Backsliding on the Women, Peace and Security Agenda

Strategic Insights -

The Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, launched by the United Nations in 2000, has made significant progress in the past two decades, but the pace of progress has slowed down in recent years. Despite increasing recognition of the importance of women's participation in peace processes and the need to address conflict-related sexual violence, many countries, including Australia, have failed to implement their national action plans and provide sufficient funding to support women's rights organizations.

Key Takeaways:

  • The United Nations' Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda has made significant progress since its launch in 2000, with 112 countries now having national action plans to implement the WPS resolutions.
  • However, many of these national action plans are unfunded, and women-led organizations in conflict-affected countries struggle to access even basic support.
  • The Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund has failed to meet its goals due to bureaucratic red tape and unrealistic governance requirements.
  • Impunity persists for conflict-related sexual violence, with only two prosecutions against foreign fighters for such crimes in the tens of thousands of cases documented.
  • Australia's National Action Plan on WPS remains under-implemented, with no accountability or justice for survivors of Australian perpetrators of conflict-related sexual violence.
  • The Department of Home Affairs is missing in action, failing to provide support to displaced women, including women's rights defenders.

Statistics:

  • There are 10 WPS resolutions passed by the Security Council, prioritizing women's participation in conflict prevention, mitigation, resolution, and recovery, as well as protection from and justice for conflict-related sexual violence.
  • 112 countries have national action plans to implement the WPS resolutions.
  • Only 2 prosecutions have been made against foreign fighters for conflict-related sexual violence, war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide perpetrated against Yazidi women and girls.
  • Australia currently spends 0.65% of its budget on aid, down from 0.68% in the previous budget.
  • The Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund has provided support to only a small number of organizations working on WPS issues.

Sources:

  • The Beijing Platform for Action (https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/CSW/PFA_E_Final_WEB.pdf)
  • UNSCR 1325 (2000)
  • General Recommendation 30 on Women in Conflict Prevention, Conflict, and Post-conflict Situations (https://www.refworld.org/legal/general/cedaw/2013/en/53711)
  • The Lowy Institute's article on the US undermining of UNSCR 1325 (https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/us-undermines-un-security-council-resolution-against-wartime-rape)
  • The Conversation's article on the She4SG campaign (https://theconversation.com/she4sg-how-did-we-end-up-with-another-man-as-un-secretary-general-66635)
  • The Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund's website (https://wphfund.org/)
  • The Australian government's National Action Plan on WPS (https://www.dfat.gov.au/sites/default/files/australias-national-action-plan-on-women-peace-and-security-2021-2031.pdf)
  • The UN's WPS website (https://wps.unwomen.org/)
  • The Geneva Institute for Human Rights's report on the Index of Conflict Affected Countries (https://giwps.georgetown.edu/the-index/)
  • ActionAid's article on Australia's aid budget (https://actionaid.org.au/resources/australias-aid-budget-must-grow-to-support-women-around-the-world/)