The United States said on Tuesday that the lingering conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region “should serve as a clarion call to action for all.”
“The recent events unfolding in conflicts around the world – in Afghanistan, in Ethiopia, the list goes on and on – and the tragic realities for women and girls in so many parts of the world should serve as a clarion call to action for all of us today,” said U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield spoke at an Event on “Ensuring Protection for Full and Equal Participation in Peacebuilding and Political Spaces” at the UN headquarters in New York City.
Asserting that women make the world more peaceful, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield said “by promoting women’s participation and leadership – in politics, in education, in negotiations, and in every aspect of public life – we change the dynamics of the world.”
“We elevate and we alter global conversations. And this isn’t just a priority for women. It’s a priority for men. It’s a priority for our children moving forward. It’s a critical priority for everyone on the planet who values peace and values progress,’ she said.
Still, she said, in 2021, women and girls have largely been left behind in peace processes.
“Their voices are silenced, their experiences are dismissed. And that is beyond unacceptable. It cannot continue, and we must all work to lift them up, and not allow them to be knocked down. We have to address this today – not tomorrow – and we have to address it together,” she said, insisting that “the United States stands firm in our commitment to promoting the women, peace, and security agenda and to protecting the equal rights for all people, but particularly for women and girls – both here at home, as well as abroad.”
Simon Ateba is Chief White House Correspondent for Today News Africa. Simon covers President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, the U.S. government, the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other financial and international institutions in Washington D.C. and New York City.