The meeting, hosted at the Permanent Mission of Canada to the UN in NY, coincided with the 69th meeting of the UN Commission on the Status of Women and the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action adopted in 1995 at the Fourth World Conference on Women.
Participants included WAiEs from some ten countries, representatives of international NGOs and the UN, and enjoyed welcome from, and the participation of, Ms Emi Furuya, Director General, International Organisations and Human Rights at Global Affairs Canada. In addition to Professor Packer, HRREC participants included Fellow Dr Amanda Dale, student member and doctoral candidate Eucharia Uranta-Okonkwo and community member Nina Potarska.
As authoritarian regimes proliferate, the work of WAiEs is becoming increasingly vital to support against authoritarianism and assist transitions to democratic governance under the rule of law and respect for human rights. Participants explored strategies for protecting and supporting these activists as well as advocating for their recognition within international frameworks and in countries of exile like Canada.