Amal Kreishe, General Director of Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development

Regional consultations to review and explore women in the Arab Region are crucial within the political and economic and social context of our region, to reduce conflict and address military occupation, especially with growing numbers and types of fundamentalists, which create more challenges for women and girls, mainly the lack of human security and peace.

We know from our practical experiences in our societies that women are the most victimized in these conflict situations.

As a civil society women’s organization, one of our strategies is to influence policymakers at the global level. We must hold them accountable to the human rights conventions and international humanitarian law to protect women and to open access and opportunities to enjoy comprehensive development.

As a Palestinian woman who lives under Israeli occupation and experiences it daily, there is violence in our public and private lives. We lack the right to choose our partners, for example, if we live in the West Bank and he/she lives in Jerusalem. We lack the right to mobility, the right to life, the right to security. Palestinian women in Gaza have faced the closure since 2007, which deprived many of them to the right of travel to continue their travel or their access to health services. We struggle for self-determination and sovereignty for our nations. But we are first citizens.

We must use international instruments for justice like Agenda 1325, BDS, and the International Criminal Court to end occupation. SDGs [Sustainable Development Goals] commit to supporting people living under foreign occupation: the international community must end the occupation, hold Israel accountable to all human rights [conventions], stop weapons trade with Israel, and implement the recommendations within the Human Rights Commission of Inquiry in 2014.