Tatsat Chronicle Magazine

Women Participation Crucial For Peace and Security: India at UN

India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador TS Tirumurti highlighted country's support for women's full, equal and meaningful participation in political processes and decision-making to promote an inclusive society
January 20, 2022
TS Tirumurti

India emphasised the participation of women in public life and the eradication of violence against them to promote lasting peace around the world, in the UN Security Council’s open discussion on “Women, Peace and Security”.

Addressing violence targeting women in peace and security processes, India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador TS Tirumurti on Tuesday (local time) highlighted the country’s firm support for women’s full, equal and meaningful participation in political processes and decision-making to promote an inclusive society.

“India has today moved from a paradigm of women’s development to women-led development,” said Tirumurti.

“In 2007, India created history by deploying the first-ever all-female Formed Police Unit (FPU) for UN Peacekeeping in Liberia. This unit served in Liberia for a decade and through their work served as an example of how the deployment of more women uniformed personnel could help the UN in its efforts to combat sexual exploitation and abuse,” added India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

India has over 1.3 million elected local representatives who have taken leadership in their local communities. Twenty Indian states have taken steps to reserve 50 percent of the total number of local legislative seats for women.

As an example of women’s participation in the Indian freedom struggle, the Indian ambassador said that women were at the forefront of almost every aspect of the effort and paraphrased an eminent Indian philosopher Swami Vivekananda and reiterated that just as a bird cannot fly with one wing, durable peace and development cannot be achieved without the other half being equally invested.

To strengthen women’s participation in peace and the political process and eliminate discrimination and violence against women, Tirumurti emphasised that member states should identify and address barriers to women’s meaningful participation in the prevention and resolution of conflict and in post-conflict peace-building efforts and programmes.

“This requires devising a legislative and judicial framework, providing economic opportunities, undertaking institution and capacity building, ensuring accountability and checking the impunity of those perpetrating violence against women,” he added said Tirumurti.

TS Tirumurti also urged the member states to provide a conducive environment for the participation and inclusion of women in political processes and decision-making.