The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) particpated at the International Panel on ‘Women Victims of War’ held in the southeastern Turkish province of Gaziantep, on 10-11 November 2014. PAM was represented by Hon. Pedro Roque (Portugal) who addressed the session dedicated to “Syrians under Temporary Protection in Turkey and International Law”.
The event was organised by the Istanbul-based Women and Democracy Association (KADEM) and the Gaziantep Municipality. The main topic of the Conference focused on women from Syria, where a four-year-old conflict has killed thousands and forced millions to flee to Turkey, other neighbouring countries and also crossed the Mediterranean to reach ther European shores.
In his intervention, Hon. Roque highlighted the work of the PAM 3rd Standing Committee, which throughout the years, has been giving a great deal of attention, and a very careful consideration to crucial issues related to women, human rights, gender equality, youth, education and unemployment in the region.
“What is happening now in the Middle-East and North Africa represents a critical challenge for our world and for the peaceful coexistence of people”, the Portuguese MP added. Hon. Roque gave an overview of the main activities of PAM in this area, such as the event held last April at the invitation of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, during which the Mediterranean MPs and other international organisations discussed “Human Trafficking and Modern day Slavery; The consequences of displacement on Women and children in conflicts – protection and assistance”; and PAM’s engagement in Human Rights.
The Antalya parliamentary session, Hon. Roque said, was critical for PAM to further focus on a long term vision, a new strategy, and an implementation programme for its engagement in the region, in a coordinated effort with national and international institutions, and all other stakeholders committed to fight human trafficking, assist the most vulnerable members of society in areas of conflict, and further improve the respect of human rights. In Antalya, PAM addressed the different aspects of Human Rights in a structured manner, and at the end of the meeting a number of preliminary recommendations and conclusions were reached.
It was agreed that the PAM Secretariat shall coordinate with IOM, UNHCR, OCHA, the UN Council of Human Rights, the Council of Europe, and other key players, in order to organize specific induction seminars in Geneva to establish and prepare PAM’s deployment capabilities, to undertake, when necessary, missions to specific hot spots in the Mediterranean region to exercise the instrument of soft diplomacy and confidence building to support humanitarian operations, promote protection of civilians and advocate for the respect of Human Rights.
In his concluding remarks, Hon. Roque said that the role of the PAM, in highlighting social issues, dialogue, human rights and other related topics, is best carried out in the annual reports and resolutions which are presented for adoption by the Assembly every year, on the occasion of the Plenary Sessions.
For the forthcoming Plenary, to be hosted by the Principality of Monaco on 2-3 February 2015, PAM is preparing two reports, one dediacted to ‘The Role of Parliamentarians in Promoting Human Rights’, and another dedicated to the ‘Protection of Civilians in the Mediterranean: Refugees, Migrants and Displaced Persons’.