INDONESIA URGES OIC TO ENHANCE PALESTINIAN WOMEN’S ROLE IN DECISION MAKING

2012-12-04 | 20:08:48

Jakarta, 20 Muharram 1434/4 December 2012 (MINA) – Indonesian Vice-President Dr. Boediono urged the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) to continue efforts on enhancing governance capacity of the State of Palestine, including its women in their decision making process.

Vice-President Boediono made the remarks when opening OIC’s 4th Ministerial Conference on the role of Women in Development, in Jakarta, Tuesday.

This conference that will last until December 6, 2012, discusses matters related to efforts on empowering Muslim women economically in OIC member countries.

At least 170 delegates representing 42 out of the total 56 OIC members, representatives of OIC subsidiary bodies, observers and other guests participate in this biannual conference, hosted by the Indonesian Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection. OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu also attends the conference.

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“It is imperative for us to fully support reconciliation process in Palestine,” Vice-President Boediono said, adding that Indonesia welcomes the adoption of UN resolution on 29 November 2012 supported by 138 UN Member States, including Indonesia as a co-sponsor, to upgrade Palestine status at the United Nations to “non-member observer state”.

This resolution marks another important milestone towards the full recognition of Palestine as an independent and sovereign State, a cause which we all relentlessly support, the Vice-President said.

Strengthening Vice-President’s insights on Palestine, Mrs. Linda Agum Gumelar, Indonesian Minister Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, in his speech also underlined the need of OIC member countries to give closer attention on Palestinian women’s and children’s plight.

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“We in OIC must give joint supports to guarantee for the formation of an independent , sovereign Palestinian state,” Mrs. Gumelar pointed out, adding that OIC needs also to encourage all Palestinian parties to resort to dialogues, reconciliation and peace, one of the very basic tenets of OIC of protecting human rights.

The Minister reminded that the OIC Charter among other emphasizes the commitment of all its member states to nurture and advance women’s rights as well as guarantee for their participation on all aspects of life.

OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu in his speech said that there are also other issues that need the common attention of the OIC, other than the Palestinian issues. There are also problems regarding OIC members, such as those in Egypt and Syria presently.

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“OIC member countries need to continue with helping each other to solve problems in Muslim countries,” Secretary General Ihsanoglu pointed out.

The Conference is convened every two year, and the previous conferences took place in Turkey, Egypt and Islamic Republic of Iran. The theme of the 4th conference is “Strengthening Women’s Participation and Roles in Economic Development in OIC Member States”.

Member states will share their views on the role and participation of women in economic development and review the progress on the implementation of the OIC Plan of Action for the Advancement of Women (OPAAW) adopted in Cairo in 2008. (L/R-009/R-010/R-005/R-007/R-03/R-006/R-007).

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)