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Pak-Afghan women eye sustainable peace in region
un article par Pakistan Daily Times
Islamabad: Delegates from Pakistan and Afghanistan
have expressed a firm resolve to bring peace and
prosperity to the region through people-to-people
contact and by enhancing interactions between women
of both the countries.
click on photo to enlarge
Participants of a roundtable conference ‘Way
Forward to Bring Peace and Stability Between the
Two Neighbouring Countries’ concluded that people
of the two neighbouring countries had a long
history of suffering due to wars, violence and
conflicts and now it was time to join hands for
the sustainable peace and to promote trade and
economic activities in the region.
The Peace Education and Development (PEAD)
Foundation and the Women Development Network (WDN)
held the conference. Members of the Pak-Afghan
Women’s Forum for Peace and Democracy (PAWFPD) as
well as representatives from media, civil society
and organisations related to business and trade
attended the conference.
PEAD Foundation Executive Director Samina Imtiaz
opened the forum to retrieve recommendations of
the participants after five days of hectic
deliberations and interactions by the members of
PAWFPD. She said, “People from both the countries
were committed to peace and we need to strengthen
the linkages at various levels to usher in a new
era of peace and prosperity in the region.”
The participants, including Naheed Farid, member
of the Afghan parliament, Najlla Habibyar, CEO at
Exports Promotion Agency, Afghanistan and
Pakistani delegates Dr Rakhshanda Parveen, Salma
Malik and Meraj Hamayun Khan emphasised the
importance of media to bridge the gap between the
people of the two countries.
The delegates suggested that sports and cultural
activities should be enhanced to bring the people
closer and redress various kinds of misperceptions
about each other. The issues of disabilities
resulting from conflict, especially among women
also came under discussion and participants
stressed the need of efforts aimed at bringing
these women into the mainstream.
The participants called for the creation of new
linkages by virtue of this forum and said that steps
should be taken to encourage women entrepreneurship
in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
They also stressed the importance of music and
entertainment and its potential to promote the
message of peace and harmony. The establishment of
women’s think tanks, student exchanges, and business
schools for women was also suggested.
The delegates also interacted with the Women’s
Parliamentary Caucus. Pakistan People’s Party
Parliamentarians (PPP-P) MNA Dr Azra Fazal
Pechucho, on the occasion, highlighted the role
and functioning of the Women’s Parliamentary
Caucus. The members of PAWFPD suggested bringing
women to the forefront to engage them in policy
making, as they had a crucial role in peace
processes.
Earlier, the members of PAWFPD interacted with
members of SAARC Chambers of Commerce and Industry
Islamabad, Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry
and representatives of various trade bodies and
civil society organisations. They explored avenues
of mutual cooperation with regard to women
empowerment and peace and prosperity in the
region.
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DISCUSSION
Question(s) liée(s) à cet article:
Do women have a special role to play in the peace movement?,
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Commentaire le plus récent:
The 30 articles in CPNN linked to this question make it clear that women indeed have a special role to play in the peace movement. See the following for an historical explanation of why this is true.
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