Stakeout by Ireland, Kenya and Mexico on Women, Peace and Security
Statement
10 November 2021Good afternoon.
I speak on behalf of Mexico, Ireland and Kenya.
As part of our Women, Peace and Security Presidency Trio, launched in September, Mexico, as President of the Security Council, today invited Under-Secretary General for Peace Operations, Jean Pierre Lacroix, and Police Commissioners Violet Lusala, from the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), who we recognise is deployed from Kenya, and Patricia Boughani, from the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), to participate in the annual briefing with heads of police components of UN peace operations.
Their experiences are testament to what has been and can be achieved by women’s leadership in UN peacekeeping and policing. They are also a reminder of the main objective of the just concluded Annual WPS Debate under Kenya’s presidency, where there was a call to amplify the voices of women in the field, to bolster their contributions in peacemaking and invest in women across the peacebuilding-peacekeeping continuum.
The meeting gave us an opportunity to hear first-hand accounts about the critical work that women police officers undertake, among other things, to enhance people’s trust and confidence in State institutions, prevent and investigate crimes, maintain public order and safety, and protect local populations, particularly women and girls or other groupsexperiencing situations of vulnerability, in line with international human rights law.
The participation of women officers at all levels in UN Police has been increasing in the last years, and progress has been made in terms of their diversity and geographic representation. However, in order to ensure the full, equal and meaningful participation of women police officers in peace operations, in line with SC Resolution 1325, further investments and gender-responsive measures are needed to empower women police officers, tear down barriers for career development, create living and working environments free from gender-based violence, build their skills through specialized pre-deployment training and ensure that top technology is at their disposal.
Mexico, Ireland and Kenya, committed champions of the WPS agenda at the Security Council, will continue working towards this end.