Participation

Afridi's death, as one of the very few Pashtun women leaders in any field, leaves a large gap and begs the question of why there aren't more like her. It is certainly not because Pashtun women are incapable of serving as leaders. They have historically repudiated this assumption when given the opportunity - or when they have created opportunities for themselves.

“There will be no significant rehabilitation or reconstruction of war-torn societies without women,” the Mindanao Commission on Women (MCW) and the Mothers for Peace Movement said in a statement hailing the recent signing of the “Framework Agreement.” The agreement between the government and the MILF paves the way for the creation of the “Bangsamoro” that will take the place of the Autonomous Region in Musli

Late last year, the United Nations declared Oct. 11 the International Day of the Girl. Celebrated for the first time this month, the occasion aims to highlight the challenges girls face around the world to gain access to education and other basic rights, and empower them to advocate on their own behalf.

From high-level public figures to grassroots activists, the winners include a survivor of a rocket-propelled grenade attack who now helps women with disabilities in Afghanistan, reformers who push for women's place at peace talks, advocates for human rights, and supporters of women's entrepreneurship to fight poverty. They were selected from 100 nominations through an online voting campaign that included more than 55,000 voters worldwide.

Be prepared. International organizations, policymakers, politicians, armed groups, and researchers will be analyzing the Mindanao peace process in detail. They'll be anxious to extract lessons that could be relevant to making peace in Burma (Myanmar), Kashmir, Colombia, the Caucasus and elsewhere. Maybe also Afghanistan.

First of all, Pakistan being a multinational federal state, the parliament ought to be so constituted as to ensure fair and adequate representation to the people of all the federating units, including especially the marginalized and disadvantaged sections and groups - women, workers, peasants and those labeled as "minorities or non-Muslims".

Preparations for the 2014 presidential elections are under way in Afghanistan, and this campaign appears likely to be markedly different from preceding contests. Fawzia Koofi, 35, announced her candidacy in May and is campaigning across the country in hopes of becoming its first female president.

For the past few years, Rwanda has been making global headlines for its outstanding role in providing the much-needed females in various peacekeeping missions in the world.

"I will miss my family very much...and then there is fear associated with a new environment," she told The New Times in an interview.

Addressing a one-day Stakeholders' Consultative Conference yesterday in Monrovia, Vice President Joseph N. Boakai said that Liberia has done well in the area of women development, but added that there is still room for improvement.

According to him, Liberian women have continued to play crucial roles in the country's search for peace, in the area of agriculture, while playing critical roles in bringing up the children in the home.

Journalists, bloggers and civil activists from Abkhazia and South Ossetia had a rare opportunity to meet their Georgian counterparts at an IWPR event designed to build regional advocacy and reporting networks.

Held in the Armenian capital Yerevan on June 22-25, the workshop was part of an ongoing project called Women Connecting For Peace – The Voice of Change, which IWPR is running in partnership with UN Women.