Thematic Topics

On an ongoing basis, the Security Council discusses the continuing involvement of regional and subregional organisations in the peaceful settlement of disputes, including through conflict prevention, confidence building, and mediation. These discussions are important for further utilisation of the existing and potential integrated capabilities. In the context of the UN-AU partnerships, the Council often stresses the need for those organisations to work to ensure that women and gender perspectives were fully integrated into all peace and security efforts, and encouraged the continued mainstreaming of child protection into advocacy, policies, programmes and mission planning. WILPF monitors this agenda item when possible, as it has important elements with regards to the Women, Peace and Security Agenda.

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Counterterrorism is an agenda item of the Security Council since the 1990s. In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in 2001, the Security Council began to focus on the issue with renewed urgency. There are three main bodies charged with enforcing counter-terrorism measures and related sanctions: Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) pursuant to Resolution 1373 (2001), Al-Qaida and Taliban sanctions committee, pursuant to Resolution 1267 (1999), and the committee on non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, established pursuant to Resolution 1540 (2004). The CTC is assisted in its work by the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), through which analysis and technical support is provided. At present, the Council is primarily focused on how to increase these bodies’ collective effectiveness through enhancing transparency and the working methods. Security Council discussions on counterterrorism is gender blind with a lack of linkages to the Women, Peace and security agenda. As suggested in the resolution 2242 (2015), the Council should consider gender perspective and analysis and highlight the contribution of women to prevent and counter terrorism, although they regularly fail to do so. The Council should also support the work that local, women-led civil society groups are doing to combat violent extremism. Combating extremism requires addressing pre-existing threats to women and girls, embedded in laws and social norms and engaging women and women's civil society in security sector reform and in efforts to strengthen the rule of law.

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In an effort to address an increasingly complex international security landscape, in 1992 the Security Council held a high-level summit on how it could better discharge its international peace and security mandate, an outcome of which was the incorporation of “peacebuilding” in the work of the UN. Although the Council has recognised gender as central to maintenance of international peace and security, it has not systematically included a gender lens across this area of work. The Security Council should make it a priority to further reinforce the link between Women, Peace and Security and the maintenance of international peace and security, specifically that as, “key issues such as peacekeeping, and early warning and preventive diplomacy, are discussed, Council members should ensure the women, peace and security elements of these issues are substantively addressed, as they are fundamental to the Council successfully adapting to the changing international security landscape” (NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security’s MAP Report 2009-2010). By setting out concrete actions that the Council can take on Women, Peace and Security and by creating a report system that better indicates the correlation between women and security, the Council will better fulfill its mandate to maintain international peace and security.

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Since its establishment, the Council attempts to address comprehensively the challenges facing all the nations of Africa, helping secure peace within and among African States and through that effort help them achieve sustainable economic and social development. It collaborates frequently with regional and subregional organisations in efforts to resolve conflicts. WILPF monitors this agenda item when possible, as it has important elements with regards to the Women, Peace and Security Agenda.

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Peacebuilding in the aftermath of conflict has been considered by the Council since February 2001 when the Security Council discussed comprehensive approaches to peacebuilding and was followed by a presidential statement in which the Council stressed the importance of mainstreaming a gender perspective in peace agreements and peacebuilding strategies (S/PRST/2001/5). In resolution 1645 (2005), the Council mandated the Peacebuilding Commission, an intergovernmental advisory body, to draw together political and financial resources for countries emerging from conflict, and to advise on good practice strategies. The Security Council has highlighted the importance of increasing women’s participation in preventing, resolving and recovering from conflict, as well as the necessity to address the impact of conflict on women. The important role that women play in economic recovery, social cohesion and political legitimacy of war-torn societies has also been the focus of the Secretary-General 2010 report on “Women’s Participation in Peacebuilding”, requested in Resolution 1889 (2009). The report defined a Seven-Point Action Plan on Gender- Responsive Peacebuilding, outlining commitments in 7 areas, to ensure that women’s priorities are addressed, their participation is guaranteed and a gender perspective is applied to all aspects of peacebuilding. Under the areas on financing, the Secretary- General committed the UN system to allocate at least 15% of UN-managed funds in support of peacebuilding to projects that “address women’s specific needs and advance gender equality. However, there is a distinctive gap between policy commitments and the operational reality of implementing gender-responsive peacebuilding. In light of this, the Women, Peace and Security Agenda needs to be thoroughly and consistently implemented.

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Rule of Law is considered by the Security Council as a key part of the mandates it designates for the maintenance of international peace and security. Women, Peace and Security and the Rule of Law are connected in numerous ways including: women as victims and survivors of sexual and gender-based violence; gender consideration and women’s participation in justice and rule of law systems; legal discrimination against women. The Security Council must strengthen gendered approach to Rule of Law actions including by ensuring: gendered comprehensive strategies to investigate and prosecute crimes under international law to ensure justice, truth and reparation for victims; enacting of national legislation; adoption of legal frameworks and repeal of discriminatory laws and effective victim and witness protection systems. Vetting of national authorities, including the armed forces, should be carried out to suspend from their positions or not recruit those reasonably suspected of crimes under international law. The Council should recognise the important role of the ICC in ending impunity, particularly in relation to crimes of sexual and gender-based violence. There has been some progress in the area of Women, Peace and Security concerns, but it has been inconsistent.

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The Women, Peace and Security Agenda includes nein resolutions: 1325 (2000); 1820 (2008); 1888 (2009); 1889 (2009); 1960 (2010); 2106 (2013); 2122 (2013); 2242 (2015) and 2467 (2019). The agenda guides work to promote gendered peace and security as well as strengthen women’s participation, protection, and rights in conflict prevention and peacemaking through post-conflict reconstruction contexts. Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) is a historic political framework that recognises how incorporating the perspective of women and applying a gendered lens are essential to planning refugee camps and peacekeeping operations, negotiating peace agreements, and reconstructing war-torn societies. Implementation of the Agenda is reviewed annually during Open Debates on Women, Peace and Security. There are two Open Debates that take place each year- one is held around April each year to discuss sexual violence and the other is held in October to discuss the broader Women, Peace and Security Agenda. The Security Council must internalise the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in its daily work on country-specific and thematic issues. When it mandates a peacekeeping mission, it must include binding language on women’s participation, women’s protection and other aspects of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda. There has been some progress toward achieving this goal but implementation remains inconsistent.

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