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Human Rights, Security, and the Survival of the Biosphere

6 November 2014

Today, 6 November, is the UN International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict.

According to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,

On this International Day, we stress the critical importance of protecting the environment in times of armed conflict and restoring the good governance of natural resources during post conflict reconstruction. We also recognise the important role that natural resources play in supporting the livelihoods and resilience of all members of society, especially women, and the implications of sustainable natural resource management for conflict prevention and peace.

WILPF and the environment

By exploring the root causes of conflict, WILPF has long identified environmental exploitation as a driver of conflict as well as a residual impact of war. The lack of access to and competition for resources and the degradation of environments and ecosystems lead to instability, inequality and poverty. This can lead to conflict and wars, with the cycle flowing the other way.

ikff2A political and legal approach to the environment

The world urgently needs a political approach to environmental sustainability. It needs to examine the prevailing culture of violence and militarism and compare it to one of peace and human security.

Devastating climate and ecosystem change cannot be reversed but the causes, particularly climate injustice due to human activity, have to be stopped. We must take economic and political steps, and we must hold countries accountable through legally binding laws and international agreements.

We believe unjust economic power systems and the greed of many industrial complexes drive the destruction and exploitation of natural resources, thereby laying the roots of conflict.

How are the environment and conflict linked?

We continue to question and expose the root causes of war, conflict, and their threat to the biosphere. They include:

Military expenditure

As stated by Ban Ki-moon, “the World is over-armed and peace is under-funded.” Unsustainable military expenditure, consumption, and the reduction of available resources for social and economic development perpetuate conflict and harm the environment. The military-industrial complex, composed of nation states’ armed forces, government, suppliers of weapons systems, multinational corporate services, and academic institutions’ research on weapons systems absorb vast amounts of funding and resources that could otherwise be spent on human security, including the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and post 2015 goals.

Water and food

The threat to human security due to exploitative systems of food production, the reckless use of water, and conflict generated by competition for resources vital to life. Water and food is treated as a commodity to be controlled by corporations for profit. The relationship between water and food as monetarily valued commodities and geopolitical conflict driven by unsustainable production, is devastatingly circular.

Mining

There is an increasing demand for and mining of scarce minerals and metals. This includes coltan in the Democratic Republic of Congo, uranium in many African countries, and rare earth elements in Afghanistan. Many of these resources are used to perpetuate global consumption of manufactured goods and are fought over in long running conflicts. The often irreparable damage to infrastructure and natural resources, including homes, education, cultural heritage, health institutions, and access to food and water, is devastating for people and nature.

2014-11-05_1101Nuclear weapons and nuclear energy

The dangerous existence of nuclear weapons and nuclear energy. The links between them and the environment are widely known, including the effect of radiation and heavy metals on human health and nature, the demand for scarce resources such as water by the nuclear industry, and the true human, economic, pollution, and security costs of the production process of both nuclear weapons and energy. The devastating effects of nuclear power accidents such as Chernobyl and Fukishima, and the cost of military nuclear programmes, which could be diverted to projects that tackle climate change and improve human security, are areas of grave concern for WILPF. There must also be effective monitoring of the Arms Trade Treaty.

The aftermath of conflict

The toxic remnants of war, including land mines, use of depleted uranium, unexploded ordinance and radioactivity, collateral and deliberate contamination of water and sewerage systems, and the environmental impact of large releases of toxic chemicals and heavy metals such as dioxins and mercury from the bombardment of industrial sites during war.

Space

The militarisation of Space and the dual role of civil and military use of the systems of satellites, ground stations, drones and radars, as well as the potential effects on human beings and nature, must be researched, exposed and controlled by international law.

Environmental scientist in ecological disaster zone

WILPF builds on its century of investigation, exposure, and condemnation of the drivers of conflict and war. Conflict, generated by unsustainable production and consumption, deepens ecological degradation. This harms humans, often those at the receiving end of economic and social exploitation. The survival of the biosphere relies on human rights and security.

We must redouble our efforts to identify the leadership, knowledge, and adaptations required for our work in building peaceful and just societies. We must work locally, nationally, regionally and internationally to learn, teach and practice relations of respect and care for the flora and fauna and natural resources of the Earth, in order to be able to secure a future for coming generations.

 

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Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

IPB Congress Barcelona

WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

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Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.

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