Global Counterterrorism Forum adopts good practices prepared by the OSCE on women and countering violent extremism

NEW YORK CITY, 28 September 2015 - A good practices document on women and countering violent extremism prepared by the OSCE was adopted on 27 September by the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) as non-binding guidance to assist governments in mainstreaming gender into policies and measures to counter violent extremism (CVE).

The document addresses general practices on women and gender in the CVE context; countering women and girls’ involvement in violent extremism and terrorism; advancing women and girls’ roles in CVE; and women and girls as victims of violent extremism and terrorism.

“The inclusion of women and girls is often overlooked in CVE efforts, but to be effective we cannot ignore half of the population,” said Thomas Wuchte, the OSCE’s Head on Ant-Terrorism Issues. “The United Nations Security Council has underscored the need to consider women, peace and security issues in connection with the threat of terrorism.”

Ambassador Miroslava Beham, the OSCE’s Senior Gender Adviser, said: “The OSCE Action Plan on Gender Equality stressed as early as 2004 the need to address the exploitation of women by terrorists to serve their own ends and propagate extremist ideologies. But this is only one side of the coin. We also have to look at the critical roles women can and are playing to prevent terrorism.”

The document was produced on the basis of two international expert workshops jointly held by the OSCE Transnational Threats Department and the GCTF, which brought together CVE experts and practitioners on 13-14 May 2014 in Istanbul, Turkey, and 21-22 October 2014 in Vienna, Austria.

Countering violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism following a multi-dimensional approach is a strategic focus area for OSCE counter-terrorism activities. The OSCE has launched a campaign ‘United in Countering Violent Extremism’, to unite the voice of all parts of the OSCE and its 57 participating States, by showing that everyone must rise to the challenge of responding to the corrosive appeal of violent extremism by promoting tolerance, mutual respect, pluralism, inclusion, and cohesion.

The GCTF is an intergovernmental platform working to strengthen international co-operation and mobilize expertise and resources to support the implementation of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy around the globe. The GCTF brings together 29 countries, including 11 OSCE participating States and seven OSCE Partners for Co-operation, as well as the European Union.