Upcoming: Implementing UNSCR 1325 on Women and Peace and Security

Implementing UNSCR 1325 on

Women and Peace and Security

Strengthening the CSW 55 Agenda

2:00 – 3:30 PM

Wednesday, February 23^rd 2011

Church Center for the United Nations, 2^nd Floor

777 UN Plaza (44^th St & 1^st Ave), New York, NY 10017

Co-Sponsored by:
Peace Action
International Health Awareness Network
Campaign for Nuclear Weapons
Global Network of Women Peacebuilders
Hague Appeal for Peace
The Ribbon International
United Methodist Women
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office
International Institute on Peace Education
Temple of Understanding
Foundation for the Support of the United Nations
CEI Paz

Briefing 'Unexpected Saviours: The Role of Turkey in Assisting Victims During the Holocaust’

DPI NGO

By Vanessa Muro, Peace Action

           Although the Holocaust was one of the most tragic persecutions in history, this event has also a light side that needs to be remembered which is the contribution of Turkey in saving many Jewish lives. On Monday January 31st, the DPI NGO held a briefing, which put together a panel of experts who focused on the role that Turkey played in saving lives during the Holocaust.

Ambassador Ertuğrul Apakan opened the discussion by stressing the contribution of Turkish diplomats in saving Jews’ lives by providing them with passports in countries such as France.

In this briefing we had one young speaker, Arielle Evans, who participated on the program ‘Kivunim New Directions’ based in Jerusalem. She expressed how the program helped her understand the relationship between the Turkish and Jewish. In her words ‘Jewish are not classified differently from the Muslims in Turkey but they are treated as equals.

The briefing also counted on the contribution from Ms. Claire Boren, clinical social worker and artist born in Poland. All her family was killed as a result of the persecution of Jews in Poland. She spent more than a year hiding in forests and she stated that she had to forget her past in order to overcome traumas.

In conclusion, Turkey has a tradition of always welcoming the Jewish community with open arms and the role of these diplomats must always be remembered. These heroic acts must be counted. It shows that no matter what our differences are, we all are human beings and we need from each other to overcome difficult times.

Briefing ‘Disaster Relief and Preparedness: Haiti, a Year Later’

DPI NGO

By Vanessa Muro, Peace Action

The conference held on January 13th 2011, addressed the living situation of Haiti since a 7.0 earthquake struck the country and it focused on what has been done and what needs to be done for the country to achieve stability.

The first speaker, Mr. David Carden (chief of the Americas and the Caribbean, Central Asia, Europe and the Middle East Section of the UN’s OCHA) stated that after a year from the earthquake, the country’s reconstruction efforts still continue. The second speaker, Mr. Bruno Lemarquis (head of the Policy and Planning Division of UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis prevention and Recovery) called NGOs and the Haitian authorities to join forces and work together in the recovery process of Haiti . The third speaker, Denise Brown, (Senior Donor Relations Officer under the Government Donor Relations Division of the UN World Food Programme) argued that Haiti faces the obstacle of coordination and the difficulty of organizing distribution.

Finally, Taina Bien-Aime, (Executive Director of Equality Now) focused on the fact that Haiti has been living a chronic crisis. She emphasized the lack of security for women and urged the Haitian government to respond to their needs. Political will is needed as well as the UN recognition that rape and sexual violence is becoming a growing issue in the country.

In conclusion, although Haiti has received aid from both, the international community and local grassroots, it is important to point out that only combined efforts can achieve a common goal. The Haitian government, the international community and local grassroots need to come together with an efficient mechanism to overcome the obstacles that Haiti is facing.

Dagmar Wilson, Anti-Nuclear Leader Dies

Dagmar Wilson, the founder of Women Strike for Peace, died on January 6th in Washington D.C. Dagmar marched in 60 cities in the United States demanding the end to atomic testing. She led a 51-member contingent to Geneva to raise their voices before the delegates to 17-nation disarmament conference. They met with American and Russian delegates and handed over bundles of petitions with more than 50,000 signatures calling for an end to nuclear testing. Her leadership was thrilling. She too was amazed by the response to that first Women Strike for Peace demonstration in November 1961. Those of us who marched with her will never forget our commitment to a world without nuclear weapons and we urge all of us, men and women, to continue the struggle for a peaceful world.