human Rights Day, in order to symbolically link violence against women and human rights and to emphasize that such violence is a human rights violation.

In celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) during last year’s 16 Days Campaign, millions of people pledged their support for ending violence against women (VAW) and upholding human rights. Building upon this momentum, the Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL) dedicates the 2009 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign to honoring groups and individuals who have committed to bringing VAW to the forefront of global attention, to encouraging everyone in their various capacities to take action to end VAW, and to demanding accountability for all of the promises made to eliminate VAW. Therefore, the 2009 theme is:
Commit ? Act ? Demand: We CAN End Violence Against Women!

To view the announcement of the 2009 theme in English, please click here.
To view the announcement of the 2009 theme in Spanish, please click here.
To view the announcement of the 2009 theme in French, please click here.

To view this campaign's webiste, please click here.

Anglican/Episcopal Letter to Hillary Clinton

Dear Madam Secretary,

Recalling your inspiring speech at the 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing, we women of faith-based and secular US NGOs gathered at the 53rd UN Commission on the Status of Women offer our congratulations as you assume the position of chief foreign policy officer of the United States' recognizing you are now in a unique position to effect change in a world in which women?s rights are truly human rights.

To read the letter, please click HERE.

Global GEAR Campaign petition to build a UN that really works for all women!

This year, at the United Nations 53rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) the GEAR Campaign launched a global petition (for individuals) that calls for the creation of a new, stronger women’s entity at the UN. The petition specifically demands an ambitiously funded new entity with meaningful involvement of civil society at all levels, both in the process of creating the entity and in all aspects of its work.

Please take a minute to sign the petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/GEAR

Here are some other ways to help promote the GEAR petition:
- forward it to friends and colleagues
- post it on listservs
- add a link to it in your email signature
- add a link to it on your professional or personal website
- promote it in various news groups, online forums and discussion groups...

For more information, please click HERE.

Department of Defense Partners with Men Can Stop Rape on Sexual Assault Prevention Campaign

Washington, DC, April 2, 2009 - In support of Sexual Assault Awareness Month and as part of their recent efforts to create a "culture of prevention" to reduce sexual violence, this week the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) is launching a social marketing campaign it developed with internationally recognized expert, Men Can Stop Rape, Inc. (MCSR).

To read the rest of the story, please click HERE.

femlinkpacific digital story on women, peace and human security

femLINKPACIFIC's Digital Story of Women, Peace and Human Security featuring Generation Next and music mix by MC Trey is an "in house" production as part of our current media initiatives (Audio and DVD) with funding assistance from the British High Commission.

To listen to the project, please click HERE

2009 Women's International Grassroots Peace Congress

An international forum of diverse people to promote women’s grassroots initiatives of nonviolence for sustainable development and cultures of peace. The world’s most diverse grassroots partnerships building event. Bringing together the world's real peace experts and their work from the grassroots up and facilitating bridges of friendships and collaborations across cultures.

For more information, please click here

The Women's Dialogue 2009
International Colloquium

The Women's Dialogue is a 3 part series of virtual dialogues which will feature live interviews and participation of current and former female Heads of State including Madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and President Tarja Halonen interacting with a global audience of future leaders and will produce recommendations and solutions on how to break down barriers to leadership. They are being organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Liberia. Each Dialogue consists of a 2 hour event supported by videoconferencing and live streaming. The purpose of these Dialogues is to bring together young people and others concerned with issues related to female leadership in an international conversation with women leaders in different regions of the world. The outputs of these videoconferences, including recommendations will be collated and presented to the International Colloquium in March 2009.

For more information, please click here.

INTERNATIONAL COLLOQUIUM ON WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT, LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY
March 7-8, 2009

Coinciding with International Women's Day (March 8), women leaders from around the world will convene for the International Colloquium for Women’s Empowerment, Leadership Development, International Peace and Security (the Colloquium) at the SKD Stadium in Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa. The Colloquium, conceptualized in 2006 during the inauguration of Africa’s first female President, Madam Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, will bring together 400 international participants and 400 Liberian national participants, including female leaders; heads of state and government; ministers; CEOs, presidents and executive directors; and NGO and community leaders. The Conference, co-convened by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia and President Tarja Halonen of Finland, seeks to create an environment for women and their champions around the world to discuss, learn, demonstrate and act on the benefits and lessons learned from women in leadership.

To read the Call to Action on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security; Monrovia, Liberia: 7-8 March 2009, please click HERE.

To read the NGO Statement for the 1325 Expert Group Meeting in the lead up to the International Colloquium, please click here.

For more information, please click here.

Power of Politics campaign
The International Museum of Women (I.M.O.W)

The Power of Politics campaign includes 5 steps to increase women's political knowledge, inspire each other to become active in the political process and support women who are interested in running for both informal and formal political positions worldwide and spark a global dialogue around the issue of why women's political power matters.

For more information, please click HERE

V-Day: Registration Open for V-Day 2009 Campaign Events!

Join V-Day and the thousands of activists at colleges and communities around the world who stage V-Day benefit productions of The Vagina Monologues and other artistic works licensed by V-Day to raise awareness and funds to end violence against women in their communities. Each year during V-Season, V-Day events take place on college campuses and in communities, theaters, churches, and cafes worldwide educating millions about the issue and raising much needed funds for local anti-violence groups. Make a difference in your colleges and communities!

For more information, please click HERE

OPEN LETTER: MAKING SENIOR UN LEADERSHIP ACCOUNTABLE FOR SEXUAL ABUSE/EXPLOITATION BY UN PERSONNEL IN PEACE OPERATIONS
World Movement of Mothers

“Resolutions 1325 and 1820 - small steps for the Security Council, Big Step for Humanity", led to the present action of writing a letter to the UN Secretary General.

To read the open letter, please click HERE

The Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Staff Blog
A Division of the Joan B. Krock School of Peace Studies,
University of San Diego

The fifth international forum held in conjunction with the Women PeaceMakers Program is an international working conference to probe and address global acquiescence to impunity, gender violence and exclusion that continue to obstruct peacebuilding and human security.

The Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Staff Blog includes 2008 Women PeaceMakers Conference: "Crafting Human Security in an Insecure World", panels 1, 2, 3 , 4, and Closing Session.

To view the conference Blog, please click HERE

Nonviolence Education and Training – NVET
Women Peacemakers Program (WPP)

Nonviolence training provides Civil Society Organizations with essential peacebuilding skills and concepts. These skills and concepts focus on ways to increase social mobilization and countervailing power. Nonviolence training aims to empower marginalized groups so that they can assert their rights, create their own opportunities, and access resources. WPP will supports nonviolence trainings during 2008, by providing financial support (seedfunding), links to trainers and resource people, and/or training materials. Please note that the 2009 call for applications has opened, deadline for application: November 30, 2008

For more information, the list of criteria and application form, please click HERE

16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence 2008
November 25 - December 10, 2008
Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL)

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence is an international campaign originating from the first Women's Global Leadership Institute sponsored by the Center for Women's Global Leadership in 1991. Participants chose the dates, November 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women and December 10, International Human Rights Day, in order to symbolically link violence against women and human rights and to emphasize that such violence is a violation of human rights. This 16-day period also highlights other significant dates including November 29, International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, December 1, World AIDS Day, and December 6, which marks the Anniversary of the Montreal Massacre.

This year’s campaign theme celebrates the 60th anniversary of Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a historic moment, recognizing the past six decades of work to secure the conventions and treaties that make up the human rights framework.

For more information, please click HERE
To download the 2008 16 Days Take Action Kit, please click HERE

Peace X Peace – connecting women for peace
Peace X Peace is an international women's organization based in Washington DC. There webpage aim to connects women directly to one another across cultures to create a more balanced, peaceful world where women’s lives, stories, and voices are valued and honored. In the safe environment of its online Global Network women and women's Circles communicate directly to form supportive friendships, educate and mentor women, share expertise, design projects and initiatives.

Peace X Peace describes Women's Circles as “a place where the collective wisdom surfaces from inside out principally because there are agreed-upon communication guidelines. They support the creation of a safe space, where each member knows she will be heard and her story honored, and that everyone is equally valued”.

For more information on Women's Circles, please click HERE

For more information on Peace X Peace, please click HERE

Women all over Europe call for peace and justice and call for a halt to militarisation
August, 2008
The European Women’s Lobby (EWL) expresses its great concern about the suffering and damage caused to the civilian population, including women, children and elderly, in the recent hostilities in Georgia and welcomes the ceasefire agreement negotiated by the EU.

To read more about the appeal, please click HERE

Calendar Publishers Unite for World Peace, Reaching a Billion People
This year, for the first time ever, the United Nations International Day of Peace has been printed on hundreds of millions of calendars all over the world. We will reach a billion people. These are the 2009 calendars, which are in stores now. Yet, in 2007, before the International Day of Peace was even listed on any calendars, there were over 3,500 events in every country on the planet involving an estimated 200 million people. This year's observances of the International Day of Peace will be even more widespread and prominent.

For more information, please klick HERE

The 2008 IPJ Women PeaceMakers have been announced!
The Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice (IPJ) is pleased to announce the 2008 Women PeaceMakers. The four women – from Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa and Peru – will begin their residency at the IPJ on September 6.

The 2008 Women PeaceMakers:
Shinjita Alam of Bangladesh, Sylvie Maunga of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zandile Nhlengetwa of South Africa and Olenka Ochoa of Peru.

To read more about the 2008 Women PeaceMakers, please click HERE

Africa: Violence Against Women In Africa: From Discrimination To Impunity
July 1, 2008

African Women’s Day gives us the opportunity to remember that gender- based violence is one of the most serious and widespread violations of the basic rights of women, particularly on the African continent. Gender discrimination is both one of the causes and an aggravating factor of the consequences of violence against women, thus contributing to the perpetuation of impunity of such cases.

The signatory organisations call on African States to ratify the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on women’s rights (the “Maputo Protocol”), harmonise national laws with international standards and take all necessary measures to fight against violence against women by tackling the general context of discrimination which encourages such violations and which perpetuates the marginalisation of women, particularly as regards their access to justice.

To read more about the campaign, please click here

Mapping the World of Women's Information Services
July 23, 2008

Mapping the World of Women's Information Services is an online database in which you can find information on women's information centres and libraries that are open to the public. It currently contains approximately 400 women's information centres from over 140 countries and is updated weekly.

The database contains addresses, websites, details on the goals of organizations, collection subjects and more.

For more information, please click HERE

Women, Peace and Conflict - One Day Conference
November 17, 2008, Dublin, Ireland
Joint Consortium on Gender Based Violence

A one day conference exploring how United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 can address the impact of armed conflict on women and ensure that women are central to conflict prevention, peacekeeping, conflict resolution and peace-building.

Keynote speaker: Ms Mary Robinson, Director of the Ethical Globalisation Initiative and Special Advisor to the Joint Consortium on Gender Based Violence

Places for this event are limited. For more information and for the application, please click here

AWID - Association for Women's Rights in Development - has new website !
July 22, 2008

AWID new website provides streamlined access to information in English, Spanish and French including thousands of articles on a wide range of women's human rights issues, in-depth analysis, practical tools to support women's rights activism, and daily news on women's rights around the world.

For more information and read greetings from AWID, please click HERE

To visit the website, please click HERE

Urgent call for new publications on gender and development - Women, Ink.
July 21, 2008

Women, Ink., a project of the International Women's Tribune Centre, is urgently seeking new publications about various gender and development issues - with a special focus on those produced in the last three years by small independent and women's presses and information-producing groups in the Global South.

Both practical and academic, the Women, Ink. collection seeks books on various aspects of gender and development, including women's human rights; conflict and peace processes; training; economics and globalization; health, sexuality and reproductive rights; political process; information communication; policy and political process an women organizing.

To further explore Women, Ink. collection, please click HERE

If you are interested, please click HERE

The EC/UN Partnership on Gender Equality for Development and Peace

The “EC/UN Partnership on Gender Equality for Development and Peace” is an initiative that involves the European Commission (EC), the United Nations Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization (ITCILO). It is a follow-up to the “Owning Development. Promoting Gender Equality in New Aid Modalities and Partnerships” conference that was jointly organized by the European Commission and UNIFEM in November 2005.

The EC/UN partnership aims to identify approaches with which to integrate gender equality and women’s human rights into new aid modalities, in accordance with the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness.

It also aims to provide support for national partners’ efforts to fulfil international obligations on gender equality and to match their commitment to gender equality with adequate financial allocations in national development programmes and budgets.

The project will have a specific focus on the role of women in conflict and post-conflict situations, and especially on the proper implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.

The project will focus on twelve pilot countries which are the following:

AFRICA: Ghana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo
ASIA and the PACIFIC: Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Nepal
EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA: Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan
AMERICAS: Nicaragua, Honduras, Suriname

For more information, please click HERE

Nobel Women’s Initiative leading peace delegation of prominent women activists
July 17, 2008

The Nobel Women’s Initiative will proudly lead a delegation to the Thai-Burma border, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Chad from July 21 to August 6.

Led through the first leg of its journey by Nobel Peace Laureate Jody Williams and Mia Farrow, renowned activist and actor, the delegation leadership will be joined by Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai on the African leg.

The objective of this delegation is to hear and relay the messages of women’s groups in the regions, call attention to their courageous efforts for peace and justice, and promote effective resolutions to the political crisis facing Burma and the escalated conflict in Darfur.

We also hope to focus attention on the aftermath of cyclone Nargis and the broader crisis of democracy in Burma, including violations to women’s rights. In Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Chad, the delegation will spotlight the need for women to be meaningfully included in the peace process and will work with women’s groups to identify how the global community can support local efforts.

To follow up on the delegations updates, please visit the blog HERE

To read more about the campaign, please click HERE

daw-Online discussion on “Women and men: equal sharing of responsibilities”
July 7 - August 1, 2008

This online discussion is part of the preparatory process for the 53rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in 2009, which will consider “The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS” as its priority theme. We encourage you to share your ideas and experiences as input to further development of global policy in this area.

Each of the first three weeks of the discussion will be devoted to a specific theme, while the last week will provide the opportunity to wrap up and to raise additional issues if necessary.

The purpose of the online discussion is to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the issues and to identify good practices and strategies required to accelerate gender equality in this regard.

Contributions made to this online discussion will serve as a resource to the work of the Commission on the Status of Women in developing concrete recommendation on the issue of equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS.

For more information, please click HERE

SIDA CONFERENCE
September 12, 2008, Stockholm, Sweden
Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA)

The theme of the conference is "How Gender-based Violence Can Be Addressed in an Effective Manner, with a Focus on Post-conflict Settings." Sweden's Minister for Development Cooperation Mrs Gunilla Carlsson will launch Sweden's Action Plan on Gender-based Violence in Development Co-operation. Speakers include Lesley Abdela, recent GenCap Senior Gender Adviser to UN OCHA Chief Humanitarian Co-ordinator Nepal.

Conference subjects include:
- Sexual abuse in conflict and post-conflict situations - why GBV
tends to increase in many post-conflict societies
- Gender-based violence due to harmful traditional or customary
practices

Contact information: sida@sida.se

To visit the organization’s website, please click HERE

Women's Funding Network
The Women's Funding Network is 128 organizations that fundwomen's solutions across the globe. We give women the money and tools to transform their ideas into lasting change - in every critical area from combating poverty to achieving advances in healthcare, education and human rights.

For more information, please CLICK HERE

For the Funds Directory, please CLICK HERE

stop violence against women website
To fight the phenomenon of violence against women, Adovcates for Human Rights, with support from the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the Open Society Institute’s Network Women’s Program, have developed the Stop Violence against Women website (STOPVAW). The website aims to be a forum for information, advocacy and change, as well as a tool for the promotion of women’s human rights in countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. STOPVAW focuses on four areas: domestic violence, sexual assault, sexual harassment and trafficking of women.

To visit the website, please click here

Urgent Action Fund For Women's Human Rights
Urgent Action Fund, as part of women’s rights movements worldwide, supports women's rights defenders working to create cultures of justice, equality and peace. We provide rapid response grants that enable strategic interventions, and participate in collaborative advocacy and research. We are led by activists, inspired by feminism, and strengthened through solidarity.

Urgent Action Fund Makes Grants in Three Categories:
* Response to armed conflict, escalating violence or politically volatile environments.
* Potentially precedent-setting legal or legislative actions, or actions that aim to protect a precedent that has already been set.
* Protection and security of women human rights defenders.

Urgent Action Fund was founded in 1997, following the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. The co-founders, Ariane Brunet, Margaret (Mudge) Schink and Julie Shaw, identified a severe gap between activists' needs in the face of crises or unexpected opportunities and the resources available to them, especially in areas experiencing armed conflict or escalating violence. Most donors required several months to process a grant request, but many interventions had only a small window of opportunity in which they could be effective.

For more information, please click HERE

WomanStats Project
The WomanStats Project is the most comprehensive compilation of information on the status of women in the world. The Project facilitates understanding the linkage between the situation of women and the security of nation-states. We comb the extant literature and conduct expert interviews to find qualitative and quantitative information on over 260 indicators of women's status in 174 countries. The database expands daily, and access to it is free of charge.

The Project began in 2001, and today includes five principal investigators at three universities, as well as a team of up to twenty graduate and undergraduate data extractors. The Project focuses primarily on data from governments (especially that data submitted to UN human rights bodies), non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations, and country or topic experts.

The data collected includes laws, statistics, statements of general fact made by experts and authorities, anecdotes, interpretation and other information. The database is searchable by country or by variable (i.e., issue area). The codebook (list of variables) will be your useful guide to the data available and how it is grouped within the database.

To visit the database, please click HERE

To have a look at the codebook, please click HERE

Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights calls for action against RSHR violations in conflict situations
Thousands of women across the globe are subjected to sexual violence, abuse, torture and rape throughout conflict situations. In the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), 4500 cases of sexual abuse were reported during the first six months of 2007 alone.

There continues to be a global pattern of, often extreme, sexual and gender-based violence in conflict situations, which is frequently dismissed as an inevitable and unavoidable by-product of conflict. Consequently, women survivors suffer physical and psychological health complications and economic and social exclusion; they often have no access to health care, including the necessity for access to safe and legal abortion services.

With more than 50 countries currently in the midst of armed conflict and the unabated violation of women's reproductive and sexual health rights being reported in every international and domestic war zone, WGNRR's Call for Action in 2008: Stop conflict being waged against women's bodies! Hold local, national and international actors accountable for securing women's reproductive and sexual health and rights! The Call for Action was launched worldwide on May 28th, the International Day of Action for Women's Health, through different events.

To read the Call for Action, please click HERE

TRAINING COURSE: THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN (POST)CONFLICT AREAS
Monday 20th October – Sunday 26th October 2008
VoiceOver

VoiceOver is a project intended to make opinions from developing countries heard in the Netherlands. Only too often is Dutch international policy based on our views of the world without taking the perceptions from people outside our country into account. VoiceOver deals with a different issue each year.

This year the focus is on "The Role of Women in (Post)Conflict Areas". What special role do or can women play in reconstructing their homes and their communities after devastating conflicts? What makes them different from men and what problems do they face in these, often unstable, environments? What role can Dutch development aid play and how should it take women into account? These are questions that can only be answered by people from these areas.

In order to give VoiceOver members a clear voice, we invite 35 people to participate in an interesting program from Monday 20 October until Sunday 26 October 2008 in the Netherlands. During this week, we offer them the opportunity to discuss your issues with (young) politicians, women organizations, Dutch civilians and the media.

Conditions for participation
1. You are available for the VoiceOver session in the Netherlands:- from Monday 20 October until Sunday 26 October 2008;
2. You are prepared to spend time during the weeks around the meeting on communicating with the other members of VoiceOver through internet.
3. You are prepared to cooperate with public media to create publicity for VoiceOver and you support the aims of the project.
4. You are at least 18 years of age and you are a national of a developing country as defined in the DAC list of the OECD.

Want to know more? Please contact:
Jurjen de Waal on j.dewaal@ncdo.nl, +31.20.5682119 or
Klaar Mous on k.mous@ncdo.nl, +31.20.5688743"

If you feel connected to this subject in any way and would like to participate in the program we would like to ask you to enlist for VoiceOver by filling out the application form on our website, HERE

Training Course: Coordination of Multi-Sectoral Response to Gender-Based Violence in Humanitarian Settings
November 3-14, 2008
International Centre for Reproductive Health

The organisation of the training course “Coordination of Multi-Sectoral Response to Gender-Based Violence in Humanitarian Settings” is a joint initiative of ICRH and the UNFPA Humanitarian Response Unit, supported by the Flemish Inter-university Council (VLIR), the UN Inter-agency Standing Committee Gender Task Force and the UN Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict.

This two-week intensive course is specifically designed to train qualified experts in gender-based violence (GBV) from various backgrounds in the coordination of multi-sectoral prevention of and response to GBV in humanitarian settings.

GOAL AND OBJECTIVES
The objectives of the training course are:
- To improve knowledge, understanding and communication about a multi-sectoral response to GBV in humanitarian settings;
- To build capacity and to acquire skills in the coordination of a multi-sectoral response to GBV in humanitarian settings.

The ultimate goal is to develop a curriculum that can be used by universities in the South for the organization of similar courses. In 2007 the course will be organized in English, in 2008 in French and there are positive perspectives of organizing the course in Spanish in 2009.

The deadline for applications is June 30, 2008.

For further information, please click HERE

Call for proposals 2008: Equality and justice under the rule of law
Open Society Institute- The International Women’s Program (IWP)

The mission of IWP is to use grant-making and programmatic efforts to promote and protect the rights of women and girls in priority areas around the globe where the principles of good governance and respect for the rule of law are absent or destroyed because of conflict. IWP seeks to promote the advancement of women’s rights and gender equality in law and practice, and the empowerment of women to ensure participation in the democratic processes.

WP invites proposals from local, national, regional or international organizations which focus on one or more of the following objectives:

1) Reducing discrimination and violence against women
IWP seeks to support initiatives that improve the status of women by:
- Strengthening legal frameworks and enforcement mechanisms that focus on women’s rights
- Strengthening civil society’s capacity to hold governments accountable to implement laws
- Increasing women’s capacity to understand and claim rights

2) Strengthening women’s access to justice
IWP seeks to support initiatives that strengthen judicial response to women and reduce the obstacles to access by ensuring:
- Legal aid, counsel and assistance is available and resourced
- Judges, lawyers and prosecutors understand and apply gender justice
- Transitional justice mechanisms are equitable and inclusive of women

3) Increasing women’s role as decision-makers and leaders*
IWP seeks to support initiatives that encourage and increase women’s role as decision-makers in a number of arenas including the following:
- Peace and reconciliation processes
- Electoral and legislative processes
- Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR), Security Sector Reform (SSR) and reconstruction programs

TIMELINE
Proposals must be received in English by email (preferred), fax or mail on or by July 7, 2008. Incomplete proposals or proposals received July 8 or later will NOT be considered under any circumstances.

For further information, please click HERE

2nd moderated Electronic Discussion (E-Discussion) Forum on the Gender Quotas as a Mechanism for Promoting Women in Politics
June 4-11, 2008
International Knowledge Network of Women in Politics

This E-Discussion will focus on strengthening the knowledge base about gender quotas, the implementation of gender quotas around the world, and their impact on women's political representation. It will also provide a forum for the exchange of ideas, experiences, and cases related to the following key issues:

1. Quotas and Their Implementation Mechanisms
2. Quota Types and Electoral Systems
3. Resistance to Quotas and How to Overcome It
4. Advocating for Quotas

The E-Discussion will be held between June 4-11, 2008, and will engage women leaders, practitioners, activists and their supporters from around the world.

iKNOW Politics looks forward to receiving your responses to the above mentioned discussion questions as well as to learning about your experiences related to gender quotas. You may contribute to the E-Discussion in English, French or Spanish, and participate at your own convenience.

For more information on and register to the E-discussion, please click HERE

Women's Commission Honors Refugee Activists at Annual Luncheon
The Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children honored refugee activists from Liberia, Sri Lanka and Chechnya at its 2008 Voices of Courage Awards luncheon in early May at the Kula Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York City. This year's honorees are engaged in efforts to end sexual violence against refugee women and girls. Kulah Borbor was honored for her work as an International Rescue Committee (IRC) peer educator in Monrovia, Liberia, and for spearheading the West Point Women for Health and Development Organization. For three years, she has been raising awareness and mobilizing communities to stand up against violence against women and girls.

To read more, please click HERE

Please Defend UN Radio's, "Women," coverage
Recently, there is a possibility that UN Radio might terminate the UN Radio program, “Women,” from the English service. This program has been around for decades and the UN has allotted it less air-time throughout the years. Women’s media are constantly denied press passes to cover press conferences and events hosted by the UN. For this reason, the program, “Women,” is an important media outlet for the public, particularly women, to hear about current ongoings on events and news regarding women in the UN.

Who is going to cover the United Nations for women? Please tell the UN what you want.

Contact for your letters of feedback or support:
Diane Bailey
Chief, English Language Unit
United Nations Radio
United Nations, Room S-850F
New York, NY 10017
Email: baileyd@un.org

For further information about “Women,” please click HERE

human rights watch call for un action against sexual violence
HRW published a statement calling on the United Nations to take measures on eliminating sexual violence against women and girls in conflict.

To read the full statement, please click HERE

us congressional hearing on scr 1325, washington dc
On May 15, the first congressional hearing on Security Council Resolution 1325 was organized by the House Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight.

This public hearing aimed at exploring women's contributions to peacebuilding and reconstruction in key conflict and post-conflict environments, specifically Afghanistan, Sudan, and Uganda.
Witnesses such as Amb. Swanee Hunt (The Initiative for Inclusive Security) and Donald Steinberg (International Crisis Group) raised awareness on female peacebuilders' specific skills and contributions. In addition, they demanded the US Congress to further promote and support women's active participation in peace negotiations and sustainable peacebuilding.

To read Donald Steinberg’s statement, please click HERE

'Because I am a Girl: Special Focus- In the Shadow of War'
Today (May 19, 2008), on International Day of the Family, Plan is launching the second report in the 'Because I am a Girl' series.

This years' report 'Girls in the Shadow of War' reveals why and how girls' rights are being violated in countries affected by armed conflict. It shows clearly what is lost when girls' voices are ignored and their capacities and skills go un-recognized and under-developed.

With introductions from President Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia and Graca Machel, international advocate of children's rights, the report highlights that the impact of conflict on girls goes beyond their experiences as either combatants or victims of violence to encompass their health, education, gender roles and relationships.

It analyses their situation through the lenses of Participation and Empowerment, Gender Roles and Relations, Access to Basic Services, Security and Protection and Economic Security. The report describes how discrimination against girls is in place before the fighting begins and long after it is over. The impacts vary from area to area, even within the same country, but the cost in terms of girls' well-being is profound.

Lack of effective targeted interventions mean that many nations, and the girls who live in them, will remain in a cycle of insecurity for decades, which will hinder progress towards lasting peace. Plan hopes that this report will urge leaders around the world to take immediate action to improve the lives of girls everywhere.

To read the full report or to learn about Plan's Because I am a Girl campaign, click HERE

Ensuring Women and Gender are reflected in the Cluster Munitions Treaty
Statement from WILPF International in preparation for the May 2008 negotiations on cluster munition in Dublin.

To read the full statement, please click HERE

1000 PeaceWomen Across the Globe:The Exhibition
The exhibition's goal is to provide information about the existence and the importance of the peacework of women. The exhibition consists of 1000 postcards that show the name and picture of the woman, a quotation from her and her country and region of origin. The back of the card is designed like a postcard and has a short description of the work the woman does.

For more information, please click HERE

Reporting Individual Complaints to the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women
The Special Rapporteur is mandated to seek and receive information on violence against women, its causes and consequences from Governments, treaty bodies, specialized agencies, other special rapporteurs responsible for various human rights questions and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, including women's organizations, and to respond effectively to such information.

For more information, please click here

WOMEN GEAR UP: GOVERNMENTS RESPOND
Statement from the Linkage Caucus at the UN Commission on the Status of Women

For more information, please click here

International Women’s Day
For more information about worldwide commemoration of Interantional Women's Day, please click HERE

International Poll Finds Large Majorities in All Countries Favor Equal Rights for Women
According to a new WorldPublicOpinion.org poll of 16 nations from around the world there is a widespread consensus that it is important for "women to have full equality of rights" and most say it is very important. This is true in Muslim countries as well as Western countries. In nearly all countries most people perceive that in their lifetime women have gained greater equality. Nonetheless, large majorities would like their government and the United Nations to take an active role in preventing discrimination.

For more information, please click HERE

Unite to end violence against Women
United Nation's Secretary General Campaign
“At least one out of every three women is likely to be beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Through the practice of prenatal sex selection, countless others are denied the right even to exist,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon

For more information, please click here

WOMEN’S ANTI-TRAFFICKING GROUPS AROUND THE WORLD call for action
The Coalition Against Trafficking in Women (CATW), Equality Now, The European Women’s Lobby, and grassroots groups from around the world, all working to end trafficking in women and girls, are jointly calling on governments to use the Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking (13-15 February 2008) organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as a venue to generate significant political will and commit resources to ending the scourge of human trafficking.

For more information, please click here

Human Rights for Women ‹—› Human Rights for All: UDHR60
The 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Reclaiming the UDHR Campaign marks the adoption by the United Nations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) – the landmark document which outlines the basic human rights guaranteed to all people. The Center for Women's Global Leadership (CWGL) is proud to be a partner in the UDHR 60 NGO campaign, which comes at a time when the legitimacy of both women’s rights and human rights are being challenged in too many settings. This NGO campaign is led by The Elders project, and is being held in conjunction with the UN’s celebration of this anniversary. In the month of March, using International Women’s Day (March 8th) as an anchor, CWGL will take the lead through highlighting a spectrum of women’s human rights issues and the importance of women’s leadership in realizing human rights for all.

For more information, please click here

say no to violence against women
The UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women will receive $100,000 from the United Nations Foundation for 100,000 signatures. UNIFEM and their Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman invites you to meet the challenge.

For more information, please click HERE

World YwCA Call for Action
Elections in Kenya resulted in nearly 500 deaths and 250, 000 people are displaced in the search for safety. Amidst the violence women have been systematically raped and abused. Gang rape as a means of retaliation is on the increase and the Nairobi Women’s Hospital has recorded a two-fold increase in rape cases in recent days.

The Kenya government last year passed a progressive sexual offence law and it must be exercised at this time.

The World YWCA is calling on member associations, civil society, partners and donors to take the action to alleviate the suffering in Kenya by:

1. Donating and supporting ongoing efforts
2. Advocating for women’s inclusion in peace building
3. Saying ‘No’ to impunity for rape and abuse of women
4. Dedicating a prayer session to Kenya

For more information, please click HERE

Every Human Has Rights Campaign
In December 2008 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights will be 60 years old. To celebrate its anniversary The Elders (Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, Mary Robinson, Ela R. Bhatt, Graça Machel, Gro Brundtland, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela, Kofi Ananan and others) have launched a year-long campaign to reinvigorate the Declaration, to remind everyone that it remains just as important a document today as it was in 1948, and to encourage people across the globe to live by its principles.

For more information, please click HERE

WILPF Europe statement on the proposed EU Reform Treaty
"We women, in International Congress assembled, protest against the madness and the horror of war, involving as it does a reckless sacrifice of human life and the destruction of so much that humanity has laboured through centuries to build up.”

To view the statement, please click HERE

WILPF Statement on International Human Rights Day
Since its inception in 1915, the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) has worked for all human rights to be respected. We have equally worked for the prevention of war and the eradication of militarism, believing that these conditions negate human rights. We are convinced that human rights cannot exist without peace and freedom.

To view the statement, please click HERE

Center for Women's Global Leadership Statement on Human Rights Day
The Center for Women’s Global Leadership is committed to the realization of human rights for all, with a focus on the rights of women, and is pleased to announce its participation in the global 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Reclaiming the UDHR Campaign. With the slogan, Every Human Has Rights, different organizations around the world with the support of The Elders will lead in highlighting key aspects of the human rights framework each month and call for a worldwide commitment to realizing human rights.

To view the statement, please click HERE

is peace possible? The San Diego Call for Action
In late October 2007, women peacemakers from around the world met for a summit entitled “Is Peace Possible?” that was convened by the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice (IPJ) at the University of San Diego in San Diego, California. Due to the wildfires in the area it was necessary to relocate and it was not possible to hold a public event, however meetings continued despite the disruptions. The summit resulted in the “San Diego Call for Action” being issued, urging constructive steps be taken to assure gender inclusion in peace processes and to encourage specific actions in the fifteen countries represented.

To view the full text of the call to action click HERE

Center for Women's Global Leadership honors Women Human Rights Defenders
On the occasion of November 29th, Women Human Rights Defenders day, and as a part of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign, the Center for Women’s Global Leadership honors the hundreds of thousands of women activists around the world who persistently and courageously defend human rights, peace and social justice.

For more information please click HERE

Call for Submissions: Global Peacebuilders Peacebuilding Approaches Catalogue
Got an innovative approach to peacebuilding? Want to publish your approaches and turn the world’s attention to what you’re doing for peace? Global Peacebuilders is publishing a catalogue of worldwide approaches to peacebuilding, and we are looking for effective, fresh and innovative approaches from organisations working to create the conditions for a sustainable peace in their area.

For more information, please click HERE

UN Action, UNicef & V-Day campaign launch: stop Raping Our Greatest Resource - power to women and girls of the drc.
UN Action, under the leadership of UNICEF and with co-sponsor V-Day, launched the Stop Raping our Greatest Resource: Power to Women and Girls of the DRC campaign on 24 November 2007 in Bukavu, DRC. The event launch was organized in collaboration with V-Day, the Ministry for Women’s and Family Affairs (CONDIFFA), the UN Mission for Congo (MONUC) and several other United Nations Agencies. Madam Olive Kabila, the First Lady of the DRC, actively participated in the launch. The president of the National Assembly, Vital Kamerhe, pledged to use his office to maintain the issue of sexual violence on the national agenda. The campaign calls attention to the wide-scale atrocities committed against women and girls in Eastern DRC and demands an end to the impunity with which these crimes are committed.

For campaign press release please click HERE

V-Day and UNICEF, in collaboration with The Culture Project present: Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource - Ending Femicide in the DRC.
Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource: Ending Femicide in the DRC is a one night only event to launch V-Day's newest Campaign, Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource: Power to the Women and Girls of Democratic Republic of Congo. This new initiative is a joint two-year campaign between V-Day and UNICEF on behalf of UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict. The campaign calls for an end to impunity for sexual violence, for measures to ensure that state armed forces and police do not perpetrate sexual violence against women and girls and for the full implementation of national laws that protect and empower women.

For more information, please click HERE

IANSA call for action: letter to EU president to stop violence again women
Thousands of women are beaten or raped every day, the often forgotten victims of conflicts all across the world. In conflicts in West Africa and Northern Uganda thousands of young girls have been kidnapped and forced into sexual slavery and prostitution. Rape is rampant in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it has again been used as a weapon of war, a tactic used to terrorise, destroy and humiliate communities. In May 2007, the European Council called for significant scaling-up of programmes to combat violence against women, including in conflict and post-conflict situations. But we need to keep up the pressure to see these words turned into action. With Portugal taking on the EU presidency, please send an email to Prime Minister José Sócrates urging him to put Europe at the forefront of global efforts to end violence against women.

The International Rescue Committee has prepared an email to send to Prime Minister José Sócrates which we can all sign HERE

U.N. ACTION AGAINST SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN CONFLICT
UN Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict (UN Action) unites the work of 12 UN entities with the goal of ending sexual violence in conflict. It is a concerted effort by the UN to improve coordination and accountability, amplify programming and advocacy, and support national efforts to prevent sexual violence and respond effectively to the needs of survivors.

For more information, please click HERE

Nobel Women's Initiative: exclusive open Democracy coverage
openDemocracy.net was given exclusive access to the three day conference called by the Nobel Women's Initiative - " Women Redefining Peace in the Middle East and Beyond". The Laureates invited 80 peace workers from 30 countries to exchange views over the three day period.

openDemocracy was part of the Nobel Women Initative's documentation team, and you can read and listen to theircoverage of the conference in articles, podcasts and a diary-blog written by participants on their website.

For more information, please click HERE

UN Trust Fund to end VAW - final calls for proposals
The UN Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence Against Women was established by General Assembly resolution 50/166 in 1996 and is managed by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). The Trust Fund is the only multilateral grant-making mechanism that supports local, national and regional efforts to combat violence. Applications for its 12th grant cycle (2007) are now being accepted and must be related to one of the following areas of work:

* Implementation of existing laws, policies and plans of action to address violence against women.

* Reducing the twin pandemics of HIV/AIDS and violence against women.

Please read the following region-specific guidelines for information on how to apply for a Trust Fund grant in your region, including application deadline available HERE

SIGN THe IRC'S PETITION TODAY: STOP SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN WAR
International Rescue Committee and Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children
Simple, accessible, and cheap, rape is an extremely effective form of combat, used systematically to terrorize and humiliate. Rape is unmatched for its range of impact and scope of damage. It destroys entire communities. Sexual violence is not just a by-product of war. It's a military strategy, a tactic of genocide.
The bodies of women and girls are battlegrounds in conflicts throughout the world. Some 50,000 women were raped during the war in Bosnia. As many as 500,000 women were raped during the Rwandan genocide. Today, more than 50 women are raped every single day as violence rages in South Kivu, Congo. And it doesn't end there.Stop Sexual Violence Against Women.
Start Now.
Sign the petition at — www.theIRC.org/StopViolence

women and children in war
Western Visitor Centre - Shrine of Rememberance, Melbourne Australia
27 October – January 2008
Melbourne contemporary artist Tiffaney Bishop has created a beautiful and thought provoking body of work. On 31 October 2000, the United Nations passed a resolution focussing on the effects of war on women and children that aimed at promoting the involvement of women in international processes for peace and security. Inspired by this resolution and images of women and children from the Second World War found by the artist, this exhibition presents her works on the subject of women and children in war created over the past three years.

Please click HERE for more information

Launch of the Gender & Mine Action Web-Portal
The Swiss Campaign to Ban Landmines is delighted to announce the launch of an Internet portal, dedicated to encouraging and supporting gender mainstreaming in mine action. The portal is both a source of information, and an interactive space for mine action actors and stakeholders to exchange questions, perspectives and experiences.

For more information, please click HERE

A move to change … building on principles of SC Resolution 1325 - Australian National Committee on Refugee Women (ANCORW), African Women’s Advocacy Unit
For the last four years, Australia has been actively resettling refugees from African countries. In 2005, the Australian National Committee on Refugee Women (ANCORW), a national advocacy and advisory organization based in Sydney, Australia sought funding to work with refugee women from Africa in order to further identify and address some of the issues impacting on their successful resettlement in Sydney, Australia. Once received from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC), the funds allowed for a small pilot program to be run for a group of 15 refugee women from various countries in Africa. The program trained women to work within a human rights framework, incorporating a gender perspective to resettlement, representation and advocacy skills. Upon completion, both the ANCORW board and DIAC worked with graduates to establish links and networks into the agencies and services, acting as a way to further progress issues identified by their communities. Thus providing a way to influence policy and service provision, whilst also enabling them to bring about change in their situation. A change that would later developed into ANCORW African Women’s Advocacy Unit (AWAU).

Since it’s conception and the initial training of 15 refugee women from Sierra Leone, Burundi, Rwanda, Sudan, Uganda and Liberia, AWAU has successfully identified key issues for their communities and began negotiation with various government departments and national agencies to bring about more insight into the issues for refugee women in resettlement and to offer more ‘durable solutions’ to these issues. In 2006 the graduates were trained in training methodologies to pass on their skills to a new group of refugee women from African countries. A new group of 35 refugee women from African countries have now actively joined AWAU and are working towards building the refugee women’s voice in resettlement.

To view the article, please click HERE

WILPF AUSTRALIA EXPRESSES PROFOUND DISAPOINTMENT OVER JAPANESE MP'S DENIAL OF THE USE OF COMFORT WOMEN
Following the placement of an advertisement in The Washington Post of 14 June 2007 by a group of Japanese MPs denying that the Japanese Imperial Army forced hundreds of thousands of young women and girls into sexual slavery during World War II, please click below for Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) Australia's response.

To view the response, please click HERE

Call for Nominations: Celebrating Mothers in Action
Celebrating Mothers: Global Portraits to Inform and Inspire is a forthcoming illustrated book featuring mothers who are making the world a better place for women and children through social activism. It will spotlight 20 mothers internationally who are rising up to address important issues in their community and mobilizing other mothers to get involved in advocacy for women and children. The book is a project of Mothers Acting Up and a collaborative effort between international organizations including the National Council for Research on Women, the Global Education Fund and many others, and will benefit nonprofit coalitions working to support women and children worldwide.

For more information, please click HERE

WILPF Raging Grannies protest for peace
Peace advocates gathered on 41st Avenue in Capitola on Tuesday, June 26th to protest the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; the recent troop surge, which has resulted in greater casualities, not fewer; and the recruitment of at-risk youth by military recruiters, many of whom use lies and manipulation in order to get people to sign up. Ten people engaged in nonviolent civil disobedience and were arrested by Capitola Police when they stayed in front of the Army recruiting office doors when asked to disperse.

For full story, please click HERE

One Million Signatures Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws
Iranian women’s rights activists are initiating a wide campaign demanding an end to legal discrimination against women in Iranian law. The Campaign, “One Million Signatures Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws,” which aims to collect one million signatures to demand changes to discriminatory laws against women, is a follow-up effort to the peaceful protest of the same aim, which took place on June 12, 2006 in Haft-e Tir Square in Tehran.

For more information, please click HERE

Call for contributions to the Survivors Project
International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA)
Last year IANSA published 'Survivors - Women Affected by Gun Violence Speak Out', a compilation of stories and experiences that effectively highlighted the links between violence against women and small arms. The Survivors Project is now underway and we want to hear from you! We want to include more of your stories and experiences and make them available in a new format for use in your activism and work.

If you have been personally affected by gun violence or know a woman or girl who is willing to share their story with others, please let us know.

We will accept testimonies in any language and contributors can remain anonymous if they do not wish to be named. We also welcome your photographs and drawings. The testimony form outlines the kind of information we hope to receive.

Please send contributions by Friday 8 June 2007 to women@iansa.org

For more information, please click HERE

Give Women a Voice: Help Make the UN Human Rights Council Work for Women’s Rights
From April 10 to April 26, 2007, diplomats with the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) will meet in Geneva to define how the Council will carry out its work in the coming years. Human and women’s rights organizations across the globe are coming together to insist that the voices of women and girls are heard. Join the growing list of supporters and add your organization’s signature to our petition insisting that the UNHRC addresses women’s and girls’ rights appropriately and prominently.

To sign the petition and get more information, please click HERE

Peace and Security Fellowships for African Women
Kings College, University of London
School of Social Science and Public Policy
The African Women’s Fellowship on Peace and Security is designed to expose young professional and mid career African women to the complexities of conflict, security and development and to equip them for careers in this field. This Fellowship is aimed at challenging the existing tendency that seems to reinforce the male dominant discourse on conflict and security related matters. It will also develop the network of African women scholars working in the field whilst linking them with the peace and security mechanisms of relevant regional institutions.

For more information, please click HERE

Mobilising the Mine Action Sector, Supporting Gender Mainstreaming:
Swiss Campaign to Ban Landmines’ Gender and Mine Action Programme
In December 2006, the Swiss Campaign to Ban Landmines began a two-year programme designed to support gender mainstreaming in mine action, complementing United Nations action on the issue.
On the International Women’s Day, 8 March 2007, the Swiss Campaign launched a global survey on gender and mine action with the aim of gathering comprehensive, context specific information on the significance of gender in the impact of mines and in the effectiveness of mine action. The information gathered through this survey will be synthesised into a toolkit for mainstreaming gender in mine action. In May 2007, the programme will launch an online ‘Gender and Mine Action Portal’ (www.scbl-gender.ch), where thematic and country profiles relating to the significance of gender in mine action will be available.

For more information, please click HERE

Call for Papers: Women's Narratives, War, and Peace-building
Deadline: May 21, 2007
Women for Women International, a non-profit humanitarian organization, seeks submissions for the Summer 2007 issue of its bi-annual academic journal, Critical Half. The journal is intended to raise awareness and spark debate among a variety of audiences by presenting various perspectives on economic, social, and political issues as they relate to women in international development and conflict and post-conflict societies.

This issue of the journal will focus on the function of women’s individual and collective narratives during and after war and civil conflict. We hope to examine how stories can unite and heal women and their societies. The Women for Women website provides the specifics of the submission guidelines.

For more information, please click HERE

iKNOW Politics
The International Knowledge Network of Women in Politics (iKNOW Politics) is an online workspace designed to serve the needs of elected officials, candidates, political party leaders and members, researchers, students and other practitioners interested in advancing women in politics.
The goal of iKNOW Politics is to increase the participation and effectiveness of women in political life by utilizing a technology-enabled forum. The iKNOW Politics Web site plays a central role in achieving this goal by offering users the opportunity to:
* Access resources, including the online library and the information and expertise of other users, experts and practitioners;
* Create knowledge through mediated discussion forums, information exchange and consolidated expert responses to member queries; and
* Share experiences by using tools specifically designed to facilitate the exchange of lessons learned and best practices among members of a global community committed to the advancement of women in politics.

For more information, please click HERE

Launch of a Global Survey on Gender and Mine Action
On this, International Women’s Day 2007, the Swiss Campaign to Ban Landmines announces the launch of a global survey to gather comprehensive information on the significance of gender in the impact of mines and in the effectiveness of mine action. This is the first time that comprehensive global information on the significance of gender in mine action has been collected. The project also opens up a new dimension in the study of gender and conflict.

For more information, please click HERE

Mama Cash: Campaign 88 Days
Campaign 88 Days is a worldwide effort to raise awareness, take action and mobilize resources for women’s rights. In the 88 days between International Human Rights Day (December 10th 2006), and International Women’s Day (March 8th 2007), women from around the world are banding together to make a difference for women’s rights.
Mama Cash is a women's fund which finances projects conceived by women; strong women who set an example for others, who know first-hand experience that it is possible to turn the tide if women know their rights and claim them.

For more information on these projects, please click HERE

Call for Input: Global Report on Sexual Violence in Conflict
The Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) is preparing a Global Report on Sexual Violence in Conflict. The objectives of this Global Report are to provide a global overview of the prevalence and nature of sexual violence in conflict by collating existing data, and identify good practice in security sector responses to sexual violence in conflict. DCAF is now seeking specific examples of good practice in security sector responses to sexual violence, in particular in the following sectors:

- police reform
- defence/military reform
- justice sector reform
- peace support operations
- DDR
- community-based security initiatives
- border management
- penal reform

DCAF would be very grateful for any reports, contacts or suggestions you might have from your own region or beyond, in any language.
For a short summary of the concept of the Global Report on Sexual Violence in Conflict, please click here

For more information contact:
Megan Bastick
Special Programmes Coordinator
Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces
Email: m.bastick@dcaf.ch
Phone: + 41 (22) 741 77 34
Fax: + 41 (22) 741 77 05

Make Police and Military Best Allies in Combating Violence against Women
Message by UN-INSTRAW Director Carmen Moreno on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, 25 November 2006

"..Unless police and military are willing and fully equipped to adequately deal with female-specific needs, there will be no relief for the millions of women who suffer. Making security institutions our best allies in combating violence against women must be one of the priority concerns of UN agencies, governments and civil society.

It should be unacceptable that those who are educated and trained to protect civilians,especially vulnerable groups, may pose a threat to women’s rights and security. The zero tolerance policy towards perpetrators of sexual exploitation and abuse as well asother forms of gender-based violence is resolutely supported by UN-INSTRAW.

Increasing female recruitment and addressing the under-representation of women in decision-making positions within the security sector could also help achieve more gender sensitivity in the police armed forces and court rooms.."

For full statement, please click HERE