We, African women's NGOs, gathered in New York at the 45th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) are aggrieved at and horrified by the levels and numbers of conflicts in Africa and at the resort to violence as a means of resolving conflict in Africa . We are also concerned about the impact of this conflict and violence on African women, who suffer disproportionately from violence both during and after conflict due to their gender and gender-based roles as caretakers.

In the recent past, we have seen the violent expulsion of non-Ivoirians from Cote d'Ivoire and non Libyans from Libya, as well as the brutal attacks by state security forces on the peoples of Pemba and Zanzibar. We continue to witness the free-for-all attitude of parties to the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. All of these recent crises are underscored by attitudes of ethnic, racial and religious hatred-hatred that those in power do little to prevent and thus apparently encourage. In all of these recent crises, African women have suffered from sexual assault, rape, mutilation and displacement.

We therefore seize the opportunity presented by this year's CSW, which has as one of its major themes for discussion racism, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance to:

1. Demand that both state and non-state actors in both internal or external conflict, cease from the resort to violence, and in particular, from the resort to gender-based violence targeted at female civilians and non-combattants to achieve economic or political gain;

2. Demand that both state and non-state actors respect their obligation to uphold international human rights and humanitarian law in territories under their control, and in particular, law relating to the protection of women, children and civilians in general;

3. Demand that the international community hold both state and non-state actors accountable for violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, including violations specific to women, in post-conflict situations;

4. Demand that both state and non-state actors desist from the forced inscription of women and children into their armies, whether as sexual slaves or as slave labour for espionage, transport and so on;

5. Demand that our governments and the international community commit themselves to prosecuting hate speech on the basis of ethnic, racial or religious grounds;

6. Demand that our governments and the international community strengthen mechanisms to eliminate the flow of small arms into Africa;

7. Demand that our governments and the international community strengthen mechanisms to prevent the use of land mines during and after conflict and commit themselves to de-mining territories known to be mined;

8. Demand that women, who bear the brunt of conflict, become an integral and meaningful part of every peace process, including those currently underway in the Horn, the Great Lakes and west regions of Africa;

9. Demand that the international community commit itself to the provision of humanitarian assistance-food, shelter, conflict, medical treatment and psychological care-in conflict-ridden regions of Africa to the same extent that it does for conflict-ridden regions in other areas of the world;

10. Demand that the international community ensure that this humanitarian assistance also be available for the large number of internally displaced people, the majority of whom are women and children, in states of Africa suffering from internal conflict.

We thank you.

(end/african caucus/lmw/01)