EU, NATO join forces to promote women, peace and security

Sexual violence has become a tool of modern warfare. Most victims are women of all ages, but often young girls; and the results are unwanted pregnancies, HIV infection and social stigmatization.

Between 20,000 and 50,000 women are estimated to have been raped during the war in Bosnia in the 1990s. In Liberia, a country ravaged by war for decades, three out of four women have been exposed to sexual violence. In the province of South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 40 rapes are reported every day. However, women are not only victims, but should be seen as actors in preventing conflict and bringing about sustained peace.

Starting with a co-hosted conference in Brussels on Jan. 27, the European Union and NATO want to focus greater attention on this issue and to identify concrete steps toward ending sexual violence in war, empowering women and highlighting their vital role in restoring stability. A sound legal framework already exists in the form of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security and a string of subsequent UN resolutions, including the decision to appoint a new U.N. Special Representative to coordinate efforts of the international community in this field. Regrettably, implementation is lagging behind and greater efforts are clearly needed to ensure that more nations fulfill their obligations, in particular by training military and civilian staff on gender equality issues.

The adoption of the Lisbon Treaty has created fresh opportunities to boost gender objectives in the EU’s external action. The creation of the post of High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy can help build on EU policy since 2005, which seeks to ensure the full integration of gender aspects in EU crisis management actions, both military and civilian. For instance, EULEX Kosovo has a dedicated Human Rights and Gender Unit and EUFOR TCHAD/RCA had a Gender Advisor focusing on gender training. Gender aspects are also integrated into the EU’s external assistance, allowing for example support to women’s participation in peace negotiations.

Together with its partner countries, NATO is also examining its policies and programs, and looking to enhance its cooperation with other international actors. The NATO Strategic Commanders recently issued a military directive for the implementation of Resolution 1325 in all NATO-led operations. Gender adviser posts have been created to assist senior commanders in Afghanistan. And out in the field, specialist women teams have been very successful at establishing mutual trust between the NATO-led forces and local communities Still, more work must be done also by NATO to build the necessary capabilities and to fully integrate gender perspectives.

We hope and expect our conference on Jan. 27 will encourage further progress. We want to ensure all EU and NATO-led operations comply with U.N. resolutions relating to women, peace and security, and that they are supported by appropriate education, training, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. And we will continue to highlight the important role of women in security in the run-up to the 10th Anniversary of Resolution 1325 later this year, as well as in our future work. Our perception of security should go far beyond the traditional notion of military security.

Ultimately, unless we enhance the rights and responsibilities of women globally, many of our foreign policy goals will remain unachievable, and those we do achieve will turn out to be unsustainable. Only if we work together – internationally, regionally and with civil society – will we be able to combat the marginalization of women that is a real threat to global security.

* Catherine Ashton is the High Representative and Vice President of the European Commission. Anders Fogh Rasmussen is the Secretary General of NATO and Margot Wallström is the Vice President of the European Commission.