Join us as our speakers reflect on the cost of broken promises and the failure to learn lessons, whilst highlighting ways to effectively prioritise and foster peace in both politics and the public arena in the midst and in the aftermath of violent conflict.

In the Millennium Declaration 163 world leaders confidently stated 'We are determined to establish a just and lasting peace all over the world'. 21 years later global and societal peace and cohesion has declined. Negotiations to end conflict continue to be elite bargains, and no peace agreements address the need to promote a culture of peace. As the crisis in Afghanistan reveals, states have abrogated their responsibility to protect civilians and are failing to prevent sexual and gender based violence. Local peacebuilders have been forsaken, despite countless resolutions claiming to protect them.

Meet our speakers and chair

Monica McWilliams is Emeritus Professor at Ulster University’s Transitional Justice Institute and was the Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission where she was responsible for delivering the advice on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. Ms McWilliams was elected to a seat at the Multi-Party Peace Negotiations, which led to the Belfast Peace Agreement and was also the co-founder of the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition political party.

Halima Mohamed is the co-founder and Executive Director of Coast Education Centre. For the last 13 years, Ms Mohamed has been at the forefront of agitating for the rights of women and girls at the grassroots level in Kenya and the East African Region. Her P/CVE work resulted in the successful development of the Coast Women CVE Charter that contributed to the Gender Pillar and Victims of Terror Pillar in the Refined National Strategy to CVE.

Amina Rasul is President of the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy. She has been Presidential Adviser on Youth Affairs and Chair of the National Youth Commission. She has served as Commissioner of the National Commission for Filipino Women, on the Board of the Mindanao Development Authority and The Development Bank of the Philippines,  She is a Regent of the MIndanao State University and  has written and edited several books on the Mindanao conflict, Islam and democracy.   She recently launched a podcast, 'She Talks Peace'.

Sanam Naraghi Anderlini (@sanambna) is Director of the LSE Centre for Women, Peace and Security and the founder of The International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN).

More about this event

The LSE Centre for Women, Peace and Security (@LSE_WPS) is an academic space for scholars, practitioners, activists, policy-makers and students to develop strategies to promote justice, human rights and participation of women in conflict-affected situations around the world. Through innovative research, teaching, and multi-sectoral engagement, the Centre for Women, Peace and Security aims to promote gender equality and enhance women’s economic, social and political participation and security.

This event is the seventh in the Coming of Age of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda series and is co-hosted with ICAN and the Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy.

Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSEWPS

Featured image (used in source code with watermark added): Photo by cocoparisienne on Pixabay.

Podcast & Video

A podcast of this event is available to download from Putting Peace Back into Politics.

A video of this event is available to watch at Putting Peace Back into Politics.

Podcasts and videos of many LSE events can be found at the LSE Public Lectures and Events: podcasts and videos channel.