The situation in Gaza demands urgent attention and action, as the escalation of Israeli hostilities and the mounting attacks on Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and within Israel continue to grow in gravity and magnitude. It’s time for a WILPF Week of Action: let’s mobilise globally to call for an immediate ceasefire and an embargo on the transfer and provision of military equipment, including arms, to the state of Israel. The international community must take action NOW to end its complicity and meet its obligations to prevent genocide and war crimes.
Because our feminism is intersectional, recognising that people experience different types of oppression that often intersect and reinforce one another, because our feminism values the enjoyment of freedom, human rights, and justice for all without discrimination, we are mobilising as a movement to call for immediate action to end the ongoing war crimes and genocide in Gaza. It’s crucial now to centre Palestine in all our current engagements.
As WILPF, we denounce all attacks against civilians. We also believe that permanent peace is built on the foundations of freedom, justice, nonviolence, human rights, and equality and that colonialism, occupation, apartheid, and militarized security have denied the possibilities for peace. And while we need a durable and fair peace that addresses the root causes of violence and oppression, the absolute necessity now is to prevent further atrocities and loss of life.
Objective: To secure an immediate ceasefire and the enforcing of a two-way arms embargo on the state of Israel, by mobilising feminist activists everywhere to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, and challenging the narrative to educate people around us about the root causes of the violence.
9 to 15 November – WILPF Week of Action: WILPF will continue and amplify its advocacy this week to highlight Palestine as a feminist, anti-militarist issue and to advocate for an immediate ceasefire.
12 November – WILPF’s Day of Action: On this day, we join hands with other feminist groups in a powerful demonstration of solidarity with Palestine. We will use this day to remind the world that Palestine is a feminist issue, to raise awareness, mobilise communities, and actively support the people of Gaza.
Media Outreach (or engagement):
Fact-Checking:
Tools and resources to challenge the narrative:
1. Lobbying Campaign:
2. Sample Letters: Adapt the following WILPF template and Ceasefire Today sample letters and scripts to call for an immediate ceasefire and an arms embargo on Israel. These letters can be directed at:
Your government officials (including parliamentarians, heads of government, etc…)
3. Public Awareness:
Some references on international obligations and references on the arms trade:
4. Alliances:
Community Workshops:
Public Actions and Demonstrations:
Government offices/ministries/parliament: Organise peaceful protests or sit-ins at relevant governmental bodies.
Embassy-Focused Protests: Organise peaceful protests or sit-ins in front of Israeli, American, British, French, Canadian, Swiss, Dutch and other embassies that are complicit in Israel’s war crimes in your context.
Arms Companies-Focused Protests: Organise peaceful protests or sit-ins in front of the companies that supply Israel with arms. Find here a list of these companies (mainly in the US, UK, Germany, Italy, and other European countries).
Find here some resources from ICNC on nonviolent resistance and tactics:
Local Partnerships:
#FreePalestine #CeasefireNOW #EndGenocide #GazaUnderAttack #Gaza #EndApartheid #EndOccupation #StopGenocidelnGaza
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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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 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 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.
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.
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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.
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.
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.
