§ Ms Oona KingTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security passed on 31 October 2000. [79131]
§ Mr. RammellThe UN Secretary-General reported to the Security Council on 16 October on implementation of SCR 1325. That report included a number of important points that the Government strongly supports: promoting gender equality is not just the responsibility of women; post-conflict reconstruction should be based on full observance of human rights and the principle of non-discrimination; and more effort is needed to address the problems of children associated with armed groups, particularly girls. The Secretary-General also proposed a target of 50 per cent. women in all areas of UN peace operations by 2015.
The Government strongly supports both the intention and implementation of this ground-breaking resolution. We welcome the UN's efforts to incorporate a gender perspective throughout its work, including peacekeeping and peacebuilding. We are funding a series of projects through the UN's Department of Peacekeeping Operations, UNIFEM (the UN development fund for women) and NGOs to support implementation of the resolution. We used our Presidency of the Security Council in July to host an open debate on conflict, peacekeeping and gender. We shall continue to work through the Security Council, with the UN and in our peace and development efforts for implementation of this resolution and for the benefit of women and all people striving for peace.