COMMITTEE ON THE
STATUS OF WOMEN
On the occasion of International Peace Day and in
conjunction with the
Second Session of the Human Rights
Council
Press Release
The Working Group on Peace and the Working Group on Women’s Employment and Economic Development of the Geneva NGO Committee on the Status of Women of the Conference of NGOs (CONGO), organised a panel on Peace, Gender Equality and Development, to mark the International Day of Peace and mobilise action in relation to the work of the Human Rights Council. Some of the key issues highlighted by the Panel which need immediate attention were the following:
The massive violation of women’s
human rights in war-torn areas such as
The question was raised of how the UN Member States are misusing their security budgets allocated for human security and development to maintain anxiety and building a culture of fear and violence for vested interest of a few.
The integration of women in the UN Reform notably the Peace Building Commission and the Human Rights Council to mainstream gender equality perspectives and women’s right to development was emphasised. In this regard, the issue of a UN women’s specialised agency was raised.
Participants were struck by the exemplary efforts of a young Kosovar woman, who experienced the atrocities of war in her country, decided against hatred and created at the age of twelve, her own peace movement, “Kids for Peace”.