Honourable senators, this month the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women on gender equality and women’s empowerment held its 65th session. This year, representatives from around the world gathered to discuss women’s full and effective participation.

I rise today to share with you what an absolute honour it was for me to speak as a keynote speaker, invited by my dear friend Mazal Renford to a forum organized by Women Wage Peace. Established in 2014 at the end of Operation Protective Edge, Women Wage Peace is a non-secular movement whose members include Jewish and Arab women. These Palestinian and Israeli women have witnessed the toll the ongoing conflict has had on their respective communities and are committed to working together to promote a nonviolent, respectful and mutually accepted solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In December 2020, Women Wage Peace celebrated a great victory as a bill entitled Political Alternatives First, a law that can prevent the next war, was presented to Israel’s legislative body, the Knesset.

Honourable senators, in 2002 and onwards, with the blessing of then-Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and Minister Graham, I travelled to Israel with the goal of engaging Israeli and Palestinian women in a dialogue. The plan was to hold 13 round tables between Israeli and Palestinian women. For security reasons, that was not possible. Instead, we had in-country dialogues. Later, with the help of Ambassador Haim Divon in Haifa, I did have a round table between Israeli and Palestinian women, and a small door of understanding was opened between the two women’s groups.

Honourable senators, I have always believed that in order to have lasting peace, women must be included in the peace-making process. This proved to be the case in Ireland where Irish women helped put an end to the conflict in Northern Ireland, and I can tell you that I certainly witnessed that in Sudan.

Honourable senators, I believe that women will bring peace between Israeli and Palestinian people, and we as Canadians must support these efforts to ensure attainable, sustainable peace. Thank you.