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World leaders met in Bonn, Germany on December 5, 2011 to lay “the foundation of the ongoing partnership between Afghanistan and the International Community, and to renew our mutual commitment to a stable, democratic and prosperous future for the Afghan people.” Aptly scheduled on the 10th anniversary of the initial Bonn Conference and its subsequent Bonn Agreement that formally ended the Taliban’s rule of Afghanistan, the International Conference on Afghanistan brought together delegates from 85 countries and 15 international organizations, including members of this Network.
In its outcome document (available here), the conference established joint commitments on the following issues: governance; security; peace process; economic and social development; and regional cooperation.
Largely as a result of persistent and persuasive lobbying by Afghan women themselves, including instrumental efforts by members of this network, there was notable female representation on the official Afghan delegation (13 out of 40 delegates were in fact women). To read more about the role of women at Bonn, please click here.
On November 9, 2011, Kerstin Müller MP and Tom Koenigs MP hosted Prof. Edward Luck, Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General for Responsibility to Protect (R2P) at the German Bundestag for an open discussion with participants from academia, civil society and politics.
This discussion took place during a particularly timely juncture: relative international inaction in the face of thousands of civilian deaths in Syria exemplifies the political complications of implementing R2P, while at the same time demonstrating its necessity.
Luck was very conscientious in differentiating between the principle of R2P and humanitarian intervention, which is merely one of many tactics. According to Luck, much of the debate surrounding R2P tends to be driven by those who mistakenly conflate R2P with military intervention.
To read more about what Prof. Luck said about the situation in Libya, Syria and Darfur, please click here.
Parliamentarians from around the world are coming together to support a Middle East Zone Free from Nuclear Weapons and all other Weapons of Mass Destruction. A Joint Parliamentary Statement issued on October 16, 2011, has been circulated by Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (PNND), a global network of parliamentarians from over 80 countries working to prevent nuclear proliferation and achieve a nuclear-weapons-free world.
Click here to read the press release from PNND, or here to read the Joint Parliamentary Statement. To add your name to the list of supporters contact: PNND Global Coordinator, Alyn Ware.
On November 8-9, 2011, the 10th Congress on European Security and Defence, “The Future of European Security and Defence – Time for Change,” brought together 1,000 participants and 100 speakers for a two-day conference in Berlin.
The economic crisis figured prominently in many of the discussions and was considered both as a threat and an opportunity. On the one hand, the crisis been has a source of international economic insecurity, generating a ‘crisis of leadership,’ and resulting in budget cuts to defence and other sectors, while on the other hand, by compelling a serious budget analysis, the crisis presents an opportunity to come up with innovative ways to maximize available resources.
PN Chair, Angelika Beer and PN member Ioan Mircea Paşcu were among the esteemed speakers, while members of the PN Secretariat participated in the event. To read more on their observations, please click here.
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If you are interested in receiving more information, please don't hesitate to contact the PN Secretariat
