European Parliament Resolution – Women as Peacemakers, Women as War Victims +

The
European Parliament adopted a resolution based on the own-initiative
report drafted by Véronique DE KEYSER (PES, BE) by 315
votes for, 23 against and 67 abstentions. Members highlighed the
positive role that women play in conflict resolution and
post-conflict reconstruction. They also draw attention to the
vulnerability and special needs of women and girls in conflict
situations and women as perpetrator of violence.  In
general terms, the report stressed the need to mainstream a gender
perspective into peace research, conflict prevention and resolution,
peacekeeping operations, post-conflict rehabilitation and
reconstruction and to ensure a gender component in field programmes.

Women
as war victims:Parliament
emphasisedthe importance of access to reproductive health services
in conflict situations and refugee camps, both during and after
conflicts. Such services include the need for women to have the
possibility of giving birth in hospital without the prior
authorisation of a male relative, or terminating unwanted
pregnancies, and to have access to psychological help. All States
have a responsibility to put an end to impunity and to prosecute
those responsible for sexual violence against women and girls, such
as rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, enforced pregnancy,
enforced sterilisation and any other form of sexual violence of
comparable seriousness. States must recognize and condemn these
crimes as a crime against humanity and a war crime and in this
regard. These crimes should be excluded from amnesty provisions. In
addition, stopping the use of child soldiers in conflicts, including
small girls, who are subjected to full-blown sexual slavery was a
priority. Parliament urged that long-term psychological, social,
educational and economic programmes be set up for these children. It
condemned violence against women in all circumstances but called for
zero tolerance of the sexual exploitation of children, girls and
women in armed conflicts and refugee camps, and demanded severe
administrative and criminal penalties for humanitarian staff,
representatives of international institutions, peacekeeping forces
and diplomats guilty of such exploitation.

Women
as peacemakers:Parliament
highlighted the positive role that
women play in conflict resolution and in post-conflict
reconstruction and in particular in disarmament, demobilisation and
reintegration (DDR) programmes. It supported all those
recommendations which, since UNSCR 1325 (2000), have sought to
improve the lot of women in conflicts, and called on the Council and
Commission to incorporate and implement these recommendations,
particularly those made in its resolution of 30 November 2000 into
all their policies. However, despite all the resolutions, appeals
and recommendations adopted and made by various international and
European institutions, women are still not fully involved in
conflict-prevention and conflict-resolution, peace-keeping
operations and peace-building. It is not fresh recommendations that
are called for, but the drawing-up of a practical action programme
with the identification of the means necessary for its carrying-out,
and assessment of the obstacles to and monitoring of the results of
implementation. Parliament called for an annual report to be
submitted to the European Parliament on the implementation of the
programme. It went on to point out the persistence of discrimination
against women with regard to access to capital and resources such as
food and education, to information technologies and to health care
and other social facilities. Women’s involvement in economic
activities is of crucial importance in order to support their
socio-economic position in post-conflict societies.

Women
and war:Parliament
drewattention to the problem of female suicide bombers and
stressed that rape used as a weapon of war affects all women,
irrespective of ethnic, religious and ideological differences. Women
who have been raped are socially stigmatised, excluded and even
killed.

Parliament went on to make a series of recommendations.
These include the following:

-greater participation by women in diplomacy and Member
States’ diplomatic services, and training women within those
services in negotiation and mediation techniques, thus creating
registers of women who are qualified for peace- and security-related
posts;

-the
concepts of transitional justice to be applied in peace processes
and the transition to democracy and the rule of law, while
respecting victims’ rights, the dignity of female witnesses along
with the participation of women in committees of inquiry set up for
the purposes of reconciliation, and the incorporation of gender
mainstreaming in the measures adopted by these
committees;

-recommendations should be limited to what is essential,
namely urging the institutions to seek synergies on the specific
action to be taken with other international institutions pursuing
the same objectives, and to make the best possible use of the new
financial instruments of the 2007-2013 financial framework as
incentives and means of leverage;

–
that Parliament investigate the problem of suicide attacks by women,
and launch a study of the issue culminating in a conference bringing
together not only specialists but also other people with a knowledge
of gender issues from the countries concerned and Islamic religious
leaders;

-it
is essential that the Commission retain the European Initiative for
Democracy and Human Rights as a specific instrument within the
2007-2013 financial framework. The instrument has in the past
ensured the success of calls for tender and budgetary headings
specific to women’s rights, without requiring the agreement of the
governments in place;

Finally, Parliament supported the due implementation of
human rights clauses in agreements with third countries and of the
principles of international humanitarian law and related
international agreements, with specific reference to women’s rights
and
needs.