NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security Efforts to Facilitate Women's Participation in the Security Council Mission to Signatory Countries of the Lusaka Accords

May 2002

The NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security formed in 1999 to push for the adoption of a Security Council resolution on women, peace and security, and advocate for its implementation. The group currently includes the Hague Appeal for Peace, International Alert, the International Women's Tribune Center (IWTC), the Women's Caucus for Gender Justice, the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children, and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF).

As Resolution 1325 calls for Security Council missions to take into account gender considerations and the rights of women, including through consultation with local and international women's groups, the NGO Working Group saw the Security Council mission to signatory countries of the Lusaka Accords as an opportunity to assure the practical implementation of Resolution 1325. The NGO Working Group took up this opportunity by providing members of the Security Council with pertinent briefings and information on the situation of women and their role in peace and security relevant to the mission, in the context of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration. In addition, the NGO Working Group undertook a series of activities to facilitate the participation of women's organizations and consultation with pertinent women's groups.

During the preparatory phase of the mission, the NGO Working Group Coordinator, remained in regular contact with First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of France to the United Nations who was key in coordinating this mission. They discussed on several occasions the possibility of meetings with women's organizations. The First Secretary sent a draft of the terms of reference for the visit, which was distributed to Working Group members.

The Ambassador of the United Kingdom was publicly supportive of the mission meeting with women's groups. This encouraged the Working Group to persist in their efforts to facilitate meetings with women's organizations in the region.

Several members of the Working Group contacted the senior gender advisor to the representative of the Secretary-General in MONUC. The NGO Working Group Coordinator forwarded a list of women's organizations working for peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo compiled by the Working Group to the gender advisor as well as other pertinent information.

NGO Working Group members contacted relevant partner organizations in countries included in the mission, including Promotion et Appui des Initiatives Feminines (DRC), Rwandan Women Net, Isis-WICCE (based in Uganda with inter-regional programs), Women as Partners for Peace in Africa-DRC section and Rwanda section. These partners were informed of the SC visit and it was suggested that they begin mobilizing women involved in peace-building activities for a possible meeting with the SC delegation. Many of them contacted the Permanent Mission of France to the United Nations or the UNDP office in their country directly to request appointments during the visit to their countries.

The Working Group prepared a formal letter requesting consultations with women's groups during the mission, as established in Resolution 1325. The letter was hand delivered to the UN Mission of each Security Council Ambassador with a packet of background materials. The packets included: 1) reports on Rwanda and Burundi from the Women's Commission on Refugee Women and Children; 2) reports on gender and peace support operations and women's perspectives on conflict resolution in Africa from International Alert; 3) Isis-WICCE reports on the effects of conflict on women in Uganda and the Great Lakes sub-region; and 4) a briefing paper on a training of WILPF and Urgent Action on Resolution 1325 with African women.

As the SC delegation mission to Africa approached and women's organizations did not receive responses to their requests, the NGO Working Group Coordinator sent a follow-up letter to Security Council Ambassadors along with the contact list of pertinent women's groups on the ground in each of the countries to be visited.

A UNIFEM representative also requested the contact list of women's organizations after discussing the Security Council mission with the Women's Commission.
International Alert corresponded with the Permanent Mission of the UK to the United Nations and the UK Foreign Office to reiterate the importance of insuring women's participation in the mission.

The Working Group received the itinerary of the mission one day prior to the departure and immediately forwarded it to women's organizations on the ground. The Coordinator wrote to media contacts in Kinshasa, DRC to request information and coverage of women's involvement in this visit. The journalists, in turn, contacted the senior gender advisor in MONUC to offer media coverage and assistance.

The International Women's Tribune Centre contacted Isis WICCE with the dates of the visit of the delegation to Kampala. Isis WICCE immediately pulled together a coalition of women actively involved with peace building activities in the sub-region. They contacted the country UNDP office to try and schedule a meeting between the women and the SC delegation. When their request was not granted, they wrote an excellent Memorandum for the delegation and gave that to the UNDP officials for forwarding to them. Their efforts to actually meet with the team were not successful, but it is hoped that the Memorandum was circulated to the delegates.

The senior gender advisor in MONUC sent an encouraging message to members of the Working Group saying that women were able to see the delegation as part of the broader civil society meetings, though she had needed to do some negotiating for their inclusion. These women had participated in the Inter Congolese Dialogue and wanted to follow up on the transition process. The French Ambassador communicated that the mission would like to meet and interact with people from civil society. In addition, he said that maximum use should be made of the media, especially in the interactions they have with the local population.

International Alert sent letters to the Ambassador of the United Kingdom when the mission was in Angola, again reiterating the request for the inclusion of women’s perspectives for peacebuilding in their meetings. He replied that women's groups were indeed part of the meetings in Kinshasa and Kisangani. In addition, International Alert continued discussion with partners on the ground to request meetings with the delegation in other countries and passed information to a correspondent from the BBC who was covering the Security Council fact finding mission.

The IWTC also contacted the Director of the United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW), the Assistant Secretary-General on Gender Issues and the Director of UNIFEM to request their support and sent copies of the correspondence with Isis WICCE concerning the difficulties the women were having in arranging a meeting with the delegation. The Director of DAW and the Assistant Secretary-General on Gender Issues expressed support and suggested that they meet with the Working Group earlier next time to strategize around possibilities. The Director of DAW congratulated Isis WICCE and the coalition in Kampala for putting together their Memorandum and felt that the delegation would give it their attention.

The Director of DAW and the Assistant SG on Gender Issues offered to strategize with the Working Group on future efforts for ensuring interface with local women’s organisations on Security Council missions. The Director of DAW forwarded requests on to the head of UNDP Gender in Development Programme (GIDP).
Working Group members agreed that DAW and the Assistant SG on Gender Issues should be included well in advance in the planning of future efforts and strategies. In addition, obtaining the schedule so close to the actual departure of the mission made planning difficult. It was agreed that a concerted effort must be made in the future to obtain and distribute itineraries earlier.

Women peace activists and peace-builders and their organizations offer substantial knowledge and expertise that is integral to the peace processes in the DRC and other signatory countries to the Lusaka Accords.

In Resolution 1325, the Security Council calls for insuring the inclusion of women's groups, yet there is no systematic mechanism to enable this essential participation in Security Council missions. Women advocates and activists were able to meet with the Security Council delegation in Kinshasa and Kisangani due entirely to the presence and efforts of the senior gender advisor in MONUC. Her success reiterates the importance of appointing high level gender advisors in all Security Council and peacekeeping missions, as well as other agencies of the United Nations.

Strategically, appointing a senior gender advisor at DPKO would also facilitate the inclusion of women's expertise and experience in security policy. The gender advisor would be able to assist in the integration of a broad and engendered perspective in the peace building efforts of Security Council missions, from the formulation of mandates and terms of reference to appointing gender focal points on the ground that would interface with women's groups. Most importantly, the inclusion of the expertise and experience of local women peace activists and peace-builders would add immeasurably to the depth and outreach of the mission, providing an essential perspective that could possibly introduce new thinking to the development of an overall peace strategy.

For more information contact:
Sara Poehlman-Doumbouya
Acting Coordinator, NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security
777 United Nations Plaza
New York, NY 10017
212 682 1265
sara@peacewomen.org