Our founder speaks at major feminist development conference
Our founder Taban was honoured to take part in an important conference in Germany recently, which was hosted by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The conference, ‘Feminist Development Policy – Transforming International Cooperation’, was organised as a response to multiple global crises, with the objective of exchanging ideas on best practices, approaches and elements of feminist development policy.
As an activist representing women and girls in the MENA region, Taban was asked to illustrate the crucial role women play in peace and dialogue processes, and to share her vision of a feminist development policy.
Taban spoke of the importance of including men and boys in efforts to encourage women’s participation, and told the audience: “There are great men on the ground who are supporters, so what you do is get them on board, and once they’re on the journey, other men will slowly start walking forward.”
She added: “We have to remember that men have hearts and minds, and we have to win them over so they join us on this journey.”
Taban spoke about our Boxing Sisters project as an example of gaining male acceptance. “I never thought I’d be taking a popular boxing programme to Kurdistan, working with a very conservative society that does not really accept boxing for women. But we did it correctly, and in a safe way through our women’s centres. So the men didn’t feel threatened at all.”
The conference also saw a keynote address by Svenja Schulze, the German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, who said: “Feminism is a conviction. And equality is a human right. The purpose of a feminist development policy is a society of the free and the equal, a society in which all people enjoy equal participation in social, political and economic life and are able to exercise their human rights. So this is about far more than ‘a policy by women for women.’
“It will take determination, convincing arguments and readiness to stand up against discrimination and its structural causes – time and again. But I’m sure that you here in this room, and also those participating online, have this determination and also the courage.”
It was great for the Lotus Flower to be in the room and to be part of these essential conversations…
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