Statement by H.E. Angela J. Bogdan,
High Commissioner of Canada
on the Occasion of International Women's Day (March 8th)
and the Launch of "Women Defining Peace"

March 7, 2007

Good evening MME secretary, Excellencies, honoured guests, ladies and gentlemen:

This year marks the 30th anniversary of international women's day. The theme set forth by the secretary general for 2007 is ending impunity for violence against women and girls.

Canada has long been a strong advocate of women's/girls' rights and gender equality. As such, Canada considers this year's theme of considerable relevance to Canadian values and our work in the promotion and protection of human rights, including the rights of women and girls internationally.

I would first like to say a few words about the nexus between gender, conflict and peace building.

Women and children are the most vulnerable groups in conflict and post conflict situations, hence very much affected differently than men. Women rarely have the same resources, political rights or authority to control their environment and are therefore disproportionately affected by the consequences of conflict.

Many have lost their husbands, family members and have become de facto heads of households as sole bread winners and caregivers. Women constitute the majority of the displaced living in welfare centres or in relocation sites. Many are also coping with the double trauma as victim's of gender-based violence such as rape and other human rights violations.

Although, women are mostly portrayed as passive victims of violent conflict they are also active agents and participants in conflict as female combatants or soldiers. However, women and girls play crucial roles as providers for families and managing community survival in times of war as well as through their peace making activities before, during and after conflicts.

History has taught us that women have an important role to play in peace building efforts. Even before formal peace negotiations were launched five years ago in Sri lank a, women from Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim communities worked across ethnic barriers to call for a negotiated settlement to the conflict; to nurture mutual understanding and reconciliation, to strengthen human rights. Sri Lankan women as well have lobbied for the inclusion of women and gender concerns in the peace process.

Sri Lanka is at a critical juncture in the search for a durable solution to the conflict and the peace process will not succeed without the support of all Sri Lankan women.

Canadian programming in gender issues:
The Canadian government believes that taking active steps to involve women in governance, conflict resolution and post-tsunami reconstruction will help create an environment conducive to sustainable peace and development. We also believe that this is a view widely shared by government and civil society in Sri Lanka.

For this reason, promotion of gender equality has and will continue to be a key priority for Canadian programming through CIDA in Sri Lanka. The Canadian approach has been to integrate gender equality across the full range of programs, while at the same time supporting initiatives specifically targeted at promoting gender equality such as our "Shakhty gender equity project", aimed at developing a strong and reputable knowledge base concerning gender .

Tonight, it is my pleasure, to announce the launch of a new 6 million dollar CIDA-funded gender equity project "women defining peace". WDP will build on the strengths of the SHAKTI gender equity project and support an integrated approach to addressing gender-based violence and promotion of women's leadership in the peace- building and tsunami rehabilitation processes. It is a five year project that will be executed by the world university service of Canada (WUSE), a Canadian NGO with a long and successful history of community development in Sri Lanka. Doug graham, the WUSE field director is here tonight.

Specifically women defining peace will respond to locally-defined needs and strategies for addressing gender-based violence, and give priority to gender equality in peace building and rehabilitation initiatives resulting from the conflict and the tsunami. "Women defining peace" will support active networking among partners, including government and women-led and gender equality focused organizations.

"Women defining peace" will also provide women's organizations in Sri Lanka with a range of technical assistance drawn from local, regional, and Canadian resources. An example of the type of technical assistance that might be provided would be support from the Canadian police services to their Sri Lankan counterparts on effective approaches to dealing with gender-based violence and operating domestic crisis units.

In conclusion, I wish to thank you all for being with us this evening to share in the celebration of international women's day, and to recognize the critical role of women in bringing a sustained peace to Sri Lanka.

Thank you.