PRESS RELEASE
24 November 2009
Ms. Caecilia J. van Peski proposed as United Nations Women’s Representative 2010
Ms. Caecilia J. van Peski (Tilburg, the Netherlands) has been proposed to the Dutch Minister
of Foreign Affairs as UN Women’s Representative 2010. In October 2010, Ms. Van Peski will
address the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York on behalf of the women of
the Netherlands.
Caecilia J. van Peski, MA (39) is a PhD researcher at the Academy of Public Administration in
Tilburg (an integral part of Fontys University of Applied Sciences). She conducts research on
the observers’ cultural differences in their assessment of elections, including processes of
democratisation. Besides, she works as an independent consultant from Van Peski Consult
with a focus on international affairs, democratisation, human rights, civic society building
and global citizenship.
At the executive level, Caecilia van Peski liaises with a number of national and international
non-governmental organisations, such as the UK-based INGO CISV International, the Dutch
peace-building organisation IKV Pax Christi, the United Nations Association the Netherlands
and the Foundation for Peace Sciences.
Ms. Van Peski studied Educational and Cultural Psychology at Tilburg University and
International Development at the Centre for International Development Issues (CIDIN) at
Radboud University Nijmegen. She also studied at the Pushkin State University in Moscow
(Russian Language and Culture) and enrolled in an international peace keeping training at
the UNITAR-POCI Training Centre in Pisa.
In her October 2010 statement to the UN General Assembly, Caecilia van Peski will place
emphasis on the topic of ‘Women, peace and security in the light of good democratic
governance’. Her work as an international election observer inspired her to choose this
focus. Caecilia van Peski is a frequent international election observer on behalf of the
Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (the OSCE) and the European Union
(EU). Her missions have taken her mainly to the Balkans, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
“It became very clear to me during these missions that we have to maintain our focus on a
more equitable distribution of opportunities for all people. This is possible if we make sure
that resources and provisions for sustenance are at even disposal to all and not only to those
who hold power or are close to it. Many of the conflicts in the world today take root in the
unequal access to the resources that are necessary to sustain people’s lives. This restricts
their development to the full potential. In situations of conflict and of post-conflict
reconstruction, women often find themselves in the most vulnerable groups. This led the
United Nations to promulgate the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 On Women, Peace
and Security (31-10-2000). This resolution requires parties in a conflict to respect women’s
rights and to support their participation in peace negotiations and post conflict
reconstruction. Hence the idea of Women Peacemakers.” (end of quote Caecilia van Peski)
Over the coming year, Caecilia van Peski will pursue the inclusion of the voices of many
Dutch women in the topic of Peace and Security. She will consult with women of all ranks of
the society and incorporate their ideas in a statement that she will deliver at the UN General
Assembly. In this, it is her aim to fairly reflect the voices of the women of the Netherlands.
The year 2010 is special for the UN Women’s Representative, since it will be fifteen years
after the World Conference on Women in Beijing (‘Beijing+15’). By commemorating this
event, the United Nations places a renewed emphasis on the efforts made by the UN Platform
for Action for Equality, Development and Peace. The coming year will also be the tenth
anniversary of UNSCR 1325. And finally, 2010 has been declared the International UN Year
for the Rapprochement of Cultures. With this theme, the UN formulates a sequel to the UN
Decade for a Culture of Peace (2001-2010).
Every year since the foundation of the United Nations in 1945 the Kingdom of the
Netherlands nominated a UN Women’s Representative to speak at the UN General Assembly
in New York. The Netherlands is unique and leading in this. From that very beginning, the
UN Women’s Representative has been selected by the Netherlands Council of Women.
Weblog UN Women’s Representative 2010:
http://www.nederlandsevrouwenraad.nl/vrouwenvertegenwoordiger
(only available in Dutch)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------Note by the editor: more information on the UN Women’s Representative 2010 is available
from the Netherlands Council of Women in The Hague, the Netherlands,
Benoordenhoutseweg 23, NL-2596 BA Den Haag, phone +31 (0)70-3469304, email:
info@de-nvr.nl; website: www.nederlandsevrouwenraad.nl