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Women have a major role in solving conflicts, say experts

Abu Dhabi - They were at the interactive workshop for young leaders aged between 18 and 35 years, titled 'Mena Diplomacy Dialogue: The Role of Gender in Foreign and Security Policy'.

Women must actively engage in international negotiations alongside men to resolve conflicts, fight terrorism and secure world peace, and they can make a significant change, a top UAE anti-extremism official has said. 
Maqsoud Kruse, executive director of Hedayah, an Abu Dhabi international centre of excellence for countering violent extremism, said policymakers and practitioners need to increase and empower the role and responsibility of women in combating extremism.
"The role women play in countering violent extremism is an understudied but critical contemporary security issue. Women must be engaged at all levels, as they represent an effective medium against intolerance and extremism, and can act as positive agents of change in their families and communities to prevent radicalisation," Kruse said on Sunday during a keynote speech at the interactive workshop for young leaders aged between 18 and 35 years, titled 'Mena Diplomacy Dialogue: The Role of Gender in Foreign and Security Policy'.
The workshop was organised by the Emirates Diplomatic Academy (EDA) in conjunction with the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC), Hedayah, and the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Kruse added: "Women can lead and make a big difference in everything. Hedayah has been so keen on engaging women in all its activities and they have played a major role in the fight against extremism."
Dr Nawal Al Hosany, deputy director-general of the EDA, said: "The UAE is an integral global player in women's empowerment and the promotion of tolerance and peace and there is growing evidence about the increase of women in all fields including diplomacy.
A panel discussion on 'Gender Perspectives in International Peace and Security' highlighted the role of women in the community and their importance in diplomacy and resolving conflicts. 
Dominique Mineur, ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to the UAE and one of the panelists, said: "Women are complementary and very essential in issues of negotiations because they know the after effects of conflicts and what needs to be done to families of the victims. Women are very good at convincing, they have a soft but pushing approach towards issues which could make things happen." 
Mineur noted that sometimes women in refugee camps can share with fellow women things that they can't talk to men and hence their engagement in humanitarian activities very important. 
"The issue is that women and men should always work together to talk and negotiate peace in all circumstances," Sophie Barbey, head of mission at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the UAE said during the discussion.
"Women have a lot of power and in most cases, they are more integrated into the community than men and therefore know the problems facing all people including children, their fellow women and men. 
The workshop was attended by more than 100 students of diplomacy and young leaders.
ismail@khaleejtimes.com