1325 Week: Reflection of a Young Woman in Peacebuilding

Written by Eliška Jelínková, Co-Chair of GPPAC Youth, Peace & Security Working Group

I wore many hats at the 63rd Commission on the Status of Women (CSW63), from 11-22 March 2019, representing GPPAC’s working group on YPS, UNOY Peacebuilders, but also myself: a young European feminist. My mission was to mainstream youth into the theme of the CSW63, stress the links to the YPS agenda, push for inter-generational dialogue, and demand more youth representation. I was relieved to find out that there were quite a lot of people trying to make the link to conflict prevention and sustainable peace, but also youth delegates.

The CSW63 had two themes: 1. access to social protection systems and public services; and 2. sustainable infrastructure for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. As a first-time participant, I felt quite overwhelmed during the first two days, not only because a record number of people attended the CSW63, but also because it was my first time at an event of this magnitude. Thankfully, the consultation day gave me a good introduction into the week, and I had the opportunity to learn more about the priorities for the CSW63 outcome and where YPS could best fit in.

Some of my favourite moments from the CSW63 included attending a side event on YPS, where the entire panel was composed of young women peacebuilders talking about challenges in their communities and how they are trying to overcome them. Another unforgettable moment was speaking on a panel surrounded by very accomplished women peacebuilders about the role of young people, especially young women from disadvantaged groups in peacebuilding and the unique challenges they face. I felt very much supported from the very beginning when I was invited by GPPAC’s gender coordinator to be a speaker. I did not feel like my presence was tokenistic, but it reflected GPPAC’s commitment to involve more young people in their network. At first, I felt very conscious being the only young person and the only European representing a very diverse working group and an international network, but in the end, I felt included by the other speakers and I found attendees to be very interested in what I had to contribute.

Some of the youth dialogue events or youth-centred events only had one young speaker on a panel or had selected a few young people to ask questions to more senior people on the panel, which was not how I imagined an inter-generational dialogue. However, overall there seems to be genuine willingness, especially at UN Women, to get youth more actively involved and to support their efforts. Jayathma Wickramanayake, the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, stressed the importance of youth representation in peacebuilding and conflict prevention efforts, which was great to hear and made the link clear to the priorities of the CSW63.

There was a great moment of youth leadership when the recently appointed AU Youth Envoy, Aya Chebbi, a 31-year-old Pan-African feminist from Tunisia, pointed out the kinds of violence and challenges that young people face today, after an older female participant said that she envied the youth of today because of the opportunities and freedoms that young people, especially young women, have today, without acknowledging their struggles.

I felt encouraged by the words of UN Women Executive Director, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, who stressed the role of youth in leading the way forward in implementing the Beijing Platform for Action, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2020:

‘You will speak for yourselves. You will tell us what you want and the future you want’.

I am hoping that at the next CSW, there will be more youth representation and youth-led panels, so that the year 2020—which will be a big milestone for the Beijing Platform for Action, resolutions 1325 and 2250—can be remembered as revolutionary due to its inclusion of youth and the innovative solutions that young people have to contribute.