Tehran – Islamic Republic of Iran
16 Rabi Thani 1435h
16 February, 2014
1. The Third session of the Moslem Women Parliamentarians Conference was held in Zarin Hall, Azadi Hotel, on 16 February 2014 as part of the activities of the Ninth Session of the PUIC Conference.
2. Participating in the Third Session of the Muslim Women Parliamentarian's Conference was a majority of the parliamentarian which participated in the Ninth PUIC Session, indicating the importance awarded the meeting by the councils and their concern for its success and enhancement of its performance in a manner to reinforce the Moslem woman's status.
3. H.E. Dr. Elham Amin Zadeh, Advisor to H.E. the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, honoured the meeting with her presence and delivered a exhaustive speech in which she called for the unifying legal system relating to women in the Islamic States in order to achieve rapprochement, cooperation and coordination and benefit from the experiences of the different countries. She also underlined the importance of resorting to negotiation and the peaceful solution of problems and differences between the Islamic countries instead of the use of force and threats. Hailing the Document on the Moslem Women's Rights, she called for adherence to this document and to its implementation. The meeting was also addressed by H.E. Dr. Mahmud Erol Kilic, PUIC Secretary General who reviewed the work performed by the General-Secretariat to implement the decisions and recommendations adopted by the Second Session held in Khartoum on 17 February, 2013. He wished the delegates success in their endeavors to promote and consolidate the Moslem woman's progress.
4. Report submitted by the Chairperson of the Second Session on the implementation of the recommendations adopted by the Khartoum Conference in 2013:
H.E. Mrs. Rashida Sayed Ahmed, Member of the National Assembly in the Republic of Sudan, submitted a report on the implementation of the resolutions adopted by the Second Session of the Moslem Women's conference which included:
1. Referring the Document on the Moslem Woman's Rights, after its adoption by the Conference, to the member parliaments and receipt of ratification by the legislative body in the Republic of Sudan ratifying the document. Meetings and Workshops involving women's organizations were also held to familiarize them with the document.
2. Preparation of the draft rules of procedure of the Parliamentarians' Conference, its discussion with the General Secretariat and its adoption during the Third Session.
3. Submission of a request to the member Parliaments to nominate 2 deputies to act as liaison officers with the chairmanship of the Conference and the General Secretariat.
4. Agreement with the General Secretariat to nominate someone from the Secretariat to be responsible for communication with the Moslem Women Parliamentarians network.
5. Reference was made to the importance of reinforcing women's role in the development process and the issuance of a resolution on the utilizing of women in commodity promotion.
In conclusion of her report, Mrs. Rashida expressed her hope that these achievements would be maintained, periodic reports submitted on what has been realized and that the Troika would convene semi-annually.
After finishing her report, she asked H.E. Mrs. Lale Eftekhari from the host country Parliament to take over the Chair of the conference during its Third Session.
5. H.E. Mrs. Lale EIftekhari, Chairperson of the Third Session of the Moslem Women Parliamentarians, welcomed the participants in the session and referred to the Iranian experience in this field pointing to the importance of maintaining a balance between the rights of men and women as mentioned in the Holy Quran:"
((ولهن مثل الذي عليهن بالمعروف)).…
She called for equality between men and women and regular communication and cooperation between Moslem women parliamentarians. She emphasized the importance of these conferences and meetings to reinforce the status of women.
6. ELECTING BUREAU MEMBERS:-
1. Vice President of the African Group: Her Excellency Mrs. Hudah Oleru, representative of the Ugandan Parliament
2. Vice President of the Arab Group: Her Excellency Dr. Fathia Owaysat, representative of the Algerian Parliament
3. Rapporteur: after consultation between the nominees, Her Excellency Dr. Shallah Mirgalou Bayat from the Isdlamic Parliament of Iran was elected.
7. ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DOCUMENT ON THE MOSLEM WOMEN:
- The information received by the General Secretariat from Member Parliaments, and the measures taken in this regard, were examined
- The Conference approved the document and requested the members to urge their parliaments to take measures to implement it. (CMWP/WD.1/FINAL see page 160)
8. DISCUSSING THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE CONFERENCE OF MOSLEM WOMEN PARLIAMENTARIANS
- The Conference heard the General Secretariat's clarification regarding the draft Rules of Procedure prepared by the General Secretariat and the proposals it received from Member Parliaments in this regard.
- The Rules of Procedure were approved, on the understanding that the observations made to the General Secretariat would be taken into consideration.
9. DATE AND VENUE OF THE NEXT MOSLEM WOMEN PARLIAMENTARIAN'S CONFERENCE:
The conference will be held in simultaneously with the 10th Session of the PUIC Conference in the venue and date set by the 9th Session when it convenes on 18 – 19 February 2014.
10 ITEMS 8 TO 10 AS SET IN THE AGENDA:
The Conference held a general discussion around the issues included on the agenda, resulting in the adoption of the following proposals and recommendations:
1. Working to unify legal systems related to women and the family in Islamic states aimed at achieving proximity and coordination and the exchange of successful experiences in enacting legislations supporting women and ensuring their rights in member states, in order to benefit from parliamentary expertise in this field.
2. The importance of resorting to negotiation and peaceful means of resolving problems and conflict between Islamic states, instead of resorting to the use of force, since women are the most vulnerable to the impacts of war.
3. Setting indicators to follow up on the implementation of the items of the Document of Moslem Women's Rights and measuring progress achieved in this area.
4. Working to empower women politically and economically and establishing special measures to protect women in special circumstances, elderly women and women heads of household.
5. Preparing studies and research around the issues included on the agenda.
11. The mass media attended the Conference and local and regional television netwroks conducted meetings and interviews with the participants:-