Women’s Big gathering on “Ceasefire for Peace”

Women’s Big gathering on “Ceasefire for Peace”

Date: 5/2/1398

Serial no: 86

We all know that the ongoing armed conflicts in Afghanistan have had a deadly and devastating consequences. According to official statistics, almost 75,000 civilians have been killed and injured since 1388. In 1397 alone, the current armed conflict in the country resulted in the deaths and injuries of 11212 civilians (3032 killed and 8180 injured), 8.3% of the victims were women. 
As shown in the statistics, Afghan women were victims of armed hostilities in the country without being directly involved in the war and suffered damage in various ways.
The continuation of war means the continuation of the bloodshed in the country leading to a widespread violation of the human and fundamental rights of citizens, especially women. The fundamental rights that are violated by the armed conflicts are the right to life, freedom and security of the individual. Moreover, other people's fundamental rights, such as human dignity, fundamental freedoms, and all instances of their constitutional rights, are violated by continued armed conflict and armed hostilities.
Given the above, and given that the peace process is a steady and a long-term process, the cease-fire is one of the immediate and serious needs of Afghan society. In the event of a cease-fire, the bloodshed and the killing of human beings in our country will be stopped and the ground for a just and lasting peace will be paved.
Therefore, we, the participants in the Women’s Conference "Ceasefire for Peace" call on all parties involved in the current armed conflicts in the country to pay attention to this very important issue and accept and act upon our following demands and wishes:
1. We call on all parties involved in the war, including the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban, to immediately and urgently stop their violent attacks, end the war, and agree to a ceasefire.
2. In order to fulfill the obligations of the parties involved in the country's ongoing armed conflicts towards a ceasefire, a monitoring mechanism with women's direct involvement should be established to identify violators and ensure the ceasefire's durability.
3. We call on the Afghan government and the Taliban to continue the current peace talks and negotiations with a view to providing the country with a peaceful, just and lasting peace.
4. We call for a lasting peace process in which all Afghans from different strata and groups of society, including men and women, participate and are consulted. We also welcome the establishment of a political consensus among relevant national, regional and international stakeholders to end the long war and conflict in Afghanistan. 
5. We demand that Afghan women, as half of the country’s population should have a meaningful and effective participation in all stages of peace in the country and not be ignored in this process. While we welcome and appreciate the efforts of the Afghan Government for inclusion of women in the reconciliation leadership council structure, the negotiating team and the Consultative Loya Jirga for Peace, once again, we call for the strong presence and participation of women, and at least 30% women’ participation throughout the peace process should be ensured.
6. We believe that strengthening good governance and ensuring the rule of law will lead to equality, prevent discrimination, and lead to peace. We therefore call on the Government of Afghanistan to pave the way for a just and lasting peace in the country, with a stronger emphasis on strengthening good governance, the rule of law and justice.
7. We will never step backward, we call for the protection of the rights of citizens and the freedom of all the people of Afghanistan, and especially of women, as enshrined in the Constitution of the country. In addition, we do not want the achievements of the past two decades, which have been achieved through many sacrifices, be eradicated, and these issues should be considered as the important basic lines in the talks with the Taliban.
8. Finally, we announce that we strongly support the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the democratic institutions.