General Women, Peace and Security

These are what true women warriors look like. Mujeres de la Guerra, Historias de El Salvador (documentary, book, photography) highlights 28 women leaders in El Salvador telling their stories of participating in the Salvadoran civil war and their continued work for justice and peace today.

On the occasion of its 54th session, to be held in Geneva from 11 February to 1 March 2013, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women will hold a half-day general discussion on access to justice in the context of the following provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Convention):

Last weekend, Saudi security forces encircled and arrested a small group of women who were protesting the long-term detention of relatives without charges on suspicion of terrorism, and the event has touched off nearly a week of unrest in the Saudi town of Buraida.

“The rebels were just at the corner and watching me,” recalls one young Malian girl. “When I came out, they forced me in their vehicle and chained my two arms. They were four in the vehicle and they took me to a dark area. Three other girls were also there. They raped us during two nights and each time they came in groups of three, four and sometimes five.”

One of the distinguishing features of American foreign policy is its claim of moral authority in the field of human rights. Our politicians regularly cite America as a beacon of freedom and as a champion of the cause of human dignity across the globe. Yet, in at least one important instance, America lags behind.

There were more than thirty participants representing various ministries, departments, agencies and civil society organisations. As they converged on the conference room of Ajuji Hotel in Apo District of Abuja, they exchanged pleasantries and sat chatting before the event started.

In every country, women from all walks of life experience violence, abuse and exploitation. But all women are not equally vulnerable to men's violence as the phrase “violence against women” somehow implies.

Some women and girls are more vulnerable to violence especially those who are poor, indigenous, migrants, ethnic minorities, widows, and living with disabilities for instance.

War is an international business based on profits and the proliferation of weapons. Yet this reality is not addressed by the policy tools we have today.

The news announced earlier this week that rebels from the M23 movement had finally withdrawn from the DRC city of Goma, was met with much relief. But what does this withdrawal really mean for the DRC – in particular for women, who face a shocking rate of sexual violence, as victims of the ongoing conflict?

The African Union declared this decade, 2010-2020 as the African Women's Decade. In Africa, political leaders have signed on to a range of human rights treaties and declarations of commitment, including CEDAW, Resolution 1325 and Resolution 1820. The Maputo Protocol specifies that there should be clear protections for women from sexual violence in situations of armed conflict.