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8 Days of Activism for Women, Peace and Security

28 February 2013

Blogging can be a powerful tool to raise awareness on global issues. The Women, Peace and Security Academic Collective knows it well and is using a blog campaign to draw attention on the UN’s Women, Peace and Security agenda (WPS).

WILPF is actively engaged in the implementation of the WPS agenda as a cornerstone of gender equality in the pursuit of lasting peace, and supports the 8 Days of Activism campaign launched by the collective.

On the eve of the campaign launch, we decided to publish a written interview with the Women, Peace and Security Academic Collective to know more about this important initiative.

What is the 8 Days of Activism campaign and what is the idea behind it?

“The Women, Peace and Security Academic Collective (WPSAC) is marking ‘8 days of activism’ on women, peace and security on 1-8 March ending with tie-in events on International Women’s Day (IWD).

We will publish a daily blog post on the WPSAC website, which will be re-blogged through various other sites. The blogs will focus on one of the key areas of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda: prevention, protection, participation, prosecution, political economy and peacebuilding/recovery.

We take our inspiration from the 16 Days of Activism Gender Violence. We think that the WPS agenda merits at least 8 days of activism.”

Why is the campaign taking place in March? What does the International Women’s Day mean for the WPSAC?

“The International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate the progress women have made worldwide in the century since this day was first founded. It also celebrates the challenges that remain for women to have the same civil and political, and social and economic rights and opportunities as men.

We believe women’s rights to participation in peace and security institutions with the aim of preventing conflict and protecting women and girls from gender-based violence and other rights violations in conflict-affected and post-conflict settings are among these the most paramount of these remaining challenges.

Our campaign ends on 8th March to focus women and men’s attention on the day when they are probably the most receptive to reflecting on women’s rights and progress.”

Who is participating in the campaign?

“Participants are WPSAC’s 45 members, supported by Oxfam Australia, Griffith University’s Human Protection Hub (Queensland, Australia), the Gender and Global Governance Network (UK), Border Observatory (Monash University, Australia), Y-WILPF Australia and WILPF International.

The blogs are being written primarily by Australian-based academic researchers, but also by academic researchers from around the world.”

How can academics and civil society collaborate to progress, extend and challenge the WPS agenda?

8 Days of Activism campaign“Progressing the collaboration between academics and civil society organisations can increase the broader public’s awareness of WPS issues and the role their countries can play in addressing them. It also assists with building the evidence-base for more effective advocacy and lobbying to hold governments accountable and more effective policy formulation and change.

Together, academics and civil society organisations can also challenge and extend the institutional WPS agenda so that ending conflict and militarism remains a central part of the agenda.”

How can the 8 Days of Activism campaign contribute to the implementation of WPS?

“The campaign will forge collaboration between academics and civil society, in the first instance. With a press release and media attention around the International Women’s Day, it will also hopefully increase the everyday awareness of women and men in Australia of the WPS agenda, the Australian government’s responsibilities at home and abroad and the potential for Australia and other countries to take leadership on promoting this agenda.

We would like to see Australia take the opportunity of their non-permanent membership on the UN Security Council to become a strong advocate for the implementation of Security Council resolution 1325. We would like to ensure that women are present and able to participate in all formal peace negotiation processes at the international level, as well as at national and local levels as mandated by the resolution.”

The WPSAC was formed in Australia in November 2012 to consolidate and extend academic feminist efforts around the WPS agenda for the duration of Australia’s two year term on the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member (2013-14).

It aims to hold the Australian government accountable for its national and international commitments to promote the WPS agenda. Its mission is to progress, extend and challenge the WPS agenda, with the overall objective of using feminist analyses to end violence and militarism at home and abroad. Follow the 8 Days of Activism blog and facebook page.

 

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Berit Aasen

Europe Alternate Regional Representative

Berit Aasen is a sociologist by training and has worked at the OsloMet Metropolitan University on Oslo. She has 40 years of experience in research and consultancy in development studies, including women, peace, and security, and in later years in asylum and refugee studies. Berit Aasen joined WILPF Norway five years ago. She is an alternate member of the National Board of WILPF Norway, and representing WILPF Norway in the UN Association of Norway, the Norwegian 1325 network and the Norwegian Women’s Lobby. Berit Aasen has been active in the WILPF European Liaison group and is committed to strengthening WILPF sections and membership both in Europe and relations across continents.

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Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

IPB Congress Barcelona

WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

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Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.