“There is definitely a need to recognize women as political actors and not mere beneficiaries.”
Ansilla Twiseda Mecer, a Dayak representing Yayasan Karya Social Pancur Kasih-Institut Dayakologi, called for the active participation of indigenous women in the different vital decision-making processes during the Asian Indigenous Women’s Network (AIWN) side event, held virtually on 27 April as part of the 20th United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) that took place on 19 to 30 April 2021.
The event, entitled “Unheard and Unseen: Indigenous Women’s Path to Empowerment and Sustainable Development,” focused on the challenges faced by indigenous women in Asia as well as their success stories in the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals. Several indigenous women representatives from various indigenous organizations and communities in Asia attended the Zoom meeting which was also streamed synchronously via Facebook Live.
“We believe that every woman and girl should receive the highest form of education. The world has a lot to learn from indigenous women,” stressed Beatrice Duncan of the United Nations Women (UN Women) organization, who, together with Yon Fernandez de Larrinoa of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and Lucy Mulenkei of the International Indigenous Women’s Forum (FIMI), joined the conversation.
“There is a lot that can be said about the significant work that indigenous women are doing,” Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, AIWN convener and former UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, enthused as she provided a consolidated overview of the relevant roles that indigenous women play in their communities. She emphasized the call for indigenous women’s inclusion in the different decision-making processes and the necessity of eradicating all forms of abuses and discrimination against them.
The UNPFII AIWN side event is a spin-off of the two book volumes titled as this virtual meeting which were launched earlier this year with support from FIMI and the Indigenous Women’s Fund (AYNI). Co-published by AIWN and Tebtebba, these volumes are now available for download via AsianIndigenousWomen.Org and Tebtebba.Org.
