NEC, POLITICAL PARTIES SIGN VAWIE PROTOCOL
Liberia-WTVNEWS: The National Elections Commission (NEC) and Political Parties Executives have finally signed the Violence against Women in Elections and Politics (VAWIE/P) Protocol.
The signing of the VAWIE/P Protocol, commits political parties to fully implement, and popularized the Protocol throughout the country.
The NEC Gender Section in collaboration with United Nations Women organized the Buchanan City Hall program, which was witnessed by several elections stakeholders recently.
A release from NEC said over twenty-six Executives of Political Parties and NEC Chairperson Madam Davidetta Browne Lansanah signed the protocol for their respective Institutions.
The NEC Chairperson lauded Political Parties Representatives for forming a part of what she described as an important endeavor.
Madam Browne Lansanah informed the participants that the Commission will work with political parties and all relevant stakeholders to fully implement the VAWIE/P Protocol, in an effort to end violence against women during elections and in politics in Liberia.
The NEC Chairperson also applauded all partners and stakeholders for their different roles and contributions that led to the signing of the Protocol with hope that the signing of the protocol will not be a waste, like other singed documents.
The overall objective of the present Protocol is to fill gaps identified in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) relating to Inter-Party Consultative Committee (IPCC) meeting and the Code of Conduct for Political Parties while promoting and advocating for increased womenโs leadership and political participation.
The NEC, through its Gender Section with support from UN Women and funding from Canada, had initiated consultations with key Liberian electoral stakeholders to assess the prevalence of violence against women in Elections and Politics, identify its root causes and proposed instruments and guidelines to address Gender equality, womenโs leadership and political participation for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) by 2030 as they require important progress in the areas as well as building a peaceful society, inclusive institutions and accessible justice for all.
This brought about the drafting of a protocol and its accompanying Action plan. Several representatives in their remarks at the closing ceremony, from the Ministry of Gender, UNDP Elections Project, Embassy of Sweden, UN Women, the Chairperson of the Women Legislative Caucus, Hon. Rossana Shaack, WONGOSOL, CSOs, and the Elections Coordinating Committee (ECC), spoke of the importance of the document and how to further encourage key actors to take the (VAWIE/P) Protocol serious.
