Women make a difference, in part because they adopt a more inclusive approach toward security and address key social and economic issues that would otherwise be ignored.

Women can make peace agreements and post-conflict efforts more viable, effective, and practical by engaging in a wide variety of actions, including but not limited to participating in peace talks; rehabilitating children associated with armed groups; convening people across conflict lines to discuss common concerns such as access to clean water; and advocating budget priorities that emphasize social services rather than military expenditures.

Women also have a great deal to offer to the planning and execution of weapons collection, demobilization and reintegration programs. Women's organizations are very active at the community level in both disarmament and reintegration initiatives.

Whether persuading fighters to disarm, collecting weapons or providing psycho-social assistance to former combatants, women's civil society groups are attempting to address the proliferation of small arms as well as the impact and needs of former combatants.

But despite the general consensus to protect and empower women, they remain marginalized in decision-making, peace-building and peacekeeping operations.

Under-representation of women in politics still persists worldwide, including in Europe. Only 6 percent of ministers worldwide and 10 percent of parliamentarians are women. And we all know that the famous "glass ceiling" is still in place, be it in politics or economy.

Baring women from full participation at the decision-making levels are significant barriers to achieving Resolution 1325's goals. There is also a widespread problem of simply viewing women as victims and not recognizing their potential as active participants in the process of building a more stable and secure world.

(China Daily March 7, 2008)