Participants at a Seminar on Strengthening Women Interfaith Leadership for Human Rights and Democratic Stability in Kaduna State, North West Nigeria, say sustainable peace is possible when women are empowered and given their rightful place at the forefront of peace building
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The assertion is contained in a communique issued at the end of the seminar held in Kaduna, Saturday organised by the Interfaith Mediation Centre with support by the German Embassy, Abuja, Nigeria.
Participants at the seminar
The communique strongly believes that women posses unique moral authority and matriarchal influence, essential for healing divided communities hence the need for the interfaith leadership to be strengthened through establishment of peace councils to coordinate joint advocacy, common project execution, mediation and community initiatives.
The leadership, the communique emphasized, should be empowered to commit itself to actionable peace skills through regular training on interfaith dialogue, conflict mediation and restorative justice, early warning and countering hate speeches, stereotypes and restraint in response to provocation with religious undertones.
(L) Pastor James Movel Wuye and Imam Muhammad M. Ashafa Co- founders of the IMC addressing the participants
The participants also suggested the need to promote the economic empowerment of women in faith leadership by linking them with skills acquisition and cooperative programmes pointing out that economically empowered women, command greater respects and have stronger voice in community decision-making.
Women in faith leadership, the Seminar stresses, should promote theology of peace from holy books as well as sermon and teaching adding that this will no doubt empower them to serve as a frontline peace ambassadors in their respective communities.
The Seminar Urged development partners to continue to work with stakeholders to promote peaceful coexistence, through continuous capacity and economic development of women’s interfaith leadership.
The Seminar calls on the Kaduna state government to institutionalise strategies and policies that promotes peaceful campaigns of women, provides adequate funding and integrate them into state policy-making structures
While calling on security agencies to partner with women’s interfaith leadership on early warning response mechanism, the Seminar wants
civil society organizations to support training and scaling of successful model including the campaigns against stereotyping in school curriculum so as to develop them to active and robust peace ambassadors.
It calls on the media to project a new narrative that promotes peace, justice and inclusiveness in the society.
It also urged the people of Kaduna state to support women peace leaders and hold all leaders accountable for promoting peace and equity in the State, affirming that peace is not the absence of conflict, but the presence of dialogue and mutual respects.
A Freedom of Religion or Belief, (FoRB) committee in the three senatorial zones of the state, saddled with the responsibilities of carrying on with activating all the strategies agreed upon at the seminar, was set up by the Interfaith Mediation Centre, the communique said.
Participants at the seminar, included faith leaders, (Christians and Muslims), women peace advocates, traditional rulers, government representatives, civil society organizations, youth leaders, media and development partners.
