NEPAL: Global Open Day: Working for Sustainable Peace in Nepal by Addressing Social Injustice

The Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Nepal, Karin Landgren, and the acting UN Resident Coordinator, Gillian Mellsop, received women peace activists at the Centre for Constitutional Dialogue in Kathmandu on 11 June, for a discussion on women's participation in the peace process in Nepal. The meeting took place in the context of the Global Open Day on Women and Peace and the 10th anniversary of UN Security Council resolution 1325.

Speaking at the opening of the event, acting Resident Coordinator Mellsop reiterated the commitment of the UN to supporting women's participation in sustainable conflict resolution, peacemaking and peacebuilding.

Representatives from 25 women's groups and organizations took part in the meeting, and stressed that while the decade of conflict in Nepal had had a disproportionately negative effect on women, they had emerged as important resources for building peace. The women presented an overview of key concerns regarding women and peacebuilding in Nepal, grouped into five themes — relief and recovery; protection and justice; governance; participation; and funding.

The women touched upon issues such as women's economic hardships due to their dependence on male relatives, the lack of proper documentation required for the compensation of war victims, the lack of gender-sensitivity in the judicial system, and the importance of women's participation in special committees on integration and rehabilitation.

In her concluding speech, the Representative of the Secretary-General pointed to the achievement that women now comprised a third of the members of Nepal's Constituent Assembly. She noted, however, that women were not proportionally represented in other elected or appointed government bodies, or in powerful decision-making positions. Ms. Landgren emphasized that Nepal had an important opportunity to lay the foundations for sustainable peace by addressing social injustice. She called on the women leaders to seize this opportunity and continue their work on advancing gender equality. “The UN system stands ready to support these important initiatives.”

For More Information

For more information, please contact Sangeeta Thapa, Programme Coordinator, UNIFEM Project Office in Nepal, sangeeta.thapa[at]unifem.org.