Participation

There has not been enough research conducted on the cross-border dimensions of armed conflict that stem from the uncontrolled movement of armed forces and groups across poorly patrolled frontiers, especially in places like the Sudan and the DRC region.

The focus of today's debate is "Women's equal participation and full involvement in all effortsfor the maintenance and promotion of peace and security". In this my delegation would like to emphasize several points. To begin, it should be emphasized that in many countries suffering from armed conflict, women peace builders are often faced with male dominated institutions.

The expansion of women's roles as peace-builders is achievable, notwithstanding negative views that may arise on social change folowing armed conflict and a tendency by male dominated societies in post-conflict regiors to undermine the new roles women can have in helping to resolve conflict and associated violence.

The exclusion of women from the processes of conflict resolution and peacebuilding has an excessively high cost that we cannot afford. That exclusion not only weakens the effectiveness of conflict-prevention mechanisms, but also drastically reduces the opportunities for peacebuilding.

As Simone de Beauvoir said, one is not born a woman, but becomes one. But in order to change this, we must give explicit support to the participation of women, in particular in decision-making, so as to achieve gender equality and women's empowerment.

However, significant as that progress is, it cannot mask the reality — the reality that the results of women's participation in peacekeeping and peacebuilding is far from what was expected and that many challenges, such as sexual violence of all types and impunity, remain to be met before resolution 1325 (2000) is truly and fully implemented.

We have heard many times in this Chamber that more women should be included in peace processes and post-conflict deliberations. If a sustainable peace is to be achieved in any post-conflict situation, a peace agreement must take into account the concerns of those most harmed by conflicts, but more often than not women are excluded from peace negotiations and peacebuilding efforts.

The Secretary-General rightly notes that Member States should ensure that women participate in decision-making. He adds that the international community should pursue a strategy to ensure women's participation in all peace processes, including by providing appropriate training and capacity-building programmes towards that end.

Women's involvement is necessary to ensure the legitimacy of the decision-making process, to encourage a broad base of participation, to make sustainable peace and development possible and to protect women and girls. The implementation of resolution 1325 (2000), as well as of subsequent resolutions on women and peace and security, is a necessary tool for promoting the involvement of women.

We are concerned that despite several measures being undertaken in response to resolution 1325 (2000), progress in implementing it is still limited, and women and girls continue to suffer the brunt of war, particularly the devastating effects of sexual and gender-based violence.