General Women, Peace and Security

The secession of Southern Sudan following the referendum on self-determination is imminent. Despite the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) prescribing an interim period with a programme of legal reform to address long-standing grievances, no real, conscientious efforts were made to make unity realistic for southerners.

A new photography exhibition, promoting women's rights in Afghanistan, opens next week at the House of Commons.

Hidden Faces: Women and Girls in Afghanistan has been produced and curated by British and Irish Agencies in Afghanistan Group (BAAG) to highlight the continuing struggles of war-ravaged Afghan women - in education and health, economic and political empowerment.

The Abrahim Index:

A photo exhibition featuring Iranian women in demonstrations before the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979 is currently underway at the Behzad Gallery in Tehran.

Sixty photos by veteran Iranian photographer and filmmaker Akbar Nazemi have been showcased at the exhibit entitled “Women in Revolution”.

Dear Secretary of State Hillary Clinton,

Côte d'Ivoire has been in a political impasse since the declaration of contested results of a second round of presidential elections held in November 2010. Since both candidates claimed victory and have been sworn in, the country has two presidents and two governments.

Women are constantly forced to negotiate for their rights between family, community and the state. But situations of conflict, strife and unrest pose myriad different challenges to them and render their negotiations with these institutions extremely complex. To understand women's gendered roles, issues and problems in conflict zones, a two-day conference will be organized on 5-6th Feb. 2011 in Mumbai.

Former U.S. Ambassador Nancy Soderberg has dealt with the global issues of war, terrorism, poverty, debt, trade, climate change and health, or in other words, any issue that affects national security.

As the first speaker in the Women's Center of Jacksonville “Women, Words and Wisdom” lecture series Tuesday, she will discuss “Meeting Today's National Security Challenges.”

Few new organizations are formed with as much anticipation as the new UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women -- or "UN Women," for short. Given its bulky official name, some of us feared a "bulky" or bureaucrat start. But, many of those fears were allayed when Michelle Bachelet, former President of Chile, was appointed last September as Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director.