Vote No. 979

That the House: (a) recognize that Canada has a rich tradition of peacekeeping, peace-making and peacebuilding; (b) recognize that Canada is a world leader in the promotion of human rights and peace, having crafted the wording of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, envisioned the creation of the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, championed the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction (the “Ottawa Treaty”) and initiated and led on the Responsibility to Protect doctrine; (c) recognize that the government drafted Article 2 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which calls on member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to contribute to the further development of peaceful international relations, including by seeking to eliminate conflict and promoting conditions of stability and well-being; (d) recognize that harmful practices and social norms, including among women, that uphold gender hierarchies and other intersecting forms of marginalization and exclusion or condone violence are often exacerbated during conflict and that women and men must be equally committed to changing attitudes, behaviours, and roles to support gender equality; (e) acknowledge that overcoming insecurity and achieving sustainable peace are daily concerns for these communities and that women and girls suffer disproportionately in these conflict settings but remain almost entirely excluded from the processes that build peace; (f) recall resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council, notably Resolution 1325 (2000), which reaffirm the important and consequential role in women’s engagement in preventing and resolving conflicts, in peace operations, in humanitarian response, in post-conflict reconstruction, and in counter-terrorism, and countering violent extremism; (g) acknowledge Canada’s own challenges, including gender-based violence and underlying gender inequality and work to develop a framework to implement the Women, Peace and Security agenda domestically; and (h) reaffirm Canada’s commitment to build on our recognized accomplishments and enhance our leadership role in advancing the cause of peace domestically and throughout the world by calling on the government to develop a plan to appoint a Women, Peace and Security Ambassador to: (i) promote research and studies relating to root causes of and preconditions leading to violent conflict and to conflict resolution and prevention, for respect for women’s and girls’ human rights and to conditions conducive to peace, (ii) support the implementation of education, training and counselling in non-violent conflict resolution, (iii) initiate, recommend, coordinate, implement, and promote national policies, projects and programs relating to the reduction and prevention of conflict and empowerment of women and girls and the development and maintenance of conditions conducive to peace, (iv) encourage the development and implementation of gender and peace-based initiatives by governmental and non-governmental entities including engaging with stakeholders, educational institutions and civil society, (v) lead the implementation of the Canadian National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, (vi) promote gender equality and the integration of gender perspectives into peacebuilding and peacekeeping, (vii) review and assess the Departments' yearly Action Plan reporting.