Hillary Clinton: Kosovo has achieved "significant progress" towards gender equality

2024-04-15 13:25:40, Kosova & Bota CNA

Hillary Clinton: Kosovo has achieved "significant progress" towards

Former US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton

The former US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, said that Kosovo has marked "significant progress" towards achieving "gender equality in the public sector and in politics".

Clinton addressed through a video the Forum for Women, Peace and Security, which is holding its second edition in Pristina.

Among Kosovo's successes in the field of women's rights, Clinton mentioned the reparations for victims of sexual violence during the war, stressing that "you are committed to preserving and strengthening peace, expanding economic opportunities and proving that cooperation brings more benefits than conflict".

"Peace has not always been easy, especially now that tensions in the Balkan region are once again escalating, as Russia's unprovoked war against Ukraine continues and anti-democratic forces around the world are fomenting division and hatred. Therefore, such forums are important. Women are not only victims of violence and inequality. "Women are promoters of peace and progress," Clinton said.

The second edition of the forum focuses on the topic of sexual violence during conflicts and climate security.

Clinton said that this forum is important, as it shows the determination to amplify the voices of women and to strengthen the participation of women in all spheres of life and "to ensure a gender balance in decision-making for peace and security in Kosovo and throughout the world".

She said she is working with the US Department of State and the Georgetown Institute to create a regional center of excellence for women, peace and security, which will be based in Kosovo.

"Our democracies are stronger and more sustainable when women are included and treated equally and separately when women lead," Clinton said in her address.

The two-day forum, which takes place under the patronage of the president of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, gathers representatives from more than 40 countries around the world.

Osmani, during the opening of the forum, said that at a time when several conflicts are taking place in the world, including the one in Gaza and Ukraine, "the agenda for women's security and peace is more important than ever".

She said that women and girls in conflict zones face many challenges, but "their spirit remains unbreakable. They fight for survival, they fight for freedom", said Osmani, adding that while they are unable to use their voice, the whole world should become their voice.

The organization of the Forum for Women, Peace and Security had been a commitment of Kosovo within the Summit for Democracy that was held in the United States of America in 2021.

This year's forum focuses on efforts to combat sexual violence in conflicts, but also to find ways to help women and girls navigate safely in the face of climate security threats.

"The forum's objective is to address threats to women's security as new security challenges emerge, with the key goal of joining forces to advance the forum's agenda," the Forum for Women, Peace and Freedom website states. Security./ REL