May 28 – Humanity House, The Hague
To celebrate May 24 – International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament – the Women Peacemakers Program, in cooperation with Humanity House, organized the public event “Peace: Men & Women as Allies”.
Over 15 activists, men and women from all over the world, shared their personal story on gender-sensitive active nonviolence from a masculinities perspective with a packed Humanity House.
A speech contextualizing the work on masculinities from a feminist perspective and two panel discussions, the first focusing on men and women working as allies for gender-sensitive peacebuilding and the second highlighting the different regional contexts of working on masculinities and advancing women’s leadership within peacebuilding, informed the public on the theory and practices on the theme.
The evening also marked the launching of the annual WPP May 24 Publication – “Men and Women working as Partners for Gender-Sensitive Active Nonviolence. Stories from the Field” - by Joost Andriessen, Director Stabilisation and Humanitarian Aid Department of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This year’s publication features the personal stories of men trained on gender-sensitive active nonviolence and reflections of pioneering women peacemakers on the stories of the men.
“No talking masculinities without feminisms” Anand Pawar, India
“First we as women did not see the added value of working with men, but the transformation of the young men by the training of WPP convinced us.” Netsai Mushonga, Zimbabwe
“As we interact as a man and woman in a respectful manner, I have seen a change in the community, as we are a role model for working together.” – Seconde Nyanzobe, Burundi
“If we raise our children with violence and wean them with aggression, they will have no appetite for peace” – Alimou Diallo, Ghana
“With UNSCR 1325 as the cornerstone for involving women in peace processes, the International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament becomes more acknowledged. I encourage WPP to carry on their work, because recognition of women’s leadership in peacebuilding has still a long way to go.” – Joost Andriessen, the Netherlands
