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26 October 2005

Acknowledgements
VIP guests
Minister Valerie Nyirahabineza- Rwanda
Former Secretary of Government, Mrs Hyacinthe Budome- Burundi
Honourable MP Catherine Mabobori- Burundi
Honourable MP Dr Bernadette Lahai- Sierra Leone

I wish to particularly acknowledge the women of Rwanda and Burundi for the high representation of women in their parliaments.

* Creators and the authors of the magazine UNIFEM. I remember when I participated in your launch of the groundbreaking United Nations Report in the human security now centre for human rights at the University of Pretoria. I am aware of the centres initiation of the African Human Rights Moot Court with participation by all the law faculties on the continent

* Readers of this magazine, which is my way of acknowledging all of you present in anticipation of you reading it, contributing to it, taking up the issues and acting to bring about gender justice and the particular role women have to contribute to peacemaking which is so needed in Africa and the world.

I wish to thank you for the invitation for two reasons:
* I am excited by the launch of the advocacy magazine “African Women for Peace” and to see you all here.
* I am excited because this is an issue close to my heart. I have tried to place myself, as a woman, at the centre of action and debate and sometimes I have been forced there.

My family says I am like two sides of a stuck record. The one side is resolution 1325 and the other is human security now. These threads weave a pattern throughout this advocacy magazine.

The magazine takes up the debate that is central for women in Africa in 2005.

Women need to be involved in peacemaking at all levels and in all sectors of so-called peaceful society as well in pre and post conflict situations.

The questions we need to ask of women in all these sectors and levels are:
* Where are the women and how are we acting?
* Are we acting as peacemakers, victims or perpetrators by our silence and acquiescence?

We can ask these questions at all levels from the international to the national, city, village and family. The answers are obvious. We can ask these questions in all sectors. Where are women and how are we acting?
* In the government sector in South Africa, what are we doing and saying about
* Racism in the judiciary
* Land distribution and justice
* The HIV and AIDS debate
* Delivery of services
* Economic equality
* In the nongovernmental organisation sector what are we doing and saying about the collapse of that sector and what are we saying and doing about the role of faith based organisations and the participation of women in leadership and peacemaking
* In business and politics the list goes on.

In South Africa we need to rekindle the spirit of women in united action for a women’s charter and the gender machinery that has been constitutionally guaranteed.

Women have put women in places of leadership but a large gap is developing. Our experience is that there have been weaknesses in dealing with the past.

* In the negotiations the framework for woman’s participation was not well developed
* The RDP only had a gender edit and gender was not mainstreamed
* In the TRC women were at most an add on or side show
* Women are absent in the macroeconomic policy, gear, and its development
* In the return of exiles and demobilization of soldiers women and children were even more neglected than the men.

There are opportunities now for African women to act together to demand gender justice, human rights and human security for all. The African Union (AU), the Peace and Security Council, New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the African parliament and regional economic bodies are all platforms for participation.

Perhaps we need to lobby the international criminal court as African women to set up a woman’s court in Africa to specifically try crimes against women. It has concluded that rape is a crime against humanity/war crime

I see the fundamental question for women as:-

* Where do we find security?
* In high walls, razor and electric wire, firearms, guns and armies
* Or in positive healthy human relations with those who are close and those who are different to us
* Women have a unique role as peacemakers and we live in exciting times as we prepare to take on this role in large numbers.

That is why the launch of this magazine is so important and I wish to congratulate those who made it possible and all of you who are making peace possible in Africa.

Issued by: Ministry for Health
26 October 2005