Tag Archive for women

Sexual Violence in Conflict

Lord McConnell

In October 2009, deep in the jungle in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, I visited a small village where 40 brave UN Peacekeepers from India were ‘protecting’ the villagers from the armed groups who were killing and looting across the region, and from their National Army who were, then, probably as guilty as the groups.…

The movement to end Female Genital Cutting

Baroness Valentine

Today, February 6th, is the internationally recognised day against female genital cutting (FGC). Today, fourteen communities, representing over 60,000 people, are declaring their abandonment of female genital cutting in Mali. Approximately 2.8 million women and girls have undergone FGC in Mali, around 85%. This makes the declaration an important milestone, not least because the Government…

Women in Democracy

Baroness Valentine

15-21 November is Parliament Week– an annual event that raises awareness about Parliament and democratic life in the UK. This year, the theme is ‘Women in Democracy’, and I am pleased to support it. My first job was at Barings bank in the 1980s and I was one of the first female executives to work there. At the time,…

Positive about women in Swaziland

Lord McConnell

I am in Swaziland this week to support and assess a new development project called Tools for Life. All the hard work has been done by Wales-based charity Positive Women, and the McConnell International Foundation has supported the pilot underway this month. I will try to Blog here on what I see, and on life…

“It is time to do things differently”

Lord McConnell

              Our event this week in Bujumbura (introduced in my previous blog) is split into two parts. Special UN Envoy Mary Robinson’s consultation and mobilisation in support of the Framework of Hope will be followed by a Great Lakes Regional Conference on United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 –…