Report

The Honourable Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P. participated in the 2^nd Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Gender Equality Review Conference held in Vienna, Austria from 12-13 June 2017.

Gender Equality Review Conference

The Gender Equality Review Conference provides a platform where representatives of OSCE participating States, Partners for Co-operation, executive structures, civil society organizations and academia can identify progress in implementing the 2004 OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality. The goal of the conference is to facilitate the sharing of best practices, identify policy gaps and discuss emerging challenges. Conference participants have an opportunity to review the implementation of the OSCE’s commitments concerning gender equality and to identify areas for further action.

The conference opened with a high-level panel session, which was followed by thematic working sessions linked to each of the OSCE’s three dimensions of security, as well as others that focused on institutional mechanisms and emerging issues. The conference concluded with a high-level session.

The Honourable Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P. was asked by the Gender Section of the OSCE to speak as a panelist during the opening high-level panel session. She spoke about how to take concrete action on gender equity and move the agenda forward. Specific themes in Dr. Fry’s remarks included gender mainstreaming, gender-based analysis and childcare challenges impeding women’s full participation in the workforce.

Activities During the Conference

A. Opening High-level Session

The high-level panel session that opened the conference provided a context for the discussions that occurred throughout the conference. Remarks, addresses and panel discussions focused on the link between the OSCE’s unique concept of comprehensive security and commitments to gender equality.

In addition to video addresses by the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, and Lakshmi Puri, United Nations (UN) Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, opening remarks were offered by the following individuals:

• H.E. Sophie Karmasin, Federal Minister for Families and Youth in Austria;
• Katarzyna Gardapkhadze, First Deputy Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR); and
• Ambassador Paul Bekkers, Director of the Office of Secretary General with the OSCE Secretariat.

A panel discussion moderated by Bethany Bell, BBC Foreign Correspondent, also took place. The panel comprised the following persons:

• Pirkko Hämäläinen, Under-Secretary of State, Internal and External Services of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Finland;
• Ambassador Mara Marinaki, EU Principal Advisor on Gender and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325/Women, Peace and Security;
• Senator Ekaterina Lakhova, President of the Union of Women of Russia within the Russian Federation;
• The Honourable Dr. Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P., Special Representative on Gender Issues of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and Director of the Canadian delegation to the OSCE PA; and
• Adelheid Meinzolt, Coordinator of the Women and Gender Working Group within Civic Solidarity Platform.

B. Working Session One: Gender Mainstreaming in the Conflict Cycle

The first working session focused on women’s participation in the security sector. A panel discussion moderated by Bojana Balon, Co-ordinator of South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons with the United Nations Development Programme, was held. The following individuals were panel members:

• Ainuru Altybaeva, Member of the Kyrgyz Parliament;
• Montserrat Pina Martinez, President of the European Network of Policewomen;
• Dita Nowicka, Director of the OSCE Border Management Staff College; and
• Brigadier General Gordana Garašić, Deputy Director of the Regional Arms Control Verification and Implementation Assistance Centre at the Centre for Security Cooperation.

C. Working Session Two: Women’s Participation in Political and Public Life

The second working session discussed women’s participation in politics. The panel discussion was moderated by Tiina Kukkamaa-Bah, Chief of Democratic Governance and Gender Unit of the ODHIR. The panel comprised the following people:

• Gordana Čomić, Deputy Speaker of Parliament of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia;
• Valentina Buliga, Member of Moldovan Parliament and Deputy President and Chair of the Women’s Organization of the Democratic Party;
• Narantuya Zagdkhuu, Member of the Mongolian Parliament;
• Helene Jarmer, Member of the Austrian Parliament; and
• Elvira Surabaldieva, Member of the Kyrgyz Parliament and Chair of the Forum of Women Parliamentarians.

D. Working Session Three: Equal Economic Opportunities

The third working session discussed women’s economic empowerment and equal opportunities, including in the context of climate change and sustainable development. Ambassador Désirée Schweitzer, President of the Austria National Committee for UN Women, moderated the discussion that took place among the following panellists:

• Kaisha Atakhanova, Chief of Party, Partnership for Innovations, Civil Society Development Association ARGO in Kazakhstan;
• Maria Hartl, Senior Technical Specialist on Gender and Social Equity at the International Fund for Agriculture Development;
• Jesper Goodley Dannisøe, Director of the Danish Water Forum;
• Dr. Lívia Járóka, Forum of Young Global Leaders and the World Economic Forum; and
• Sandra Nedeljković, Deputy Director of the Serbian Government Public Investment Management Office.

E. Working Session Four: Combating Gender-based Violence

The fourth working session focused on national mechanisms for combating gender-based violence. The panel discussion was moderated by Ambassador Sian MacLeod, Head of the United Kingdom Delegation to the OSCE in Vienna, with the following panellists contributing to the discussion:

• Dr. Feride Acar, President of the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence;
• Kateryna Levchenko, President of the International Women's Rights Centre La Strada Ukraine;
• Adisa Zahiragić, Judge and President of the Association of Women Judges, Bosnia and Herzegovina;
• Aleh Karazei, Head of the Department of Crime Prevention within the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Belarus; and
• Joanna Goodey, Head of the Freedoms and Justice Department within the EU Fundamental Rights Agency.

F. Working Session Five: Strengthening Institutional Mechanisms for Gender Mainstreaming

The fifth working session discussed the identification of new and innovative practices in international organizations, as well as the private sector, for institutionalizing gender mainstreaming. The moderator of the panel discussion was Amarsanaa Darisuren, Senior Adviser on Gender Issues, Office of the Secretary General with the OSCE Secretariat, and the panellists were the following:

• Maruša Gortnar, Head of Department with the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities in Slovenia;
• Barbara Torggler, Head of Evaluation with the Office of Internal Oversight with the OSCE;
• Ajla van Heel Merdanović, Adviser on Gender Issues with the ODHIR;
• Carolina Lasen Diaz, Head of the Gender Equality Unit with the Council of Europe;
• Alia El Yassir, Deputy Regional Director of the Europe and Central Asia Regional Office of UN Women;
• Mehmet Ali Çalışkan, Founder of the YADA Foundation in Turkey;
• Begoña Suarez Suarez, Deputy Director General for Entrepreneurship and the Professional, and Promotion of Women, with the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality in Spain.

G. Working Session Six: Emerging Issues and Ways Forward to Implement the 2004 OSCE Gender Action Plan

The sixth working session focused on the identification of emerging issues affecting the implementation of the 2004 Gender Action Plan, future challenges that may hamper progress in achieving the global agenda on gender equality, and funding issues. The discussion, which was moderated by Ambassador Gréta Gunnarsdottir, Permanent Representative Mission of Iceland to the OSCE in Vienna, involved the following individuals:

• Engy Abdelkader, Senior Fellow and Adjunct Professor with the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University;
• Neil J. Walsh, Chief of Cyber and Emerging Crime, Organized Crime and Illicit Trafficking Branch in the Division for Treaty Affairs at the UN Office on Drugs and Crime;
• Rasa Ostrauskaite, Director of the OSCE Department of Trans-National Threats;
• Sonja Lokar, Executive Director of the Central and Eastern European Network for Gender Issues;
• Iulia Kharashvili, Chairperson of the IDP Women Association "Consent" and a representative of the Civic Solidarity Platform; and
• Nico Schernbeck, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Youth and Security.

H. Closing High-level Session

During the closing high-level session, Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Gender, and Ambassador Alessandro Azzoni, Permanent Representative of Italy to the OSCE in Vienna, provided concluding remarks and an overview of the recommendations proposed by each working session. They also outlined potential next steps regarding implementation of the 2004 Gender Action Plan.

Respectfully submitted,
 
 
 The Honourable Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P.
Director
Canadian Delegation to the Organization for Security and Co-operation
in Europe Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA)