Imphal, October 29: As recommended by the UN Security Council Resolution No 1325, a workshop organised on the same UN Resolution has advocated for increased representation of women at all decision-making levels towards conflict resolution.

The workshop was organised by the Imphal East district women's committee of United NGOs Mission Manipur at State Youth Centre, Khuman Lampak.

In any case of armed conflict or ethnic conflict, it is the women who bear the maximum brunt, noted many of the speakers.

In the event of any conflict, it is the women who ventured to the conflict scene in their bid to pacify the situation.

Whether it is against the State forces or non-State actors women often constitute the vanguard confronting and negotiating with the adversaries.

However, when it come to decision making to settle issues related to conflict situation, women are either left out or their voice muffled, asserted the delegates.

The case is true for all the ethnic groups and communities of Manipur.

Addressing the workshop as a resource persons Bablu Loitongbam of Human Rights Alert remarked that the basic essence of the UN Security Council Resolution No 1325 is that women should be encouraged to participate from grassroots level to the top level in any effort to restore peace in any State/area afflicted by conflict situation.

The special needs of women and girls should be incorporated in any peace agreement, repatriation and resettlement, he noted.

The UNSC Resolution also urge the Secretary General to incorporate a gender perspective into peace keeping operations and to ensure that, where appropriate, field operations include a gender component.

The Resolution should be made applicable in all the member States of the UN.

Even as India is a member State of the UN, India has not ratified the UNSC Resolution No 1325 adopted on October 31, 2000.The Government of India is refusing to make any commitment on the Resolution, Bablu Loitongbam observed.

The Government of India is contending that there is no armed conflict situation in any of its States.

As such, India should first acknowledge the conflict situation prevalent in different States before it ratify UNSC Resolution No 1325, he said.

To prove that there is conflict situation in India, all the NGOs, civil societies, local bodies and those directly or indirectly involved in the conflict should undertake proper documentation and provide hard evidence so that India acknowledge the reality, he asserted.

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