General Women, Peace and Security

With this debate, United Nations Members, international organizations and other stakeholders will jointly take stock of and set out measures to enhance the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000).

This debate is of great significance in preparing for the review of 10 years of the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000), on women and peace and security, adopted by the Security Council in 2000. That resolution has the profoundly humane objective of protecting women and children, including girls, who are the most vulnerable and most heavily affected in conflicts and wars.

The enormous international efforts, including those of the United Nations, to promote the implementation of resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1820 (2008) and of the relevant presidential statements of the Security Council have produced positive results. Of primary significance is the greater recognition that the maintenance of peace and security requires measures to meet the needs of women.

In order to achieve tangible results, resolution 1325 (2000), resolution 1820 (2008) and resolution 1888 (2009), which was just adopted on 30 September, should be implemented in a coherent and comprehensive manner. Viet Nam supports the Secretary-General's recommendations included in his report to the Council dated 16 September 2009 (S/2009/465) and shares many of the views expressed during this debate.

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela fully supports all efforts made within the General Assembly, its funds and its programmes to ensure the comprehensive consideration of the advancement of women and their genuine empowerment in the context of an egalitarian and just society that respects their rights.

We join others in the call for more systematic United Nations reporting on women's participation and inclusion in peacebuilding and planning, and we request the Secretary-General to continue to appoint gender advisers to United Nations missions and to develop a set of indicators to track implementation of resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1889 (2009).

The United Nations must do all it can to keep the issue of women and peace and security in the spotlight, especially as we look to the tenth anniversary of resolution 1325 (2000) and the creation of a composite gender entity, an entity that the United States strongly supports.

Resolution 1325 (2000) emphasizes the responsibility that all States have to put an end to impunity and prosecute those responsible for crimes against humanity and war crimes, including those relating to sexual violence and other assaults against women and girls.

In his recent report (S/2009/465), the Secretary- General notes that while much has been done in response to resolution 1325 (2000) in the nine years since its adoption, armed conflict continues to have a devastating impact on women and girls, all too often leaving them wounded, traumatized, sexually assaulted, socially and economically marginalized or without political power.

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.