Open debate on Women, Peace and Security - Statement on behalf of 64 Member States of the Group of Friends of Women, Peace and Security

October 20, 2022 - New York

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Mr. President,

I am pleased to speak on behalf of 64 Member States of the Group of Friends of Women, Peace, and Security, an informal network representing all five regional groups of the UN, and the European Union ^{Footnote 1}. The Group welcomes the most recent report of the Secretary-General as well as the recommendations it contains.

In Afghanistan, Haiti, Myanmar, Sudan, Ukraine, Yemen, and many other fragile and conflict-affected countries, women and girls are courageously working to build peace and shape their countries’ futures. Amidst a sharp rebound of militarization and misogyny, they demonstrate, at great risk to their own safety, their determination, resilience and capacity. Yet, women and girls, in many conflict-affected contexts in particular, continue to be excluded from decision-making and targeted for discrimination and violence, including sexual and gender-based violence.

Women leaders have made clear what we, the international community, must do to support their efforts. We, as Member States, reiterate our commitment to:

• Protect, respect and promote the autonomy, empowerment and human rights of all women and girls;
• Advocate for and support women’s full, equal, effective and meaningful participation and leadership, at all stages and at all levels, in all political and peace processes, and reiterate our call on the UN to lead by example by making women’s participation in UN-led peace processes a requirement. This means taking concrete measures to address longstanding barriers to women’s contributions to peace and security.
• Create a safe and enabling environment for all women peacebuilders, women human rights defenders, women civil society leaders, women journalists and media workers, and advocates for gender equality to carry out their invaluable work, including by championing their role, amplifying their voices, swiftly and unequivocally condemning attacks, intimidation and reprisals against them, and ensuring adequate, predictable and sustained and flexible funding so they may carry out their work safely and independently;
• Call on the UN to champion the important work of women peacebuilders and women human rights defenders and advocates for gender equality and provide all necessary protection and support to those at risk and establish clear protocols for how all UN entities should respond;
• Call on the Security Council to ensure that all peacekeeping operations and special political missions provide, monitor and report on all necessary support to women peacebuilders and women human rights defenders at risk, and fully support and facilitate independent civil society contribution to the work of the Council;
• Prevent and respond to all forms of sexual and gender-based violence and discrimination, including by ensuring survivors’ access to essential services, including sexual and reproductive healthcare services, and to gender-responsive justice, by holding perpetrators of such acts to account, and continue to encourage the Security Council to pursue the fight against impunity with all the means at its disposal, and to incorporate and apply conflict-related sexual violence as a designation criterion in UN sanction regimes;
• Provide greater support and support the empowerment for women and girls subjected to forced displacement due to instability and conflict and who are put at increased risk for violence and discrimination.

Mr. President,

We are witnessing a reversal in generational gains in women and girls’ rights in many parts of the world. It is critical that the international community act now to close the gaps between global commitments set out in UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and the subsequent nine Security Council resolutions on Women, Peace and Security, and their realization for all women and girls around the world. We call for action to implement the Women, Peace and Security agenda in all its dimensions, to protect the full scope of women’s and girls’ human rights, and to achieve women’s full, equal, effective and meaningful participation in all peace, political and security decision-making processes. We owe the women and girls, who take great risks to build peace and security every day, to redouble our efforts with urgency and make transformational change.

Thank you.