PICC, MANILA – The inclusion and intersectionality of Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda through the ‘Leave No One Behind (LNOB)’ approach aims to end discrimination and exclusion and reduce the inequalities and vulnerabilities among women.
The United Nation (UN) Women, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), together with the Government of Canada spearheaded a side event on October 30 during the International Conference on Women, Peace and Security (ICWPS) to discuss who are being prioritized, as well as those who are being left behind in the implementation of the WPS agenda.
According to UN Women Asia Pacific Regional Director Christine Arab, “Women are not a homogenous group. We do not view women as victims and when we talk about inclusion of women, it is not about helping those who cannot help themselves.”
“It is that if a space has been granted, further to be dialogue, further to be response, further to be planning, that space has to give voice and opportunity to women who represent a multitude of communities and realities, and it always has to be intentional…if it’s not intentional, it does not happen,” Arab noted.
WPS and Indigenous Women
Indigenous Women Resource Center (IWRC) Chairperson Jo Genna Jover shared the challenges of indigenous women in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in the implementation of WPS initiatives.
“Political discrimination of Non-Moro Indigenous Women. They faced double marginalization due to gender and ethnic identity, limiting their participation in political decision making in the Bangsamoro region,” she bared.
“Our experience is often confined to us, [with] official roles in limited authority, and they might be women and youth who need full decision-making powers to strengthen governance and advocate for their community development,” Jover added.
Jover reported that human rights abuse is also a major concern in the BARMM, as 77 of Non-Moro IP (NMIP) leaders are killed and “seven of them are women”.
“Killings are related to land disputes, politics and direct violations with no access to justice, increasing threats of IP to advocate for protection, participation, inclusivity and equal rights,” she said.
“IPs are often excluded from the peace process and formation initiatives, even when it is their ancestral domain and livelihoods,” Jover said.
She revealed that Non-Moro indigenous people are facing displacement from their ancestral land due to various projects being built in their areas, as this forced displacement has disrupted their traditional livelihood and cultural ties to the land.
“Out of 18 members of the Parliament, we have only two [IPs] – one man and a woman…and [we] still need to advocate for support in the case we wanted to submit a resolution to advance it,” Jover said.
Despite the challenges being faced by NMIPs, she relayed their full support to the implementation of the WPS agenda.
“We ensure NMIP women have equal representation and authority in decision-making bodies, revise policies to empower them with the same right as their political representative, must not be an ex-officio, but a regular commission, [which] can deliver with budget allocation so that we can help IP women agenda,” Jover stressed.
She also added the need to “Focus on NMIP’s safety and strengthen community policy, respect and delineate NMIP ancestral land rights, transformation and involvement in peace building processes through dialogue…and resource support, strengthen legal protection on ancestral domain titles, [and’ provide aid and settlement support for displacement communities.”
Jover also cited the need to encourage more IP women to participate in the elections, to have a voice in the governance, as well as strengthen partnerships in pushing forward the Women, Peace and Security agenda locally, nationally and internationally.
Inclusivity of Women with Disability
The Lucy Foundation Director and Founder Robbie Francis Watene, also shared the challenges they have faced in the inclusion of women with disabilities in the WPS.
“Lucy is the name of my prosthetic leg because I was born with a condition called phocomelia, which leads to the bone in the lower half of my body [not developing] before birth. And I learned to walk on a prosthetic leg..[and] I started an organization named after that story,” Watene shared.
“Disability inclusion in WPS is often focused on protection, rather than our inclusion as peace builders or in conflict prevention, protection, relief, recovery,” she pointed out.
This situation, Watene said, “is kind of problematic, actually, because it reinforces the notion that we are dependent, that we are victims and that we are reliant and recipients of care, rather than being leaders and problem solvers.”
She drew attention to the fact that women and girls with disabilities consistently experienced unprecedented levels of direct structural and cultural violence.
“[Women and girls with disabilities] exist in all domains of societies, and not only in organizations dedicated to disability rights as well as supporting civil society organizations, disabled people’s organizations or organizations with disabilities,” Watene said.
“…so, it’s important to support all civil society organizations to promote disability inclusion and accessibility, regardless of whether disability is a focus or not. So, I guess, what I’m saying is that disability inclusion and accessibility isn’t just nice to have. It’s a non negotiable,” she added.
Women and youth
“Young people are often referred to as leaders of tomorrow, but the reality is that young people around the world are already leaders in peace and security,” said Shayne Wong, Co-Founder of Canadian Coalition for Youth, Peace and Security (CCYPS) on the key role that they youth are already playing in the implementation of the WPS agenda.
According to Wong, recognizing the leadership and existing advocacy work being carried out by the youth is vital and is having significant impact on the WPS agenda, “as young business people across Canada have been leading movements in relation to climate change, both national and regional,”
“Ensuring that young people are engaged in a meaningful way, with their voices and agency being respected, rather than having young people there simply because you’re checking a box off the list, youth need to be included fully and meaningfully at all levels, including decision-making and at all stages – from development, to implementation, to monitoring,” she said
“When we talk about leaving no one behind, an important part of doing this is recognizing the diverse voices and perspectives of young people, in addition to the work that they’re already doing in peace and security. Youth have complex, intersecting identities that influence their world views as well as their advocacy,” Wong added.
CCYPS, she said, has fostered relationships and collaborative linkages with local and international partners, as they have engaged with other organizations and networks around the world in sharing best practices and advocacy efforts on the global Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda.
“We do not look at youth, women, indigenous people as separate groups, we are looking at development for a person, and different groups,” underscored UNDP Philippines Deputy Resident Representative Edwine Carrie in his remarks.
