Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

Dear Section Presidents, Committee and Working Group Convenors, and International Representatives,

Fond greetings from Geneva, where the weather is chilly and the mountains are covered in beautiful snow. Please accept my sincerest apologies for the delay in this section mailing. As you will see below, this mailing is full of interesting news and activities. We are working hard to bring the reality of the UN and International WILPF’s work home to you and your community- and are always looking for feedback to make these monthly mailings better. If you would like to submit items for the section mailings, they are due in the Geneva office no later than the 12th of every month. While we prefer to receive information electronically, we will be happy to include whatever we can, however we can!

As always, we look forward to hearing from you and working with you throughout this exciting year.

The fourteenth session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-14) is scheduled to take place from 1-12 May, 2006 at the UN in New York. As a review session, CSD-14 is tasked with identifying barriers and constraints, lessons learned and best practices in implementation in the thematic cluster of energy for sustainable development, industrial development, air pollution/ atmosphere and climate change.

If you would like to participate in the WILPF delegation to CSD-14, please send your name, section and address to:

Since the CSD-14 is considering energy in relation to sustainable development, we have generated a sample letter to support truly sustainable energy, which we encourage you to send to your foreign ministry.

I am writing today because of my grave concern about the potential resurgence of nuclear energy technologies, and the inevitability that this technology will be discussed during the fourteenth session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-14).

The upcoming session of this CSD is tasked with identifying barriers and constraints, lessons learned and best practices in implementation in the thematic cluster of energy for sustainable development, industrial development, air pollution/ atmosphere and climate change.

In this, the twentieth year since the devastating disaster at Chernobyl, it is imperative that our government work towards an energy future for the world that is clean, safe, and secure for us, and for our future generations. I encourage you to direct our governmental delegation to advocate for the creation of an International Sustainable Energy Agency- an agency tasked with enhancing the development of truly sustainable energy technologies such as wind, solar, and bio-mass.

In a world increasingly concerned about holistic security, we can demonstrate our commitment to a healthy and safe future by taking positive action towards a sustainable future.

Thank you for your kind attention, I look forward to learning that our delegation has put forward a truly sustainable energy solution at this upcoming commission.

Talking Points on the Iranian Situation- developed by WILPF’s Reaching Critical Will project.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) must verify the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, and the international community is right to put pressure on Iran to abandon all nuclear ambitions. However, all responses to Iran's latest actions must be peaceful, diplomatic, fair and international.

The Paris Agreement of November 2004 was mutually understood at the time to allow Iran to conduct uranium enrichment following the final outcome of negotiations.

Last spring, the EU3 (France, Britain, Germany) changed its bargaining position, declaring that the only objective guarantee would be the absence of enrichment. This change precipitated a damaging chain of unilateral responses from Iran, leading to a general loss of confidence.

The August EU proposal required very specific and firm commitments from Iran on forfeiting aspects of its nuclear program in exchange for a weak and nebulous package of incentives.

Civilian nuclear energy is legally guaranteed under Article IV of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, but has serious proliferation risks.

Referral to the UN Security Council could result in restriction or even expulsion of IAEA inspectors.

Diplomatic negotiations are ongoing. Russia and Iran continue to negotiate on the EU and US supported proposal to enrich uranium in Russia. The next negotiations are scheduled for February 16.

IAEA investigation into Iran’s past nuclear activities has not been completed. ElBaradei’s report is due at the regularly scheduled March meeting of the board. Referral at this point will likely serve to impede the Agency’s ability to complete its investigation, further expanding the crisis of confidence.

To date, the IAEA has not uncovered substantial evidence of an Iranian nuclear weapons program. Non-compliance under the Safeguards Agreement requires a finding of diversion, or uncertainty regarding diversion, of nuclear materials toward military use. The IAEA concluded in November 2004 that no diversion had occurred, but it is not yet in a position to determine the presence or absence of additional undeclared nuclear materials or activities.

Iran remains five to ten years from possessing the capability to enrich uranium for use in a warhead. This leaves ample time to allow the process to continue; the situation has been needlessly and artificially elevated into a crisis.

Nothing might happen. If the international community is not yet united, an immediate referral could result in no action, setting an example for potential proliferators. In February 2003 and earlier in 1994, North Korea was referred to the Security Council and nothing happened. Sending a case to the Security Council before the international community is in agreement about next steps indicates that proliferation comes without consequence.

Something might happen. As we have seen in the past, a Security Council resolution under Chapter Seven could be used to legitimate war now or in the distant future.

The IAEA Board should support the Agency’s ability to successfully verify compliance with safeguards. The Board, with the advice of the Agency, should set a timeline for the conclusion of the investigation into Iran’s past activities. The Board should involve the Security Council only if Iran fails to comply with its obligations, including if the Agency finds it cannot verify the presence or absence of undeclared nuclear materials or activities due to Iranian non-cooperation.

Allow the diplomatic negotiations the time and space to work. Negotiations between Iran and Russia on the EU3 and US supported compromise proposal to enrich uranium in Russia are scheduled to resume on February 16. The Iranian Ambassador to Russia, Gholamreza Ansari, recently called the proposal “constructive” and “a good initiative to resolve the situation.”

Call on Iran to live up to its repeated statements of commitment to and enthusiasm for further negotiation.

Address the root causes of security concerns in the region as a whole. Restart the peace processes in the Middle East. Put political weight and drive behind establishing the Middle East Nuclear Weapon Free Zone. The Security Council supported this in a 1991 resolution (687), and the General Assembly unanimously adopts a resolution supporting the establishment of a Nuclear Weapon Free Zone in the Middle East every year (A/RES/60/52 this year).

Reconsider the merits of Iran’s proposal to the EU in March 2005 providing for continuous on-site presence of IAEA inspectors at its nuclear fuel cycle sites, ceilings on the level of enrichment, limiting the extent of its fuel cycle to only the needs of its power reactors, and binding national legislation prohibiting the development of nuclear weapons.

Make a global commitment to sustainable energy, not nuclear energy. We urge Iran not to pursue capabilities to produce nuclear fuels. Iran and everyone else should rather work towards an energy economy oriented towards energy efficiency and renewable sources of energy. To symbolize and implement this mission, the international community should create an International Sustainable Energy Agency.

Nuclear weapon states must take the lead in non-proliferation by totally, irreversibly and verifiably disarming their nuclear weapons, living up to their end of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty bargain. There is no moral high ground in either proliferation or nuclear weapons possession, but states with nuclear weapons will have more credibility in their non-proliferation efforts while they are transparently and verifiably disarming their own arsenals.

Please adapt this letter to your own style, and send it to your Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Please ask others in your community to take similar action as well.

I am writing to you today to urge you to take immediate action to peacefully resolve the Iranian nuclear situation. The proliferation of nuclear weapons is possibly the single greatest threat to civilisation. If a feared cascade of proliferation occurs, the probability that by malice, madness, miscalculation or malfunction, nuclear weapons will at some point be used will increase sharply. All nations have a responsibility to ensure that the number of nations with nuclear weapons does not grow, to prevent non-state actors from obtaining them, and for those who posses nuclear weapons to eliminate and abolish them.

Threats and rumours of military action or even nuclear weapons use only worsen a growing crisis between Iran, the United States, and Israel.

Reports of preparations for and explorations of military options, no matter how speculative, are highly disturbing and are in themselves dangerous. Such explorations must cease. There must be no talk of war.

But there IS talk of war, both from the United States and from Israel. President Ahmadinejad, has spoken of "wiping Israel from the map." In the US and Israel, 'hotheads' call openly for "swift military action", while 'responsible' leaders speak of "no option being ruled out." President Bush delivered these same two formulations just months before the invasion of Iraq. We urge that the explorations of military or nuclear options cease immediately, and support IAEA General Director, Mohamed ElBaradei in calling for this belligerent talk from all parties to stop now.

The United States and other Nuclear Weapon States and de facto nuclear weapon states -nations that already possess nuclear weapons- have made little progress toward the internationally mandated goal of the total and unequivocal elimination of those weapons. Although there has been some limited progress in lowering total nuclear stockpiles, the established nuclear weapons possessors continue to rely on those weapons in their security doctrines, and do not envisage change in that posture 'for the foreseeable future'.

This continues in spite of a clear international consensus to the effect that nuclear weapons are a continuing threat to civilisation and life, in spite of repeated calls by the international community for progress toward their total and unequivocal elimination.

Nations that possess large nuclear arsenals cannot consistently or credibly call for others to eliminate or cease the pursuit of nuclear weapons arsenals of their own while not moving to eliminate their own nuclear weapons. A global commitment to the elimination of nuclear weapons is a global commitment to the elimination of nuclear weapons, and applies equally to all parties. There can be no exceptions. Those who now possess nuclear arsenals are obliged to eliminate those arsenals. Those who do not have them must not pursue them.

Similarly, the violation of the goal of a nuclear-free Middle East by one party does not in any way excuse its violation by another party. However, the renunciation of the nuclear option by one party will facilitate its renunciation by another party.

Israel's nuclear arsenal and the pursuit of nuclear weapons by Iran - if indeed that is taking place - are dangerous per se and open the gate for further proliferation by other Middle Eastern nations, and for a middle eastern arms race that would be dangerous in the extreme. This must not happen.

Serious concerns exist over the possibility that US nuclear doctrine may envisage strikes against other nations that involve a first use of nuclear weapons, or possibly the use of nuclear weapons against nations that are not themselves nuclear - armed. We note with approval the recent letter by US senators and others in this matter.

A third use of nuclear weapons must never take place. It would be a catastrophe not only for Iran or Israel but for the entire region and even for the entire world, because of its radioactive fallout, its chaotic effects, and because it would break the taboo against the use of these weapons that has so far held place for the last 60 years. Breaking this taboo could result in the further use of nuclear weapons, with a lower and lower bar for such use. The widespread use of nuclear weapons would be catastrophic for the world. We urge all parties to renounce the pursuit of nuclear weapons, and to adopt policies that rule out their use.

I urge you to advocate for a solution to the crisis in relations between the US and Iran, Israel and Iran, based on the following clearly defined principles:

2) A clear commitment by all nuclear-armed parties not to use nuclear weapons in this situation, and a broader commitment to the doctrine of no first use of nuclear weapons.

3) The implementation of the 1995 Non-Proliferation Treaty Resolution on a Nuclear Weapon Free Zone in the Middle East, implementation of the annual consensus-adopted General Assembly resolutions on 'Establishment of a Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zone in the region of the Middle East'.

4) A clear commitment by all parties to the global elimination of nuclear weapons, including through reaffirming the Final Declaration of the 2000 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, and relevant General Assembly resolutions.

5) A diplomatic path to the removal of tensions between the US, Israel, and Iran, involving compromise on both sides, recognition of the legitimate security concerns of all parties including both Israel and Iran, and refraining from inflammatory statements or the exploration of military options by any party.

WILPF STATEMENT ON THE 50TH SESSION OF THE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN

On the historic occasion of the 50th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) takes this opportunity to again express its full and unequivocal support for the full and effective implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPFA) and the outcomes of the 23rd Special Session of the General Assembly (Women 2000: Gender Equality, Development and Peace for the Twenty-First Century). WILPF has, since its inception in 1915, worked to prevent armed conflicts and to establish the conditions for sustainable peace on a global scale. As an NGO with ECOSOC consultative status, WILPF has participated in all of the United Nations sponsored World Conferences on Women and Sessions of the Commission on the Status of Women. WILPF marks its commitment and continued affirmation of the struggle for full recognition and fulfillment of women’s human rights and security in all spheres and continues to work to ensure the participation of women in achieving these goals.

WILPF recognizes and applauds the efforts prior to and beyond the BPFA to ensure and enhance women’s equal participation in decision making processes. This extends from the recognition in Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the right of equal political participation, the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the basis provided in Articles 4, 7 and 8 thereof for initiatives to enhance women’s equal participation in all areas of public life, to the urging in Security Council Resolution 1325 for Member States to ensure increased representation of women in the prevention, management and resolution of conflict, the 2003 General Assembly Resolution 58/142 on Women and Political Participation and the reiteration in the BPFA and the reviews thereof that “women’s empowerment and their full participation on the basis of equality in all spheres of society, are fundamental for the achievement of equality, development and peace.”

WILPF notes, with some regret, that even in this historic 50th Session of the Commission, the successful achievement of the Commission’s object of equal rights between men and women remains elusive. We hope that in designing its future program and methods of work the Commission will ensure the rapid and effective fulfillment of its mandate and that all Member States provide the necessary commitment and resources to make the achievement of gender equality a reality. WILPF encourages the adoption of specific, time-bound measurable targets to achieve the goal of equal participation.

To ensure the achievement of the goal of gender equality and to set a positive example, it is vital that it be pursued within the UN System itself. WILPF reiterates the call made by NGOs at the 49th Session of the Commission to more effectively pursue gender mainstreaming and to upgrade and better resource the gender architecture and related mechanisms within the UN. At the very least, the UN should set an example of gender balance and also urge and assist Member States to realize the as yet unattained BPFA goal of at least 30% women in decision making positions.

The themes under review by the Commission in this 50th Session are ones which are, in WILPF’s view, interrelated, mutually reinforcing and vital to achieving gender equality. The Outcome of the 2005 World Summit illustrates the laudable recognition by States of this crucial link between participation, equality and development and that the full and effective implementation of the BPFA and outcome of the 23rd Special Session of the General Assembly “is an essential contribution to achieving the internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration.”

WILPF calls on Member States to implement the Millennium Development Goals and broader development goals in a gender-centered manner, without which, eleven years beyond the BPFA, women’s full and effective participation remains severely restricted.

We find it unacceptable that access to opportunities to work under humane and fair conditions and access to clean water and sanitation, health services and education remain beyond the reach of most women. We do not agree with the commodification and privatization of these essential services, especially in light of the resultant disproportionate negative impact on women of such policies. Unequal access to resources and the resultant unequal economic power and persistent and pervasive under-development is a form of violence in and of itself and, further, makes women particularly vulnerable to violence both during conflict and so-called times of peace. Without inclusive and sustainable development based on a system of gender equality, true and sustainable peace is impossible. WILPF calls upon all states to therefore include a holistic gender perspective when allocating resources and developing programs to implement the MDGs and any other development practices or projects and insists that the CSW urge them to do so.

WILPF calls on Member States urgently to act to ensure that women and men have fair and equal access to natural, economic and political resources so as to ensure equal participation in decision making in the various areas of public and private life including participation in development. We call on governments to ensure that marginalized women, including widows, indigenous, disabled and minority women, are included in programs and processes designed to improve and enhance the access of women to these resources.

Furthermore, WILPF urges Member States to recognize the importance of women’s participation in the policy decisions of government to achieve the goals of equitable distribution of resources and to facilitate this participation, including through gender mainstreaming and the adoption of temporary special measures to ensure women’s participation in political and public life provided for in CEDAW and encouraged by that Committee’s general recommendation 23 of 1997.

The challenges which remain in implementing the internationally agreed commitments on gender equality and empowerment highlight the importance of creating and ensuring an enabling environment for this and we call on national governments to take positive measures to institute policies, strategies and mechanisms to increase women’s capabilities, assets and agency in the essential areas of education, health and work.

WILPF recognizes that the participation of women in decision making at all levels includes participation in economic and trade decisions and that the disproportionate negative effects of globalization on women makes their input in the decision making of supra-national institutions, such as the World Trade Organization and the other Bretton Woods Institutions, vital. WILPF calls on Member States to provide mechanisms by which women are guaranteed an opportunity to input into the decision-making processes of these institutions at a local level and that these processes take into account the particular needs of women.

We support and commend the recent establishment of the Peacebuilding Commission and recognize the important role it can play in ensuring lasting and sustainable peace. We urge the Peacebuilding Commission to take seriously the call in the resolution establishing the Commission (A/60/L.40) to integrate a gender perspective in all its work (Article 20) and to involve women’s organizations in its activities (Article 21) both in the immediate post-conflict stage of the Commission’s operation and as it moves into the development stage in post-conflict reconstruction, keeping in mind always the call in UNSCR 1325 “to ensure increased representation of women at all decision-making levels in national, regional and international institutions and mechanisms for the prevention, management, and resolution of conflict.”

WILPF emphazises the need for the UN system and Member States to recognize that violence against women, including sexual and gender-based violence and continuing impunity for such violence creates serious obstacles and challenges to the full and active participation of women in these and all other decision making processes. We urge all relevant actors, including those within the UN system, Member States and parties to armed conflict, to take special measures to protect women from all such forms of violence and for parties to armed conflict to respect fully international law as set out in Article 9 of UNSCR 1325 and to this end, support international and national courts (including the International Criminal Court) truth and reconciliation commissions and all other transitional justice mechanisms that pursue the goal of ending impunity.

As a 90 year old organization, WILPF reaffirms its commitment to work for collective human security and sustainable peace in collaboration with civil society, governmental and international actors, including within the United Nations system. We look forward to working with others around the world to dismantle the prevailing culture of militarism and create a culture of peace in which racism and discrimination, economic injustice, violence and every form of oppression are absent and in which women are full and equal participants.

Update on WILPF’s Planned Activities during the Commission on the Status of Women

Congratulations WILPF members! More than 60 of you have registered to take part in our official delegation to the 50th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). Sam Cook, our CSW focal point, is looking forward to welcoming you to New York, and has already been in touch with many of you. Please be sure to bring WILPF materials with you! Badges/ buttons, fliers, leaflets, t-shirts: items related to WILPF and to the themes of the CSW. Sections that don’t have representatives going (see the list on the reverse) can send materials to the UN office to be distributed during the session.

The team in New York- including Sam Cook, Jean Verthein, Anita Pulier (US Section representatives to the UN), and our new UN Office director, Jill Sternberg, are working together to prepare a great welcoming meeting and strategy session for the delegation upon arrival. This session will take place on Saturday, 25 February, at Jean’s home, 1-5pm. Lunch will be provided thanks to Jean and Anita. One of the decisions at this session will be when and how the delegation meets and talks during the commission and also the follow-up plans for continuing our work after the CSW- so it’s terribly important for you to attend or send ideas to sam@peacewomen.org.

Sunday, 26 February 8:30- 18:00, the New York NGO Committee on the Status of Women will hold their annual NGO consultation day. This requires registration, and a $50 registration fee. If you need financial assistance please contact Jill Sternberg. The event will be held at:

New York University (NYU), Farkas Auditorium
550 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10016.
It is located between 31st and 32nd Street.

WILPF has also registered a number of collaborative side events during the CSW. The Division of the Advancement of Women will announce the location and times of the events registered soon. We are planning the following:

The themes of this CSW are: ‘Enhanced participation of women in development: an enabling environment for achieving gender equality and the advancement of women, taking into account, inter alia, the fields of education, health and work’, and; ‘Equal participation of women and men in decision-making processes at all levels’.

Please review the list of delegates and begin arranging a report-back session with someone in your section. We are also hoping to produce a report, created by the members of our WILPF delegation, which will then be circulated to all sections so that we may keep an ongoing dialogue on the Status of Women, and how WILPF can best engage with this Commission at the UN.

As always, more information can be found on the PeaceWomen website- www.peacewomen.org

Commission on Human Rights

The last session of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) will take place in Geneva from 13 March until 21 April, 2006. The UN General Assembly is currently debating the methods and practices of the new Human Rights Council, which will be created by a resolution of the General Assembly. The Council has been agreed on- in theory, but how it will work, how many members it will have and more is yet to be determined. It is due to these debates that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has not yet released any official information about the upcoming session.

WILPF has been able to get some provisional information about the upcoming session, and we are currently arranging our plans- our delegations, statements, side events and more. If you would like to participate in the work of this final session of the CHR, please let us know as soon as possible and no later than 25 February.

Additionally, we are working with the Special NGO Committee on Human Rights to facilitate the better coordination of NGO activities during the CHR- the information is below. WILPF Geneva office will fill out this questionnaire on behalf of WILPF, however if you know of others who will attend as part of other organizations’ delegations we would appreciate it if you could circulate this note and questionnaire.

NGO information and coordination for the

Commission on Human Rights / Human Rights Council 2006

Background note

During 2006, the United Nations Commission for Human Rights will meet for the last time, and will be replaced by the new Human Rights Council. Coordination among non-governmental organizations is always desirable in the interests of increasing the effectiveness of their advocacy, but in this complex transitional moment enhanced NGO coordination may prove to be especially necessary.

An NGO information and coordination (NGOIC) mechanism has been established through the joint efforts of the under-mentioned organizations, and is offered as a free service to NGOs planning to participate in the 62nd session of the Commission and/or in the first session of the Human Rights Council when it is established.

Participation in this mechanism is voluntary, and it does not replace the official accreditation process that all NGOs wishing to attend the Commission/Council sessions will still have to complete.

NGOs interested in taking advantage of this service are invited to respond (by email to ngoic2006@gmail.com, or by fax to +41 22 3012000) with the information requested below as soon as possible, and at the latest by 13 February 2006. Based upon responses received by that date, web-based ‘virtual interest groups’ will be established to facilitate information-sharing and coordination among NGOs having similar interests/priorities in the context of the Commission/Council sessions, particularly with regard to (i) joint statements, (ii) joint parallel events, (iii) lobbying strategies, and (iv) follow-up on those shared interests/priorities.

A further information note on modalities for using this mechanism will be issued also by 13 February 2006, and the ‘virtual interest groups’, and associated email list serves, will be established by 20 February 2006. In the meantime, we encourage you to respond with the requested information by the indicated deadline.

NGOIC steering group

NGO information and coordination for the

Commission on Human Rights / Human Rights Council 2006

Response form

Please reply to ngoic2006@gmail.com or fax number +41 22 3012000 by 13 February 2006

The information provided will be used only for the purposes of putting NGOs with similar interests/priorities in communication with each other, and will NOT be shared with governmental or UN Secretariat representatives.

Organization details

Organization name:

We will be focusing on the following issues during the Commission/Council sessions:

Focus issues:

We have submitted or plan to submit written statements on the following topics:

Written statements on:

We expect to make, or would be interested in contributing to, oral statements on the following topics:

Oral statements on:

We anticipate organizing parallel events on the following topics:

Parallel events on:

The other UN languages in which our representatives can function are:

Other languages:

WTO Summit in Hong Kong (December 11-18, 2005)

Part I. What We Did At WTO in Hong Kong

WILPF-Philippines

There were five of us members of WILPF Philippine Section who participated in the WTO in Hong Kong on December 12-18, 2005. As WILPF Philippines was not accredited at the official WTO Ministerial Meeting, we participated in the parallel activities of the NGO. We prioritized the activities that we attended as there were various events happening at the same time. The following are the events and activities we participated in.

1. December 11 - Kong Yee Sai Mau: Stop Collusion Between Government and Business Rally organized by the Hong Kong Peoples Alliance.

We arrived in Hong Kong in the morning of December 11 and as soon as we have checked in our luggage, all five of us went to Victoria Park, the assembly point of the afternoon rally around Central Hong Kong, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay Areas. The rally –dubbed as Kong Yee Sai Maui (No to WTO): Stop Collusion Between Government And Business was sponsored by the Hong Kong Peoples Alliance (HKPA). The HKPA is composed of 29 organizations which includes among others, the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (HKCTU), Asia Monitor Resource Center (AMRC), Asia Pacific Mission for Migrants (APMM), Asian Migrant Center (AMC), Asia Pacific Research Network, Asian Students Association, trade unions as well as other neighborhood organizations. The rally was participated in by more than 3,000 people. It rally aimed to announce to the people of Hong Kong what the WTO is all about and that people from various countries came to Hong Kong to oppose the new rounds of negotiations. Kong Yee Sai Mau is the banner slogan of the rally.

2. Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Conference on the WTO - December 12 and 15

As I am working in the Philippine House of Representatives, I was able to use a pass to attend the Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference on December 12 and 15. The Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference was attended by parliamentarians, representatives of government agencies, some NGOs from various member countries of the IPU. The conference discussed various issues pertaining to the WTO and at the end of the meeting on December 15, they adopted a declaration stating the IPU position on the issues

At the inaugural session on December 12, there were speeches from Mr. Pier Fedinando Casini, IPU President, Mr. Enrique Baron Crespo, Chairperson of the Committee on International Trade, European Parliament, Mr. Pascal Lamy, WTO Director-General and Ms. Wuyun Qimuge, Vice Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China.

In his speech, Mr. Pascal Lamy reacalled, that when the IPU and Mr. Lamy met in Geneva, three weeks after he had taken office in the WTO, he said that the “Hong Kong MInsterial Conference must take countries 2/3 of the way towards the completion of the Doha Round, whose target date is the end of 2006. That target date corresponds to the end of the negotiating mandate of one of our Members-The United States, whose Trade Promotion Authority will be expiring.”

He further said that since that “Since then, you may have heard that Members decided to “recalibrate” their expectations for Hong Kong. I hasten to stress that by recalibration Members meant neither a lowering of the level of ambition for the DOHA Round , nor a license to let the final 2006 end date slip. The Round must be completed on time, and must fulfil its promise of a cross-cutting developmental outcome. The call for recalibration was necessary only in order to adjust expectations to the “real” state of the negotiations.”

He also said that “ Immediately prior to this Conference, Members demonstrated their serious engagement in the Doha Round by taking two important decisions - ones that will undoubtedly make a difference for developing and least developed countries. First, members agreed to give least-developed countries until 2013 to comply with the provisions of the WTO Agreement on intellectual property rights with respect to trademarks, copyrights and other protection. They also agreed on an even longer extension of the implementation period for pharmaceuticals - 2016. This important step was taken to help least-developed countries integrate into the multilateral trading system. It recognizes that a “one size fits all” set of rules would ignore the reality of the different stages of development that WTO Members are at.

Lamy also also that “Even more recently, on December 6, Members reached a decision to amend the TRIPS Agreements so as to allow developing countries more flexibility in responding to public health crises. The recent agreement makes operational, and more legally secure, the waiver that had been given to developing countries in 2003 to let them import generic copies of patented drugs for emergencies.” He also drew the attention of the IPU to the fact that this represents the very first time that the WTO Agreement has been amended.”

He also said that the “Draft Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration that is before countries during this ministerial meeting has the potential to contribute to other MDGs as well- in particular those of “eradicating extreme poverty and hunger,” and forming a “global partnership for development”. Through greater opening in agricultural goods, industrial goods, and services, developing countries stand to enhance their export opportunities and to raise their standards of living. The Round, he said, is intended to address issues such as unfair agricultural subsidies that have kept some developing countries out of international markets, to reduce tariff peaks and tariff escalation particularly for products of interest to developing countries, and to fine-tune WTO rules in areas like anti-dumping. Anti-dumping measures have sometimes unfairly been used against developing countries, but perhaps a more worrying trend today is that some developing countries are using these measures against each other.”

He then walked the delegates of the IPU through the Draft Hong Kong Declaration to demonstrate what it represents. He said:

“ The Declaration is intended, first to capture the progress that countries have made in the negotiations since July 2004; and second, to build on progress in key areas so that Hong Kong may be a launch pad for “full negotiating modalities”. These cannot be delayed, and must be reached only a few months after the Conference. By “modalities” I mean a numerical work plan that set out in full the rates at which tariffs would be cut, subsidies reduced, the target dates, and so on.

In agricultural and industrial goods, the Draft Declaration captures the progress that has been made. In both areas, it shows that Members have now entered a new phase in the negotiations: one, in which much greater precision can be given to the architecture of the final deal.

Let me give you a concrete example. In agriculture, it captures the notin that tariffs will be cut on the basis of different, quote unquote, “bands”. What does this mean? In the Uruguay Round, countries got away with making average tariff reductions. Different tariffs will be placed in different tariff bands, and all tariffs will have to be cut. The highest will be reduced the most.

Even greater precision has been achieved in the area of internal and export subsidies. With respect to internal subsidies that are trade distorting, Members have not only agreed on a similar”banded approach”, but they are also well on their way to agreeing on the actual rates of reduction to be made. Furthermore, export subsidies will be completely eliminated. This must be done in parallel with the elimination of the more disguised forms of export support, such as food aid that causes commercial displacement. Members have also reaffirmed their intention to prioritize the “cotton dossier”, which as you know is of great interest to some of our poorest Members.

The Draft Declaration also represents a greater level of precision on industrial goods. It recognizes that there is support for an ambitious formula, one that would cut higher industrial tariffs the most. This again, stands in contrast to the Uruguay Round, where equal reductions were made to different tariff lines, irrespective of their level.

The Draft Declatration is an important step forward in another area as well- trade facilitation. This is the negotiation that is aimed at facilitating the customs clearance and release of traded goods. It includes measures that range from the provision of timely information on trade regulations, to the setting of parameters for the fees that are to be charged in connection with trade. There is much to gain from these negotiations, in which significant progress has been made, in particular for many of the small or landlocked countries.

IN the area of services, where the negotiations are not based on formula reductions, but on intensive discussions between national regulatory authorities on a sector-by sector ( such a banking and insurance), the process can be very time consuming. Members must therefore accelerate the pace of these negotiations – the Draft Declaration provides for benchmarks to do that. Let us remember that services represent a manor component of developing country trade. In fact, tourism services alone are the main foreign currency earner for most of the least developed world. We cannot afford therefore, to set these negotiations aside.

In proposing a global partnership for development, the MDG called on the WTO to address the specific market access needs of least-developed countries. They explicitly called for the granting of duty-free, quota-free access to the world’s least developed nations at the end of the Round.

In addition, it takes the concept of development assistance further, by setting the foundation for a new “Aid for Trade” package to address the developing world’s supply side constraints. Market opening opportunities can be of little use to countries if their limited production capacity and infrastructure holds them back. This is the issue that Aid for Trade Focuses on.”

At the IPU, there were heated debates on the issue of cotton, issue of Aid for Trade, Foreign Debts and structural adjustment, on the GATS and Agriculture.

AS the WTO in Hong Kong progressed, Aid for Trade has become a contentious issue as aid was dangled in exchange for agreements in GATS.

The IPU also adopted a declaration outlining their position on the issues being negotiated upon at the WTO. I was only able to get the revised draft declaration. The final one was not available.

At the IPU conference, I was able to distribute the WILPF – International statement. I was able to give this to the following MPs:

I also left copies of the statement at the display table for other parliamentarians.

Since I was not able to enter the WTO official meeting, I asked a member of the support staff of the Philippine delegation to distribute copies of WILPF statement to the negotiators inside the official meeting and to the media.

3. People Power to Protect our Livelihood, Security and Dignity: Assembly and Rally – December 13 -

We also participated in the December 13 rally sponsored again by the HKPA. The rally coincided with the opening of the WTO. In this rally, the Korean delegation got the attention of the media when about 80 of them jumped into the cold waters of Hong Kong Bay as a form of protest against the WTO. They also tried to break into the police barricades. The police, however, prevented them by throwing paper gas at them. T
The rest of the delegates who staged a program outside at a place delegated by the police. This was the first brush with the police of the delegates especially the Korean delegates.

Two of our members attended the Trade and War Forum sponsored by the International League of People’s Struggles (ILPS) on December 14. The Forum was a comprehensive historical and theoretical critique of the ten years of WTO bolstered by empirical data and analysis of the experiences of countries under the WTO regime and globalization. The speakers invited were Dr. Jane Kelsey of New Zealand who spoke on the Fallacy of Neo-Liberalism and Free Trade in the Era of Monopoly Capitalism. It is a historical Overview of Imperialist Globalization; Antonio Tujan, of the Asia Pacific Research Network and Resist who tackled Imperialist Collaboration and Competition in Exploiting Weaker Economies Through WTO; Dr. Haluk Gerger of Turkey, who discussed Globalization, the New World Order and Imperialist Aggression; Dr. Carol Araullo, Vice Chairperson for External Affairs of the ILPS who presented a paper on US Aggression and Provocation Amid the Current Crisis of the World Capitalist System to show the Military Face of Globalization; Manuel Perez Iturbe, Charge d’Affaires of the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in the Philippines who shared US Aggression and Provocation: The Case of Venezuela; Dr. Pao Yu Ching of Taiwan who presented a paper on China’s Capitalist Development, An Analysis; and Luis Jalandoni, head of the Peace Negotiating Panel, National Democratic Front of the Philippines. There was also sharing of People’s Campaigns and Struggles Against WTO and Imperialist Plunder and War from Dalits and Women of Tamil Nadu, from Brazil, Japan, Turkey and Indonesia.

I was able to catch only the presentation of China because this event was held simultaneously with the opening of the Women’s Village Exhibit. In this presentation, where she shared the present situation of China under the WTO regime, she said, the WTO is spawning poverty in China and is increasingly eroding the gains of the people struggles. What the people used to enjoy are now being threatened by WTO and globalization. I am still waiting for the report of my colleagues who were able to fully attend this forum.

The Women’s Village Exhibit opened with a ritual of songs and music and drums and shouts of NO to WTO and Junk WTO by women. This was attended by various women’s organizations. I got interviewed by a cable news in Hong Kong and I was able to raise the position of WILPF. Here at the village, I was able also to display WILPF-Philippines materials and again distribute WILPF statements.

Here at the Women’s Village, we signed the petition of the GABRIELA Philippines to support the case of a 22-year student who was raped by US servicemen who participated in the Joint RP-US Military Training in Subic Olangapo under the Visiting Forces Agreement.

I also attended at the Women’s Village the Book Launching of Seething and Seatings about the experiences of women parliamentarians in political participation.

I also participated in the Talanoa tapestry making. Pieces of cloths with slogans which came from different countries were sewn together to make a huge tapestry that weaves together the calls of women to Junk the WTO. This tapestry was carried by women in the all-women’s rally that took place on December 16.

I was also able to attend a dinner with Parliamentarians sponsored by some Philippine Parliamentarians. During the dinner, I met two women from Kyrghistan who were interested in women participation in parliaments. I also gave WILPF statement to some women parliamentarians who attended the said dinner.

This was a sharing of women involved in the peace process in the Philippines. Two of our members attended this meeting. I am still waiting for the report on this. I, on the other hand, attended the last day of the IPU meeting. In the evening, I attended the briefing meeting of the Our World is Not For Sale, where they briefed us on what was happening inside the WTO Ministerial meeting. At that time, the issue was development aid. Development aid was being used as a negotiating tool in exchange for the GATS agreement.

We were able to participate also in the International Women’s Tribunal and provided support to APWLD and GABRIELA. The international tribunal put the WTO into a political trial. It aimed to methodically collect and document concrete experiences of women on the severe and critical impacts of trade policies of WTO on their livelihood and quality of life. It further aimed to identify violations of specific women human rights based on the international law standards. The tribunal also aimed to contribute to providing further substantive evidence to why there is the intensifying and growing global resistance against WTO. Testimonies and evidence of gross women human rights violations that the WTO has committed over ten years of existence, through its trade policies particularly Agreements on Agriculture and the General Agreements on Trade and Services (GATS) were presented. Those who presented their cases were women from India, Bangladesh, Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mongolia, Malaysia, Indonesia. Among the Invited Panel of Judges were: Liza Maza (WILPF member) and Irene Fernandez- of Malaysia. The verdict of the tribunal is –the WTO is guilty of human rights violations of women.

After the International Women’s Tribunal we joined the All Women’s March to the WTO Meeting. The march was participated by women from various organizations. An estimate of 3,000 to 5,000 women joined the march. It was a very colorful and festive march with big puppets and drums. We also carried the long tapestry which gathered media attention. As what happened to other rallies, we were not allowed entry into the official meeting. So we held the rally outside the gate of the WTO which was far from the main entrance of the meeting. There were speeches and chantings of slogans until the leaders decided to negotiate for us to enter the venue of the WTO and hand over our statement and the quilt made by women. After some time of negotiating and pushing, 10 women delegates including a WILPF member was able to get inside the WTO conference area. We waited for them outside to come out to get updates from them on what happened inside. The women leaders said they were med by a representative from a Latin American country and one from a European country.

The rally was a success in terms of projecting the impact of WTO on women and in terms of gathering so many women as well as men to the rally. Many Hong Kong People lined up the streets to witness the march. Many of them took pictures as well.

We all attended the rally initiated by the International League of Peoples Struggles (ILPS). It was a big rally as well. Likewise, we were not allowed to enter the premises of the WTO.

Meanwhile the Koreans held rallies almost everyday and tried to enter the WTO venue. I and a colleague were supposed to attend a dinner meeting with some Philippine negotiators but it did not push through because the official delegates of the WTO could not leave the premises because the Koreans were able to break the ranks of police and enter the gates of the WTO. The Koreans were dispersed, clubbed and truncheoned. Many were arrested. Many were also cornered at a place and were not allowed to leave. The Philippine delegates decided to provide support and marched to the place where the Koreans were hauled up and to bring them food for the night. However, the police did not allow the Phillippine delegates to approach the vicinity.

As of this writing 14 delegates are still in Hong Kong Jails and next week Jan 13 there will be an action in Hong Kong to protest the continues detention of the remaining 14 delegates.

The NGO activities ended with a rally at the gates of the WTO. The theme of the rally was Onward With People’s Struggles, No to WTO!

It is with great joy that I introduce myself and take on the responsibilities of the UN office director. I am very honored to be chosen to work with WILPF in this capacity. I hope to return your confidence through improving our effectiveness and ability to be an entry to the UN and its resources for women peacemakers.

In addition to academic study of the UN as a Peace Studies graduate, my working knowledge of the UN started when I was a WILPF disarmament intern in 1991. I have an extensive background in community organizing, active nonviolence and conflict transformation. Since my internship I spent three years with the International Fellowship of Reconciliation as the first coordinator of their nonviolence education and training program. In that capacity and since, I’ve focused on nonviolent conflict intervention, with an emphasis on peace teams. I spent three of the last four years living in East Timor, helping to develop a peace center focused on conflict transformation.

I’m from the USA and in addition to organizing around peace and justice issues in Westchester where I live (an area just north of New York City), my work here has focused on race relations and indigenous rights.

I hope the skills and experience I bring to the UN office will serve WILPF well. I invite you to contact me with ideas, questions or concerns that may help relate to your peace and justice efforts to the work of the UN. I also ask for your patience while I get acquainted with the current players and issues at the UN, and become better versed in my responsibilities.

Alexandra Sundberg will be working with WILPF in Geneva as the 2006 Disarmament Intern. In spring 2005, Alex interned in the WILPF UN Office in New York in preparation for and during the NPT Review Conference, as a part of the Programme of International Crisis and Conflict Management, Umea University, Sweden, from which she recently graduated.

Alex has an educational background in Peace & Conflict Studies and Psychology, and experience from volunteer work and field research in a variety of places. She has worked with human rights education in Azerbaijan; assisted as a teacher in orphanages and refugee camps in Nigeria and Palestine; volunteered with and studied a project for homeless people in Romania; and conducted a field study in Liberia for her BA thesis on female participation in the disarmament and demobilization process in the country. With sustainable peace worldwide being the overarching dream, her interests span from gender issues via poverty reduction to human rights and demilitarization.

You can reach Alex by sending email to: alex.sundberg(at)wilpf.ch or calling the Geneva office.

She will therefore have the opportunity to be more involved in organising and developing the office while supporting Susi in her mission.

Because it is of great interest to her and although she is new to the field, Marie will also get involved in gender issues to support WILPF’s work.

Marie is now your contact person when it comes to office related matters, personnel matters (she also sits as the staff representative on the personnel committee), IPU subscriptions, data base and membership matters and basically anything that is related to the Geneva office.

Marie can be reached at marie.boroli(at)wilpf.ch or on the Geneva tel number +41 22 919 70 80

Due to the overwhelming number of emails we receive on the info@wilpf.ch account, we are unable to keep up with it. Therefore, we invite you to email Marie (marie.boroli@wilpf.ch) or Susi (susi.snyder@wilpf.ch) directly to get a quick response.

If you still prefer using a general account, please do take note of our new general emails (knowing that they are not checked as often as the direct ones):

membership@wilpf.ch - If you are a member, if you want information on membership and/or want to become a member, if you want to contact a member

calendar@wilpf.ch - If you are emailing us regarding a meeting, schedules or a date we should put in our calendars

inforequest@wilpf.ch - If you request information about WILPF, if you need our participation or cooperation

In our last section mailing, we encouraged all sections and committees to submit a report to the upcoming Officer’s Meeting. If there are specific concerns or issues you would like raised at this officer’s meeting, please contact the Geneva office as soon as possible.

We would appreciate it if you would address the following questions, to the best of your ability, in your report:

In this months “Fun with Fundraising” tip, we recommend that you get to know a local business owner in your community. Someone, perhaps who runs a cash business (like a restaurant), who might be interested in posting fliers for your events. We encourage you to develop a relationship with this person- to spend time talking to them about WILPF, but not to ask for a donation just yet. The first step is to build a good relationship.

In later “Fun with Fundraising” tips, we will come back to this relationship.

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