Peace Will Not be Achieved without the Meaningful Presence of Women

Dr. Alema, Deputy Minister for Human Rights and Civil Society of the State Ministry for Peace, attended the Afghanistan Peace Dialogue online meeting, emphasizing women’s role in the peace process and said that in order to ensure enduring peace, women’s meaningful presence in the peace process must be secured.
Dr. Alema thanked the United Nations Women’s Office for holding the meeting and said that women make up a large portion of Afghanistan’s population and that social justice would not be possible without women’s meaningful participation.
Dr. Alema stressed that Afghan women would never go back to the past, and Afghans will not accept an agreement that does not consider women’s role and does not preserve the people’s fundamental rights and achievements.
Providing information about the State Ministry for Peace, she said that the ministry had developed frameworks to help women participate in the peace process and make their voices heard.
Dr. Alema also said that the State Ministry for Peace has also established mechanisms through which various groups can engage in the peace process, and based on these mechanisms, consultative meetings of different groups have been held with the negotiation team.
She also welcomed the UN Women’ initiative of the Afghanistan Peace Dialogue, and said that the State Ministry for Peace supports the initiative.
Zarqa Yaftali, Member of the High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR), called the start of the local peace dialogue an effective step in sharing suggestions for the peace process’s effectiveness and called on the international community to support the role of women in the peace process.
Mr. Pekka Kosonen, Finnish Ambassador to Afghanistan, emphasized the involvement of women in the peace process and said that the peace and national reconciliation process would not be possible without women's participation.
He stressed that women should be involved in policy-making and decision-making levels.
Aleta Miller, UN Women Representative in Afghanistan, briefing on the Afghanistan Peace Dialogue, said that the UN Women Office is working to establish a framework for Afghan women to be engaged in policy-making and decision-making levels.
She stressed that women are more vulnerable to violence than other segments of society.