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Equality Now Tries to Bring Women's Voices in Middle East Peace Discussions

Aired May 07, 2002 - 13:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: At the U.N. today, a special meeting before the Security Council took place, requested by Equality Now. That's an international women's rights organization. And on the agenda, bringing women's voices in the Middle East peace discussions. Our guests are stopping in to talk to us ahead of that meeting.

Maha Abu Dayyeh Shamas is with the Women's Center for Legal Aid and Counseling. She is on the right. And a long time supporter of human rights for Palestinians, Terry Greenblatt is with Bat Shalom, and she has been a womens' rights and peace activist in Israel for more than 30 years.

Good afternoon to both of you. Good to have you with us today. We have been speaking with men on this issue for the better part than a month and a half.

And from the women's perspective, Ms. Greenblatt, you know the U.N. hasn't been as what most Israelis would consider an ally in their current cause. What message do you have for the U.N. today?

TERRY GREENBLATT, BAT SHALOM: I think that both Maha and myself are coming with a list of concerns and a list of requests from the security council. Number one, certainly would be to implement U.N. resolution 1325. And we believe that...

HEMMER: 1325 states what?

GREENBLATT: States that women need to be an integral part of the all of the peacekeeping and peacemaking negotiations.

HEMMER: Why do you think it is then to this point that women really have not been out in front publicly on this issue?

GREENBLATT: I think it would take an enormous desire to change the nature of the discourse that would, number one, begin to recognize the kind of contribution that women can make inside of the process. I believe that we come to the table in very different ways than men come. I believe that's oftentimes we're even willing to sit on the same side of the table, rather across from each other, as adversaries, and put the 100-year-old, very complex conflict, across from us and both try and find a way that we can address it and mutually get up from the table and begin our lives as good neighbors. HEMMER: All right, I've got your perspective. Ms. Shamas, your message to the U.N. will be what? Coming from essentially the Arab world where in many cases so often we see women nowhere near on stage like it is in the men's case.

MAHA ABU DAYYEH SHAMAS, WOMEN'S CENTER FOR LEGAL AID & COUNSELING: That is true. However, in the Palestinian context, there is a vibrant women's movement, human rights movement, civil society, and I think this is very important to remember when it comes to trying to come to oh some sort of resolution of the conflict. Peace is made between people. And society and members of civil society should be present in any kind of peace negotiations that hopes to reach the objective of reaching a sustainable peace.

Sustainable peace means there must be a just peace, and I think civil society, members of civil society, in addition to government representatives, are -- but with the participation of civil society, are capable of seeing ways of how to address the insecurity of each other and address the other and come...

HEMMER: As a woman, Ms. Shamas, how do you address the latest rash of suicide bombings that have featured essentially teenage Palestinian women carrying out that act?

SHAMAS: I think it is a very sad development for us. I think this is the result of the extensive hopelessness among our people. What we hope is that our young people will not see any necessity for doing and carrying out these actions. They should be looking toward life, not towards death. And we should -- we will have to come to some resolution where this young people, young generation, has hope for a better future.

For us, women participating in that process, as long as it was so violent and so hopeless, it was a matter of time with woman would be coming up and sure enough it happened. I hope that it will be the end of it. I hope people will see reason to live rather than reason to die.

HEMMER: One more questions, Ms. Greenblatt, we saw in the case of Afghanistan, in the Taliban movement, once it was expunged from power in Afghanistan, woman really took a foothold in that country. Do you see a time and date where an organization like yours or other women organizations or other women for that matter are much more prominently played in the Middle East?

GREENBLATT: Again, I think it is going to depend on when the men who are in power right now, either because the situation has gotten so desperate that there just is no other choice, and they are willing to look at if we look at where the glimmers of hope have been up until now, they truly have come from the grassroots women's activist both on the Israeli side and on the Palestinian side.

If I might address, if I just might add something to the question, I notice you didn't ask me the question about the suicide bombers, and it is important for me to make a point here. Number one, I want it say that I am a Jewish-Israeli woman who travels on four busses everyday, and each time I get on the bus, my heart is pounding in my chest.

In addition to that, as an Israeli Jewish woman, I can't help but begin to ask myself the questions, what does it mean that both we in Israel, and the international community as well keeps trying to lock this phenomena into a Palestinian responsibility exclusively. I need to ask myself the question, what does it mean that they have lived under occupation, my Israeli occupation for 35 years, and I think we all need to begin to ask the question, what does kind of responsibility does the international community hold for not really responding when the call for protection and intervention has come for so many years in nonviolent ways. Why was there no timely and effective response.

HEMMER: We are out of time. Terry Greenblatt, thanks for your time.

GREENBLATT: Thank you.

HEMMER: Maha Abu Dayyeh Shamas, or something very similar to that. I apologize for the mangled pronunciation. Thank you. Best of luck.

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