WOMEN FROM WORLDWIDE CONFLICT AREAS TALK PEACE TACTICS WITH US POLICYMAKERS

Countries include Iraq, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Guatemala

Cambridge, MA Inclusive Security: Women Waging Peace is convening women leaders from conflict areas around the world this week to brainstorm negotiating tactics, grassroots action, and political and legal maneuvers to create social change and stop the cycle of war. The fifth annual Colloquium, held from November 3-7, 2003, also includes key policymakers from the United Nations, the US Agency for International Development, the US Departments of State and Defense, and the World Bank.

The 40 “Waging” women participating in the Colloquium have dodged bullets, ethnic cleansing, political isolation, and social discrimination. Each has overcome tremendous odds to pursue peace and social justice in their respective countries. They are civic leaders, human rights lawyers, scholars, grassroots organizers, and investigative journalists, all deeply involved in efforts to bring stability to the most violent areas of the world. These women will share their expertise with 120 policymakers, and together they’ll hammer out strategies for concrete policy change. Both groups will learn from each other as they compare ideas on specific social, political, and economic tactics.

This network of “Waging” women is an invaluable resource for policy shapers seeking local leaders and advisors to help rebuild communities devastated by war. These women are on the front lines of conflict resolution and reconciliation. They often watch as their sons and husbands are taken as combatants or prisoners of war; many are left to care for the surviving children and elders. They organize protests against violence, gather evidence of human rights abuses, persuade child guerrillas to lay down their arms. Despite—or because of—the harsh experiences of so many who survive violent conflict, women generally refuse to give up the pursuit of peace.

The founder of Inclusive Security: Women Waging Peace Swanee Hunt says, “policy makers typically ignore the women on the ground and talk only to the men, forgetting that it’s the women who have been organizing at the grassroots, talking to each other across conflict lines. Although women have experience holding the community together, they tend to be left out of official peace talks. We want to change that by raising women’s voices—and profiles—to decision-makers worldwide.”

Three years ago, the UN Security Council passed a resolution on Women, Peace, and Security, which insists on the full inclusion of women in peace processes. As US Ambassador to the UN John Negroponte said on its anniversary last week, "No approach to peace can succeed if it does not view men and women as equally important components of the solution."

Inclusive Security: Women Waging Peace, a network of women peace builders from conflict areas around the world, advocates for the full participation of women in peace negotiations and all phases of reconstruction. The Waging network includes women from conflict areas ranging from Iraq to Sri Lanka, Colombia to Sudan, the Middle East to South Korea. Waging was launched in 1999 to connect these women with each other and with policy shapers. For more information visit www.WomenWagingPeace.net.

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