26 – 27 June 2024, Doha, State of Qatar – The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) participated in the Global Conference of Women Parliamentarians, organized by the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) – Programme Office on Parliamentary Engagement in Preventing and Countering Terrorism, with the support of the Shura Council of the State of Qatar.
The conference was held under the theme “The Role of Women Parliamentarians in the Development, Implementation, and Oversight of Counter-Terrorism and Prevention of Violent Extremism Legislation, Policies, and Strategies”.
The event gathered over 100 women MPs from more than 55 national parliaments in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas. Other participants included representatives of the Qatari Government, Embassies and United Nations agencies based in Qatar, as well as leading regional universities and institutions.
Hon. Rita Superman (Cyprus), PAM Rapporteur on Counter-Terrorism, represented the Assembly and contributed to multiple sessions. She emphasized the commitment of PAM to integrate gender perspectives in counter-terrorism efforts, stressing the importance of addressing the socio-economic factors that fuel terrorism, such as inequalities, lack of opportunities, and human rights violation and abuse.
Hon. Superman underscored the significant negative impact of terrorism on women, referring to Afghanistan, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the plight of Yazidi women under ISIL/Daesh. She called for enhanced strategies to counter online recruitment and radicalization, stressing the role of social media platforms in spreading terrorist narratives, and reiterated PAM’s dedication to supporting victims of terrorism through multi-dimensional approaches, ensuring the prosecution and accountability of perpetrators.
She also mentioned the establishment of the PAM Women Parliamentary Forum (WPF) in 2021, which serves as a platform to promote the political leadership and socio-economic empowerment of women.
Looking ahead, PAM expressed its willingness to further cooperate with UNOCT and other international partners to advance the implementation of the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda.
The Conference paved the way to strengthen the global engagement of women parliamentarians in preventing and countering terrorism and violent extremism conducive to terrorism. //