On
November 27, a high-level international conference on “Effective Defence and
Security: Advancing Women’s Meaningful Participation in Armenia’s Armed Forces
and Beyond” officially launched in Yerevan.
Opening
remarks were delivered by Alexander Vinnikov, Head of the NATO Liaison Office
in Georgia (co-accredited to Armenia); Anahit Manasyan, Human Rights Defender
of the Republic of Armenia; and Kaori Ishikawa, Representative of UN Women in
Georgia.
Anahit
Manasyan’s full speech is provided below:
“Distinguished colleagues, Honored guests,
As
the Human Rights Defender, I consider the ensuring of women’s meaningful
participation within the broader architecture of peace, defense, and security
to be essential. I am confident that enhancing the role of women, both within
the armed forces and at the levels of strategic and policy decision-making,
will strengthen the resilience of the state and contribute to the establishment
of sustainable and lasting peace and security.
It is
a great honor for me to have contributed to the organization of this high-level
international conference and to address you with the opening remarks.
First
and foremost, I would like to express my gratitude to NATO, to the United
Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), to
the state authorities of Armenia, to civil society and to all partners who
consistently advance “Women, Peace and Security” agenda, including within our
region. I would also like to extend special thanks to the international and national
experts whose expertise enriches our shared vision in this field. Today’s
discussion is not merely about promoting gender equality as a value. It is
directly related to strengthening a comprehensive and more effective system for
the protection of human rights, eliminating discrimination, and, in that
context, establishing governance and protection systems and environments that
are inclusive, accountable, and responsible.
As a
Human Rights Defender, I firmly promote the idea, that human rights, democracy and security not
only do not contradict one another, but on the contrary, mutually complement
each other. Moreover, none of them can be stable or enduring without others.
I am
confident that safeguarding the rights of servicemen, including women serving
in the armed forces, is a key prerequisite for increasing the country’s defense
capacity and stability.
Ensuring
equal opportunities within security and defense systems, along with a
dignified, fair, and non-discriminatory environment, enables a more effective
and professional response to contemporary security threats and to current
challenges related to the human rights system.
The
experience recorded in the course of implementing the mandate entrusted to me
has repeatedly reaffirmed the following principle: no system can be stable
without the guarantee of human rights, and the effective protection of human
rights is possible only within a secure and peaceful environment.
Honorable
colleagues,
United
Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 clearly states that sustainable and
long-term peace is impossible without the full, active, and influential
participation of women.
Our
collective commitment must be to ensure that this fundamental principle is
translated into reality within defense institutions, within strategic
decision-making processes, and across all levels of society.
In
recent years, significant work have been carried out, both at the legislative
level and in practice, to increase women’s participation in the armed forces,
to guarantee their rights, and to foster an inclusive and non-discriminatory
environment. Without going into a detailed overview of the actions undertaken
and the sector-specific issues (which are reflected in the annual report of the
Human Rights Defender), I consider it necessary to specifically emphasize the
importance of further enhancing the dynamism of these efforts, as well as the essential
role of involving broad segments of society—including civil society and
sectoral experts when initiating any reforms.
My
staff and I are determined to consistently fulfill our commitment to
strengthening a dignified, safe, equal, and contemporary human- rights-based
environment for women serving in the armed forces, engaged in security systems,
and peacebuilding processes.
Thank
you.”
The
event was organized in cooperation with the NATO Liaison Office, the Human
Rights Defender’s Office of the Republic of Armenia, and UN Women.
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