Skip to main content

To Make A Difference

Artemis with the Nelson Mandela statue at the UN

"This was the 3rd year for me to actually be AT the CSW in New York. Every year, I wonder, before I go, but also when I am there, whether it is useful that I am at the CSW in person. But then I get to work, as a lobbyist and poser of hard questions (a good Jewish tradition I share with the queen of Sheba) and I find that yes, it actually does make a difference that I am present.

Come to think of it, every Dutch representative of any of the NGOs that travel to the CSW, or are at any of the other meetings in the Netherlands (UN NAP1325, to name just one) knows that it makes a difference I am there. They also know that I will manage to grab the microphone and ask my thought provoking questions, make government officials and cabinet members of the Netherlands, the Nordic Council, Mexico, or any other government side event that I walk into, THINK. Think whether their idea of Women’s Work, Women’s Place in the World, Women’s Contribution to us all, should not be viewed differently.

Also, I make suggestions on how to change the world for women. Many suggestions, and over the years I have seen a number of those suggestions grow into regulations, law, and in general ‘the way we do things’. This is slow work. Patience is definitely what is necessary. Thankfully, I always have had the Long View and the calm to wait it out, and to never despair on the slow pace of change. Even if I do not like that slow pace.

Next to that, being there in New York, or really anywhere at all, I build relationships. With the cabinet member in charge of Emancipation of various countries, with the diplomats and negotiators that work at the Dutch embassy to the UN, with ambassadors, certainly. However, also with random people, like the women working in the lobby of the building of the Dutch ambassy, the women/men that bring the coffee, with people I meet in the bus, the street, the security guards of the UN. Some of these relationships are flighty, one or two time encounters, still all of them are informed by me why I am here in New York, what the CSW is, what women hope to accomplish, what all those NGO-representatives try to change for the better. As I do believe, that we all are supposed to be ambassadors to women’s rights, where ever we are, whomever we meet.

I intend to be at the CSW69 – the Beijing+30 year - and will be working diligently, with about a hundred representatives of NGOs and the Government here in the Netherlands, and possibly in Europe, to prepare for that next meeting’s Political Declaration.

I will do what we all strive to do: I will make a difference."


Written by Artemis Westenberg,
General board member IAW
President Netherlands Association for Women’s Interests, Women’s Work and Equal Citizenship

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The CSW68 is a wrap!

  Met Nederlands ambassadeur en CSW Facilitator Yoka Brandt op de foto na afloop van de CSW68 “We have reservations on the text. We don’t have instructions to proceed to adoption .” After seven days of negotiations at the UN during this year’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), Nigeria almost blocked the negotiated outcome document from being adopted. Almost, because after some formal and informal interventions in Conference Room 4, the Nigerian delegate, flanked by the Dutch Ambassador Yoka Brandt, added: “I now have instructions to support the adoption.” On the balcony filled with civil society as well as in the plenary room there was a clear sigh of relief followed by enthusiastic applause, hugging and photo taking. We have Agreed Conclusions ! Early negotiations As usual, the CSW negotiations process started early February with a Zero Draft , developed by UN Women and the CSW Bureau. And with input and inspiration taken from the Secretary General Report. For the EU, as
Post a Comment
Read more

CSW68 Youth Dialogue statement by Fenna Timsi

  Dutch youth representative Fenna Timsi gives her statement in the CSW68 Youth Dialogue On Thursday afternoon, 14 March 2024, the Dutch youth representative Fenna Timsi gave her statement in the CSW68 Youth Dialogue inside the UN. The reflections from several participants of this year's Youth Dialogue - the second ever as part of the CSW - were that it has much improved compared to last year. Importantly, many more of the people who were given the floor were actually young people themselves. Many of the statements were rich and relevant in content with clear and important messages for the government delegates in the other room in the UN who had started the negotiations for the outcome document. Read Fenna's statement below or see the full Youth Dialogue here (Fenna's statement is at 1:20:10). Dear all,   As the Dutch UN Youth Representative, I thank you to speak independently on behalf of young people in the Netherlands, not on behalf of the government. I spoke to many yo
Post a Comment
Read more

Blog #4 by Sanne: We need progress on Loss & Damage!

Today the CSW’s main outcome document, the Agreed Conclusions, continued. At this CSW66, it is not only essential that we move forward on gender equality issues, but also on climate, environmental and disaster-risk reduction action! We need to connect to existing discussions in different UN-spaces to ensure that our discussions here in New York strengthen our intersectional, transformative climate action and that gender equality is central. Because we want this CSW to ensure that we deal with environmental & climate crises as coherently and strongly as possible. We can’t wait any longer!
Post a Comment
Read more