PEACE BY PEACE
(We reported last week the start of the International Conference on Women, Peace and Security (ICWPS) at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC).
The ICWPS Operations Center (OPCEN) reported the attendance of 691 delegates from 84 countries representing six regions of the world. Most of the attendees were from government, academe, international organizations and from 108 civil society organizations. Of these delegates were six ministers, 11 vice ministers and 10 parliamentarians.)
The Pasay Declaration on Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) that was adopted on the first day “gives us a springboard on how we can bring together the various national actions and put them and mold them together into some type of international approach,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said. The spirit and mechanism for international collaboration is an important ingredient in the declaration. The Pasay Declaration emphasizes the following priorities — Full participation of women in peace negotiations, protection against gender-based violence, active involvement of women in disaster response efforts, robust monitoring and evaluation systems, integration of the WPS agenda into the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The International Conference on Women, Peace and Security (ICWPS) paved the way for domestic and international development partners to pour in peace investments, especially for women, in the country. The Japanese Embassy signed an agreement with BARMM to support maternal and reproductive health. The United Nations Population Fund will implement the project with the ₱275 million funding. The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) allocated ₱1.6 billion to enhance health outcomes and advance Universal Health Care in BARMM. The tripartite agreement was signed prior to the conference. The United Kingdom and Canada extended a sum of money for capacity-building and awareness in preparation for the upcoming 2025 parliamentary elections in BARMM.
The Philippines (OPAPRU by authority of the President) and the United States (through the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, US Department of State) also signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a women, peace, and security (WPS) Center of Excellence in the country during the 2024 ICWPS at PICC on Oct. 29. This partnership aims to strengthen support for women’s leadership in peacebuilding and foster more inclusive, resilient communities. The center will prospectively serve as a regional hub to advance the WPS agenda. The technical teams of the US Department of State and their partners from Georgetown University met immediately with the OPAPRU technical working group on Oct. 31 to plan out the succeeding activities for the WPS Center of Excellence. The Philippine center is only the fourth in the world after Colombia, Abu Dhabi and Kosovo. The initial activities will involve the capacity building of OPAPRU and partner agencies on WPS. We thus go beyond rhetoric by pursuing our set objectives with an action program. Action seals the success of this conference.
Much of the items under focus in the conference are embodied in the Philippines’ NAPWPS, a shared vision of peace born from the courage and resilience of countless Filipinas, who, despite either being forgotten or have been invisible in the history of our aspirations for peace, continue to stand strong for themselves, and their communities. The importance of the document cannot be over emphasized and to guide the implementation, the OPAPRU, in another side event, launched the “Indicator Handbook for the Philippine National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2023-2033”. What OPAPRU has achieved in the twin documents – NAPWPS and the Indicator Handbook – are vital in modelling solutions for other countries and states to follow.
As the conference and the Pasay Declaration direct us for international collaboration, the final message of Executive Director Susana Marcaida during the launch must reverberate to nations pursuing their own peace. She said, “Together, may we carry forward this legacy of hope, and work tirelessly to make this vision a reality for every generation to come.”
Sen. Imee Marcos, in the closing ceremonies, likened the role of women in peace to that of the mother who keeps the harmonious atmosphere in the family. Key takeaways were shared among the participants amidst the music from instruments made of bamboo, a plant that symbolizes resiliency.
(Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. is the presidential adviser on peace, reconciliation, and unity.)