Members of the International Women’s Commission for a Just and Sustainable Israeli- Palestinian Peace (IWC) convened an emergency meeting in Athens, July 13, 2006

Statement issued by the International Women’s Commission for a Just & Sustainable Peace between Israel & Palestine

3 May 2006

As violence increases again—and positions harden--in the wake of the recent Palestinian and Israeli elections, one truth has become urgent: both sides need to find ways to keep talking to each other. According to a public opinion poll taken jointly by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research in March, an “overwhelming majority among Israelis and Palestinians favor negotiated rather than unilateral further disengagement.” We agree. Peace and security will never be won unilaterally.

As Palestinian, Israeli and international women, we ARE still talking to each other. We came together a year ago, in a more hopeful time, as the International Women’s Commission for a Just and Sustainable Israeli-Palestinian Peace (IWC) convened by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). We are declaring our mission today because we believe it is more critical than ever not to let this hope die.

As women, who are deeply engaged in the politics of our respective communities, we oppose the continuation of violence, collective punishment, coercion, and continuous threats to personal rights which also threaten our own freedom. The IWC is dedicated to ending the Israeli occupation, to achieving a just peace and a two-state solution based on international law, human rights and equality.

The desire for a secure peace presents a challenge to the leadership on both sides. In Israel, the challenge is to recognize the link between the occupation and the deterioration of Israeli economic and social life. In the occupied Palestinian territory, the challenge is to give hope and regain faith in political processes to achieve liberation and enhance democracy.

As women, we have a key role to play in meeting these challenges and starting the longer-term process of rebuilding communities, reviving dialogue among all parts of society, and showing that there are other ways to live. This was the key message of the historic United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security, adopted unanimously in October 2000.

As women, both Israelis and Palestinians, we perceive unilateral actions as violations of basic human rights. We deplore the brutal culture of militarism and violence, the politics of fear and hate that manipulate public opinion. We know that in a world based on fear, hatred and despair we are all losers.

A secure peace demands an entirely different set of values and actions, one that honors the perspectives and concerns of both sides. As women, our voices have traditionally gone unheard on issues of national security. Yet we know that the only guarantee of our security rests on justice and the end to conflict.

However, as women we are absent from the spaces of power where men are taking decisions that will impact Palestinians and Israelis for generations to come. Despite the fact that Israel, Palestine and members of the Quartet have all pledged to implement Security Council Resolution 1325, which calls for increased engagement of women at all levels of decision-making in conflict resolution, this intention has still to be translated into practice. We can't wait for an invitation. It is time to hear what we think.

As women, we have dedicated ourselves to creating a better future for our children, grandchildren, and for our societies as a whole. We are determined to struggle unrelentingly to ensure full respect for human rights and adherence to international laws and conventions designed to learn from past experiences and prevent any repetition of the horrors due to wars and armed conflicts. Indeed, as women, we know that the guarantee of our security in the public and private spheres rests on the respect for the other.

A just and sustainable settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on a two state solution must be negotiated by both women and men. We call upon the Quartet and other members of the international community to fulfill their obligations in ensuring the end of the occupation, guaranteeing legal protection, and initiating negotiations between the parties. We urge civil society institutions and women in our societies, in Europe, the United States and throughout the world demand that their governments be proactive third parties in ending our protracted conflict. The International Women’s Commission is ready to engage fully in this process, and make the promise of Security Council Resolution 1325 a reality.

Members of the International Women’s Commission for a Just and Sustainable Israeli- Palestinian Peace (IWC) convened an emergency meeting in Athens, July 13, 2006. Following deliberations, the meeting issued the following appeal:

The present crisis is escalating out of control in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (especially in Gaza), Israel and Lebanon, threatening the region as a whole.

We reject the use of force. We call for an immediate end to the fighting and a return to the political process.

Civilians, mainly women and children, are paying the price daily for this vicious cycle of retaliation and counter-retaliation. This is a time of great danger. Political collapse will lead to total loss of control, anarchy and chaos. If no action is taken today, tomorrow will be too late.

We urgently request the Quartet to intervene immediately to stop the fighting.

We call upon the Quartet to dispatch high-level special envoys, including women, to mediate a truce and the exchange of prisoners, and to lead the parties back to political negotiations that address the root issues of the conflict.

This is the last chance for sanity. This is the last chance for a two-state solution.

The International Women’s Commission for a Just and Sustainable Peace between Israel and Palestine (IWC) is an international body of Palestinian, Israeli, and International women established in 2005 under the auspices of UNIFEM in the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.

PROMINENT ISRAELI AND PALESTINIAN WOMEN LEADERS

TO HOLD UNPRECEDENTED MEETING AT UN WITH WOMEN HEADS OF STATE TO INITIATE NEW MIDDLE EAST PEACE NEGOTIATIONS

DELEGATION OF ISRAELI, PALESTINIAN AND INTERNATIONAL WOMEN LEADERS ACHIEVE HISTORIC AGREEMENT ON PRINCIPLES FOR MIDDLE EAST PEACE AND URGE INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT

WOMEN SEE NEED TO TAKE LEAD TO RESTART THE PEACE PROCESS

New York, 15 September 2006 - A delegation of top Israeli, Palestinian and international women leaders arrive at the United Nations on September 20^th to meet with President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen, at a time when Finland holds the Presidency of the European Union, in an effort to marshal high-level political pressure to restart negotiations in the region. Joining the President of Finland will be President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia, Africa’s first elected woman head of state, who traveled to the occupied Palestinian territory in 2001 to hear the stories of women living in conflict as part of the Independent Experts’ Assessment on the impact of war on women, commissioned by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). It is hoped that together these leaders, representing both the North and the South, can begin to focus international attention on the need to resolve the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict so as to prevent broader conflict in the region. Taking advantage of the opening of the 66^th Session of the UN General Assembly, they are also meeting with Mr. Amr Moussa, who heads the League of Arab States and with critical foreign ministers, as well as with high-level UN officials.

The International Women's Commission for a Just and Sustainable Israeli-Palestinian Peace (IWC) convened in 2005 by Noeleen Heyzer, the Executive Director of UNIFEM, at the urging of Israeli and Palestinian women leaders, was established to ensure the meaningful participation of women in mainstream peace negotiations. IWC maintains that implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1325, which mandates women's involvement in conflict resolution, is critical to restarting negotiations and improving their outcomes. The IWC charter stresses the goal of bringing an end to Israeli occupation through immediate final status negotiations, leading to a viable sovereign Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel. Since its inception, IWC has succeeded in joining women living in different realities and experiences to speak out on the most difficult political issues in one voice.

Leading the delegation to New York are Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and Dr. Naomi Chazan, former Deputy Speaker of the Israeli Knesset and professor of political science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The IWC has agreed to the following principles which will be presented to the heads of state in New York:

· Civilian lives, especially those of women and children, must not be used as bargaining chips in efforts to resolve the escalating conflict in the region.

· Negotiations and mutual agreements are the only legitimate means to bring about a just and sustainable solution. Unilateral measures will undermine a two-state solution and never bring lasting peace.

· The Arab League Initiative of 2002 provides an appropriate framework for the resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and for comprehensive peace in the region. This initiative could lead to the realization of “a new Middle East” that the people in the region desire, rather than one that would be externally imposed.

· The escalating crisis demands an international conference be held immediately to launch permanent status negotiations based on relevant UN resolutions and international law and to decide mechanisms for implementation

· In the interim, the international community must insist on a complete cessation of hostilities and protection of people in both Lebanon and the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), according to international law. This should be followed by the promotion of good will measures such as: exchange of prisoners; free movement of people and goods and the cessation of the construction of the separation wall in oPt to pave the way to permanent settlement negotiations.

Members of the IWC at the UN meeting will include: Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, Member, Palestinian Legislative Counsel; Ms. Zahira Kamal, former Minister of Women's Affairs, Palestinian Authority; Ms. Samia Y.M. Bamieh, former Director of European Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Dr. Naomi Chazan, Professor of Political Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Ms. Aida Touma-Sliman, General Director, Women against Violence Organization; Dr. Galia Golan, Professor Emeritus, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Ms. Leire Pajin Iraola, State Secretary for International Cooperation, Spain, Ms. Noeleen Heyzer, Executive Director of UNIFEM and other prominent international figures from Europe and the United States.

In August, 2005 Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas recognized the IWC through an official decree. Before leaving for the UN meeting, the Palestinian delegation met with President Abbas to brief him and gained his support. In Israel, the IWC launch coincided with the adoption in the Knesset of a law calling for implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, giving credence to the IWC.

With support of its international members and facilitation of UNIFEM, an IWC delegation visited Brussels in December 2005 to meet with EU officials. A visit to New York and Washington took place in May 2006, providing the IWC with a dialogue with high level officials in the United Nations and in Washington, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and UN Under-Secretary for Political Affairs, Ibrahim Gambari.

Going forward, the IWC hopes to achieve a breakthrough in negotiations and offer policymakers a stake in resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict with fresh, incisive political analysis and innovative proposals from women leaders for actions and strategies that can serve to advance the peace process.

IWC IMMEDIATE CALL FOR ACTION IN GAZA

November 8, 2006

As Israeli, Palestinian and international women leaders and activists, members of the International Women Commission dedicated to the goal of ending the occupation and achieving a just and sustainable Palestinian-Israeli peace based on a two-state solution, committed to the respect of international law, including relevant UN resolutions, human rights, and equality, we are outraged at the horrifying Israeli carnage against the Beit Hanoun civilians in Gaza Strip. The dawn bombardment of houses on November 8 in Beit Hanoun cost the lives of 19 civilians, among them 7 children and 6 women and left dozens of innocents injured. Since the end of June, Israeli military assaults on civilians in Gaza have resulted in the killing of 383 Palestinians, including 68 children and 14 women.

As women we refuse to remain silent. As women we have an obligation to do everything possible to bring an end to the senseless use of force which threatens to destroy all options for creating a humane future for ourselves and our children.

WE CALL on the government of Israel to immediately cease its war on the civilian population of Gaza Strip, withdraw its armed forces, and end the siege. Attacks against civilians and collective punishment cannot under any circumstances be justified.

WE DEMAND that the International community, especially the UN Security Council, exercise its responsibility for the protection of human security, human rights, and human dignity according to international law and intervene immediately to ensure the total withdrawal of Israeli forces and the complete cessation of all attacks.

WE ASK that an international verification force be dispatched to assure implementation of these decisions.

WE CALL on the Human Rights Council to dispatch a team to investigate the Beit Hanoun killings.

WE REAFFIRM our belief in the fundamental rights of all to live in an environment of peace and security, free from occupation, oppression, and the use of force as stipulated in international law and human rights conventions.

History has proven that sustained conflicts have no military solution.

WE APPEAL to the quartet to convene an international conference forthwith in order to return to the path of negotiations, and we ask all responsible parties to do everything in their power to begin this vital process.

Time is of the essence: our future, and that of our children, is in grave danger.

Ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the foremost challenge and obligation of the international community today.

The International Women’s Commission for a Just and Sustainable Peace between Israel and Palestine (IWC) is a body of Palestinian, Israeli, and International women established in 2005 under the auspices of UNIFEM in the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.

IWC CALL TO NORMALIZE RELATIONS

WITH THE NEW PALESTINIAN GOVERNMENT

March 22, 2007

The IWC regards the formation of a unity Palestinian government as an important positive step forward. This government, a broad-based coalition composed of the different parliamentary groups in the Palestinian Legislative Council, gives voice to the range of opinions in Palestinian society. It provides in its program the elements necessary for the resumption of final status negotiations to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The political platform of the unity government states clearly that the government honors international law and all existing agreements signed by the PLO. It acknowledges that negotiations are the mandate of the PLO and it entrusts President Abbas to conduct negotiations as the legitimate Palestinian negotiator for peace.

The unity government has defined its goal as achieving a solution based on two states through the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders and the consolidation of a strong foundation for peace, security and prosperity for present and future generations in the entire region. It has reaffirmed that, as the international community has acknowledged, ending the occupation is an essential requirement for resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict. It has expressed its commitment to work with the international community to achieve these objectives.

The new Palestinian government has also made a firm commitment to a comprehensive reciprocal ceasefire. It has indicated that it will work with all concerned partners for the release of Gilad Shalit on the basis of an exchange of prisoners.

The IWC calls on the international community to normalize relations with the new unity government immediately and to promote the resumption of final status negotiations to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict. The boycott of the previous Palestinian government has damaged public institutions and undermined the capacity of the authorities to deliver the most basic services to Palestinian society. The sanctions on the Palestinian people have created high levels of unemployment and poverty. Civilians, and particularly women and children, are paying the price. Concrete improvements must be felt on the ground to show that meaningful steps in the right direction yield a tangible dividend.

The international community has a critical role to play in building greater trust and holding all parties accountable to their declared commitment to resume negotiations in good faith.

A just and sustainable peace is the only way to ensure security for both peoples and for the region. A clear majority of both the Israeli and Palestinian populations also supports a negotiated two-state solution. Movement towards final status negotiations must start immediately and all genuine voices for peace must be empowered and amplified, including strong representation of women. The IWC stresses that any viable peace depends on the firm commitment of all parties to promote and protect women’s rights and gender justice.

Now is the time for courageous leaders to transcend fears and get down to work towards resolving all the most difficult issues. Women of the IWC are showing the way and can be counted on to actively support the political negotiation process.

The IWC was formed under the auspices of UNIFEM in concrete implementation of SCR 1325 and is a body of Israeli Palestinian and International women working for a just and sustainable Israeli-Palestinian peace.

IWC CALL FOR INCLUSIVE NEGOTIATIONS

May, 13 2007

The International Women's Commission for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace (IWC) recognizes that there may be a unique opportunity today to end the occupation and to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is concerned, however, that the present flurry of diplomatic activity has created a great deal of motion without any concrete movement towards this goal.

The IWC calls on the leaders of Israel, Palestine and the international community, in accord with UNSC Resolution 1325, to incorporate women into negotiations and to take into account our perspective in order to ensure the achievement of a substantive, comprehensive, and lasting peace. The adoption of a new, embracing, consultative approach, replacing the failed one led by men alone, is imperative at this critical juncture to achieve our common vision of a dignified existence free of fear and want.

In the absence of substantive and viable political negotiations, the exclusive emphasis on improving conditions on the ground without taking concrete action on lifting the economic siege, facilitating the movement of people and goods, and normalizing relations with the National Unity Government, perpetuates the occupation, generates a massive humanitarian crisis, and undermines the prospects for the implementation of a two-state solution. It also diverts attention from the political questions at the core of the conflict. The lack of realization of the fundamental right of the Palestinian people to self-determination in an independent state alongside Israel continues to fuel the conflict.

The only way to achieve human security and the right to life with dignity is to end the occupation through a negotiated agreement on all outstanding permanent settlement issues.

The international community, along with the majority of the publics in Israel and Palestine, recognizes the need to move urgently, directly, and firmly to final status negotiations now. Civil society in both communities continues to play an important role in promoting this objective.

The Arab League Initiative provides the essential framework for freedom for Palestine, legitimacy for Israel, normalization of relations in the region, and human security for all.

The IWC appeals to the international community and to Israeli and Palestinian authorities, as well as to civil society in both communities, to join together in an inclusive and transparent effort to extricate us from the shackles of the past and help us create a just and peaceful future based on the principles of justice, equality, tolerance and mutual respect.

IWC CALL FOR INCLUSIVE NEGOTIATIONS

13 May 2007

The International Women's Commission for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace (IWC) recognizes that there may be a unique opportunity today to end the occupation and to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is concerned, however, that the present flurry of diplomatic activity has created a great deal of motion without any concrete movement towards this goal.

The only way to achieve human security and the right to life with dignity is to end the occupation through a negotiated agreement on all outstanding permanent settlement issues.

The Arab League Initiative provides the essential framework for freedom for Palestine, legitimacy for Israel, normalization of relations in the region, and human security for all.

A Place at the Table:

Women and the Resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

Ambassador Hotel, East Jerusalem

IWC POSITION ON THE UPCOMING ANNAPOLIS CONFERENCE

October 2007

The International Women's Commission for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace (IWC) recognizes that the U.S.-sponsored Annapolis conference scheduled to take place in November could provide a unique opportunity to end the occupation and to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is concerned, however, that if the meeting is not used to launch expeditious negotiations on all outstanding issues within a clear time frame, it will not succeed. Failure will have disastrous results for both peoples and the region as a whole.

The IWC views the adoption of a new, embracing, consultative approach, replacing the failed one dominated by men guided by military perspectives, as imperative at this critical juncture to achieve our common vision of a dignified existence free of fear and want.

The only way to achieve human security and the right to life with dignity is to end the occupation through a negotiated agreement on all remaining permanent settlement issues.

The Arab League Initiative provides the essential framework for freedom for Palestine, legitimacy for Israel, normalization of relations in the region, and human security for all.

Previous experience shows that general statements lacking specific substance are a prescription for further deterioration. What is needed now is a detailed framework for ending the occupation and creating an independent Palestine alongside Israel on the 1967 borders, with two capitals for two states in Jerusalem. Implementation of these understandings must be monitored by the international community with verification and arbitration mechanisms according to a strict and speedy timetable. Only a political solution will resolve the extensive humanitarian crisis and the perpetuation of the conflict.

The IWC calls on the leaders of Israel, Palestine and the international community, in accord with UNSC Resolution 1325, to grant the IWC consultative status as a way of incorporating women into negotiations and taking into account our perspective in order to ensure the achievement of a substantive, comprehensive, and lasting peace.

The IWC appeals to the international community and to the Israeli and Palestinian authorities, as well as to civil society in both communities, to join together in an inclusive and transparent effort to extricate us from the shackles of the past and help us create a just and peaceful future based on the principles of justice, equality, tolerance and mutual respect.

IWC CALL TO LIFT THE SIEGE ON GAZA AND END THE OCCUPATION

February 2008

We, Israeli, Palestinian and international members of the International Women's Commission for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace (IWC), are outraged by the Israeli blockade of the entire population of Gaza. The decision to cut off life-sustaining food, fuel, electricity, and medical supplies, and terrorizing civilians to advance political goals is totally reprehensible. Such acts clearly constitute collective punishment, which is a gross violation of international humanitarian law and are considered war crimes.

The IWC notes with deep concern that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is now being conducted entirely on the backs of civilians, who have become the prime targets of the ongoing escalation. The Gaza siege, in addition to the systematic military actions and targeted killings that led to great loss in innocent lives, has made conditions in Gaza inhuman and intolerable. We deplore the rocket attacks on the residents of Sderot and its surroundings. This, however cannot justify the condemnable Israeli policy, which makes the 1.5 million defenseless inhabitants of Gaza prisoners in sub-human conditions, vulnerable to highly sophisticated military attacks. According to the Fourth Geneva Convention, Israel as an occupying power still bears full responsibility for the well being and human security of the population of Gaza, and stands accountable to the international community.

We also observe with dismay the repetition of the familiar pattern of a growing gap between the promise of stepped-up negotiations on all outstanding permanent status issues, which would lead to the end of occupation and the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state alongside Israel on the 4th of June 1967 borders, and the constantly deteriorating situation on the ground which undermines the attainment of this goal. The cynical and patriarchal resort to military force fortifies extremism and creates a dynamic of revenge, which compromises our future.

As women, we are convinced that there is only a political solution to our conflict. We therefore totally reject the chauvinist thinking that seeks to attack and manipulate civilians in order to effect change.

The IWC demands that Israel opens the borders to Gaza, ensures the mobility of peoples and goods, and cease all military actions against the population to allow a better environment for comprehensive peace negotiations.

The IWC appeals to the international community, and especially to the United Nations, to exercise its responsibility to safeguard human rights and human dignity and to do everything within its power to ensure the absolute termination of all attacks against civilians. We also demand that the international community intervene immediately to ensure the total compliance of Israel with all UN resolutions related to the conflict.

The IWC reiterates its conviction that only comprehensive and meaningful negotiations between Israel and the PLO, which will end the occupation and maintain the integrity of the Palestinian Territory, can stop this insanity and ensure the future of our peoples.

The International Women’s Commission for a Just and Sustainable Palestinian-Israeli Peace (IWC) is a body of Palestinian, Israeli, and international women established in 2005 under the auspices of UNIFEM in the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.