India has consistently held that greater participation by women in areas of c...

India has consistently held that greater participation by women in areas of conflict prevention, peace negotiations, peacekeeping and post-conflict reconstruction is the sine qua non condition for lasting peace and security. As far as the United Nations is concerned, its achievements have been at best modest, in particular in terms of the deployment of women in peacekeeping forces. Women currently comprise only 8 per cent of United Nations police officers, and about 2 per cent of the military personnel, deployed in United Nations peacekeeping operations. Given the critical role of the United Nations in peacekeeping operations and peacebuilding in post-conflict countries, we firmly believe that the United Nations must lead by example.