Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
United Nations, Oct 26.- Women lead efforts for peace, justice and rights around the world, said the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), António Guterres, when evaluating female participation in conflicts.
The head of the UN recognized the risks that this sector faces under authoritarianism and insecurity regarding the open debate convened by the Security Council.
This grim backdrop gives renewed urgency to efforts to ensure women's full and meaningful participation in peace and security.
Guterres warned of the increase in military spending on the planet while too many women's organizations struggle to finance their essential work.
At the same time, a high number of perpetrators of sexual violence go free and peace processes exclude women, he added.
Of the 18 peace agreements reached last year, only one was signed or witnessed by a representative of a women's group or organization, lamented the top UN official.
Despite the organization's efforts, he noted, women represented only 16 percent of negotiators or delegates in peace processes led or co-led by the United Nations.
We live in a male-dominated world with a male-dominated culture; centuries of patriarchy are a huge obstacle to gender equality and, in turn, to a culture of peace, he insisted.
Guterres recognized, however, good practices and success stories in the women, peace and security agenda on the planet.
Among others, he mentioned gender parity in the peace negotiations in Colombia or the judicial processes against perpetrators of sexual violence in Iraq, Syria and the Central African Republic.
The United Nations is committed to working with countries to drive progress on women, peace and security, he emphasized.
For her part, Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, said that last year, 600 million women and girls lived in countries affected by conflict, an increase of 50 percent since 2017.
In the Middle East, the scenario has become more complex for women and children on both sides of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
More than six thousand people have been murdered in Gaza, 67 percent of them were women and children, while the number of displaced people is estimated at more than 690 thousand, he said. (PL) (Photo: Archive)
