The United Nations Security Council on 30 September unanimously adopted Resolution 1888 mandating the Secretary General to appoint a Special Representative on women, peace and security.
With rape being a widespread weapon of war, the European Women’s Lobby (EWL), the largest umbrella organisation of women’s associations in the European Union, has warmly welcomed this move to give high-level political attention to this issue, and has written a letter to Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary General, to insist that this is one top post that should go to a woman. ‘This Resolution is about the protection and at the same time about the representation of women’, explains Myria Vassiliadou, EWL Secretary General. ‘At the moment, women are very much under-represented in formal peace-processes, and are generally seen only as the victims of war rather than as actors helping to build peace. It is for this reason that a woman should be appointed to lead efforts for the protection of women from sexual violence, but also for their attainment of equality within their societies. It is also for this reason that we would favour the mandate of the UNSR being extended beyond sexual violence to cover women, peace and security more broadly.’ DOWNLOAD THE FULL DOCUMENT: EWL letter to Ban KI MOON on UNSR for women in armed conflict PRESS RELEASE 30 10 09
