Mena conference report final (1)

Responding to the Arab Spring: Enhancing Civil Society and Regional Intergovernmental Organisations

Collaboration to Meet New Peace and Security Challenges

Conference Report

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Enhancing CS and RIGO Collaboration

Table of Contents

Introduction

Conference Online Consultations

Agenda Challenges

Opportunities

Conclusion / the way forward

Annexes List of Participants

Profiles of Speakers


Introduction Since the end of 2010, the Arab Spring has prompted the emergence of a new context; a wave of uprisings has challenged the status quo of long standing regimes across the region. Whilst these events have come as a surprise to most experts and analysts, they reinforce perceptions of the interconnected nature of countries in the region. This factor serves to highlight the importance of regional actors, as well as civil society in addressing peace and security challenges in the MENA region. As stark example of the strength of civic action and social movement, the Arab Spring has highlighted the crucial role of civil society in challenging authoritarian regimes through nonviolent means, as well as debunking assumptions that the nature of civil society in the region render it unable to contribute to regime change and democratisation. However, at the same time CSOs in the region are seeing how their political and operational space is increasingly being restricted. These restrictions and the challenges brought against ruling regimes have showed the need for the Arab League, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the AU and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as regional intergovernmental organizations (RIGOs) to spearhead multilateral approaches in mediating peaceful, nonviolent resolutions to the unrest. In the past few years GPPAC has actively worked to engage RIGOs in its work towards the prevention of armed conflict. As part of these efforts, GPPAC and the Organization of American States (OAS) organised the international conference Strengthening Global Peace and Security for Development. This event, held in Madrid in November 2011, brought together representatives of different Regional Inter-Governmental Organisations (RIGOs) - including the Arab League and the African Union - the United Nations, civil society leaders and representatives of the private sector to create synergies and identify complementarities to promote greater peace and security. The longer-term outcomes that the conference aimed to contribute towards are: a) Increased cooperation and exchange between RIGOs from different regions in the world; b) Increased cooperation and exchange between CSOs from different regions; c) Increased cooperation between CSOs and regional and subregional organizations in their respective geographic area. Specific options and recommendations for follow-up action to sustain this process of exchange and ultimately build the capacity of, and improve cooperation between, different actors were identified as follows: Increased capacity, cooperation and exchange amongst RIGOs & between RIGOs and the UN; Increased cooperation and exchange between CSOs from different regions; Increased cooperation between CSOs and regional and sub-regional organizations in their respective geographic area; Continuing the process of cooperation between the UN, RIGOs and CSOs. As a follow-up to the global conference GPPAC, through its regional network the Middle East and North Africa Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (MENAPPAC), organised a regional conference called Responding to the Arab Spring: Enhancing Civil Society and Regional Intergovernmental Organisations Collaboration to Meet New Peace and Security Challenges. This conference will strive to strengthen the relationship between local CSOs in the Middle East and North Africa and regional intergovernmental organisations, notably the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organization for Islamic Cooperation


In light of the challenges faced by most Arab countries due to globalization on the one hand and the inflammation of the revolutions of the Arab Spring on the other: What role is waiting for the civil society organizations (CSOs) considering these changes? What is the relationship the CSOs are longing for with the regional intergovernmental organizations? What are the best ways to develop this relationship for the better? Overall, the regional conference aimed at increasing operational space for CSOs in which to advocate for conflict prevention and peacebuilding practices in the region; increasing attention from MENA RIGOs, and other relevant organisations, to CSOs, and connecting civil society with policymaking on the regional and international level; institutionalising dialogue processes between CSOs in the MENA region and the MENA RIGOs in particular; and finally the adoption of conflict prevention and peacebuilding considerations on the political agenda of RIGOs. To identify the potential action points around which follow up actions should focus and in order to involve as many CSOs from the region as possible, the agenda of the regional conference was set according to online consultations. The suggestions of the participating CSOs were the main material to develop a program of work and discussion for the conference. The programme consisted of plenary sessions and group discussions. During the plenary sessions (June 16 and the first half of June 17) the topics were discussed from both a RIGO/state perspective and a civil society perspective. The group discussions (the second half of June 17) divided the participants and speakers according to themes, and focused on the challenges and opportunities – formal and informal linkages – as well as the future of the RIGO-civil society cooperation in the Middle East and North Africa.

The Conference

The Online Consultations:

In an effort to establish the basis of a structural engagement MENAPPAC has organized online consultations with CSOs to identify the key issues and potential action points around which follow up actions should focus . Through these consultations, held on a specially designed space on the Peace Portal (www.peaceportal.org), the CSOs were able to determine the starting point that will shape the conference’s dialogue between the Arab League, and other international institutions such as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, government representatives and civil society. This dialogue is an initial step towards an action plan as well as


recommendations to improve the capacity to jointly address the critical issues of peace and security in MENA. This is crucial to strengthening the capacity of the local CSOs who work to address conflict situations on a daily basis . The online consultations in preparation for the regional conference started on April 3rd with general questions regarding the work of local civil society organisations and regional intergovernmental organisations and the relation existing between these actors. Respondents were then asked to prioritize topics according to the needs in their societies. The selected topics will form the thread in following consultation sessions and the conference programme. The topics prioritized by the respondents to the online consultations were: Safe space for human rights, Tolerance, conflict prevention tools, Building Democratic Regimes and transitional justice.

The Agenda:

Each prioritized topic was discussed with the online participants in a separate session. After 52 answers from 12 countries in the MENA region, the agenda of the conference took shape as follows: Perspectives on Preventing Armed Conflict; the Role of RIGOs and CSOs This session will explore the different and complementary roles of RIGOs and CSOs in preventing conflict, tackling conflict causes ranging from arms possession to human rights violations in the Middle East and North Africa. How has the League of Arab States attempted to prevent crisis outbreaks in its member-states? What has been the role of civil society in the Arab Spring – and in particular in ensuring the peacefulness of protests? How can CSOs and RIGOs cooperate more in the future to address conflict causes as well as the escalation of crises? Tolerance and Co-existence through a Culture of Dialogue; the Role of RIGOs and CSOs Establishing an open culture of dialogue and acceptance is of large importance in creating a stable

country and society. The necessity of tolerance and co-existence has become increasingly clear after the Arab Spring, where uncertainty has led to inter-group struggles, polarizing the society. In the process of democratization, all groups, including minorities, are eager to ensure the respect of their rights. Peace education, creating a culture of acceptance, and fighting sectarianism are often heard terms in discussions on tolerance and co-existence. In this session the speakers will discuss ways to achieve a sustainable, increased level of tolerance through collaboration between RIGOs and CSOs.

‘There is a counter attack going on, there

is a very strong counter attack going on!

And if you look at the High Commis-

sioner statement that mentions examples,

it goes beyond the region. Other countries

are becoming afraid of their own civil

societies!’

Fateh Azzam, UNHCR


Ensuring a Safe Space for Civil Society and Human Rights Activists Without a safe space for civil society and human rights activists, it is made impossible for CSOs to stimulate legal reforms, a culture of dialogue, and tolerance. But, although the Arab Spring has brought more freedom in some Arab countries, in many other Arab countries the government is encroaching upon the civil society out of fear for protests. Many

activists therefore feel unsafe to act freely with the goal to achieve more democratic societies with a respect for human rights. How is the position on human rights currently in the MENA region according to the OHCHR? How can RIGOs offer a safe space to activists? Transitional Justice and Democratization after the Arab Spring; Special Focus on the Role of Women Transitional justice is a core element of achieving more democratic governments, particularly after times of crisis. After the Arab Spring transitional justice is necessary to ensure impunity and establish a unity in society, rather than the creation of religious and ethnic differences. Therefore transitional justice is important for the process of democratization and the guarantees for equality of rights. How does transitional justice serve the process of democratization? And what is the status of women’s rights currently in post-Arab Spring societies? Perspectives on Human Security; Protecting Citizens from Armed Violence and Instability The Arab Spring and current violent clashes between governments and oppositions in the MENA have directed the attention of governments and civil society towards the dangers of widespread possession of and trade in small arms. Also, with the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) being negotiated within the UN framework this year this topic has gained much momentum. During this session the speakers will discuss the issue of small arms possession and its consequences for instability and the feeling of insecurity among citizens, taking examples from Libya, Syria, Iraq and Sudan. How does the League of Arab States coordinate government efforts in the region? What can the adoption of the ATT mean for the region? How can CSOs protect the citizens and themselves against widespread arms possession? P a r t i c i p a n t s i n c l u d e d C S O representatives from Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Mauritania, Yemen, Sudan, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrein, Iran, Palestine, Jordan, Libya and Saudi Arabia. In representation of the League

In the last 25 years in the field, several attempts of

networking and helping in creating a state of coopera-

tion and joint action and a power of joint work in the

Arab region have failed. This criticism directed to-

wards the Arab League for example, must also be

directed towards the human rights civil society, be-

cause each and every one of us is directing a stick and

we are not prepared to hold one stick all together. Fateh Azzam, UNHCR


of Arab States, the Ambassadors Wael Al Assad, Director of Multilateral Relation and Disarmament and Mahmoud Rashed, Director of the Department for Civil Society, participated in the event. Other participants included Mr. Fateh Azzam, Regional Representative for the Middle East Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the United Nations and Mr. Galal Ali Moqbil Sallam, representative of the legal affairs ministry of Yemen.

Challenges:

The topics raised throughout the conference gave the chance for the participants representing the civil society organizations and the representatives from the regional intergovernmental organizations especially the League of Arab States (LAS) to express some of the challenges facing them towards an effective collaboration. In order to establish a relationship between the CSOs and the RIGOs, the participants mentioned the points below to be considered in coordination with the points raised during the online consultations. It unveiled stereotypes and little previous overlap and cooperation regarding work of RIGOs and CSOs:

Regarding CSOs Regarding RIGOs

CSOs never send reports to the LAS about the developments in their work

Currently, some governments see CSOs as political threat

Absence of group work and collaboration between CSOs in the region.

RIGOS like the LAS do not possess the com-plete power of decision. RIGO policies de-pend on policies of the several member-states.

CSOs need to build their capacities and knowledge about human security problems in the region to be able to plan effective strategies.

Media does not reflect the good work of the LAS on human security issues and their coor-dination with parts of the civil society.

No real progress of the civil society work. Example: coalition for Darfur which is dis-couraging for the CSOs work in general.

Every day, we hear about new human secu-rity violations and problems in the region which makes it difficult to progress on the issue.

Lack of design of results oriented projects, especially in the human rights and policy making field. The work of Civil Society is mostly based on objection or slander but not on how making effective changes on the ground. This, with time, affected how the general society looks at CSO.

It is not easy to change structures… changes need time especially within organization like the Arab League of States.

Lack of resources of the CSOs from the re-gion to the region especially for Human Rights and human security programs.

The LAS has limited resources to start pro-jects on issues related to human security and human rights.


Opportunities:

The fact that the meeting is joining actors from different levels is an opportunity in itself: international actors (GPPAC), regional actors, RIGOs and local CSOs. The participants were able to detect some opportunities that they can build on to create a common agenda: With the Arab Spring, the look towards Civil Society changed. The civil society is currently taken more into consideration. RIGOs and the CSOs work on several common issues. Ex: Nuclear Free MENA Zone, small arms and light weapons issue, etc. Since 2001 the LAS is restructuring and more concerned about human rights, civil society and conflict resolution/prevention. They are developing departments for these issues. The LAS is trying to develop tools for conflict prevention and their presence is a sign that they are ready to cooperate.

The 2 people present from the LAS are key contacts. The Arab spring was an opportunity for change in different countries that made the presence of Civil society easier ex: Libya. The Arab League is working on a report on human rights situation in the MENA region and ready to

share the findings. CSOs are internationally recognized and referred to in order to detect public opinion. The opportunity of building coalitions is present. RIGOs and CSOs have different qualities which can complement each other RIGOs and CSOs have a different view ( r e g i o n a l - l o c a l , g o v e r n m e n t a l -nongovernmental) and access to different groups and organisations

RIGOs have connections with governments and large multilateral organisations, and the overview to facilitate the exchange of knowledgeCSOs have the know-how and the legitimacy to operate within their societies, and have an important signalling function regarding conflict risks

‘We have to see the shades of

greys within the governments

and find these allies within to

also assist with this space that

we want to create.’ Emad Kiyaei, Iran


The way forward

The availability of the RBF grant made this meeting possible. The presence of the League of Arab States representatives gave the event a special character and values. They showed true intentions and effectiveness with their initiative, which gave the CSOs of the region a

new drive to continue working on the prevention of armed conflict and peace-building in the area with the hope of new collaborations for a long term impact on the region and on civil society, plus the hope of development of the relationship between civil society and policymakers in the region with a larger project of change. More of such grants are needed to follow up on the proposed actions from the participants. The final sessions of the event were focused on discussing mechanisms to enhance collaboration between the League of Arab States and civil society. After the discussion, the following way forward was agreed:

In relation to the regional process of consultations and coordination between the League of Arab

States and Civil Society on the regional level (Middle East and North Africa):

A liaison officer was chosen to represent civil society organizations working on issues of prevention of armed conflicts and human security and arms control, to link between civil society organizations in the region on the one hand and the League of Arab States on the other. It was agreed that the Network Middle East and North Africa for the prevention of armed conflict (MENAPPAC), represented by the Office of its secretariat, would be this liaison. It will continue this process of receiving concise documents about the attitudes and decisions of the League of Arab States relevant to raise awareness among civil society organizations, and update members on issues of human security and armed conflicts. In turn also provides reports and data on any activities or positions of the organizations of civil society to the representatives of the League of Arab States. A general secretariat has been established to adopt this conference as a regular mechanism that addresses every year a priority theme in the region within the field of human security, conflict prevention and disarmament. The task of this secretariat is to identify the theme of the conference, time and venue, names of speakers and participants, and the method of financing. It was agreed that the members of the Secretariat are the Ambassador Wael al-Assad and Ambassador Mahmoud Rashed from the League of Arab States, Ms. Nabila Hamza, President of the Foundation for the future and Mr. Fadi Abi Allam, GPPAC’s Regional Representative and the Coordinator Middle East and North Africa for the prevention of armed conflict MENAPPAC.

In relation to the participation of the League of Arab States in the global process of cooperation

between RIGOs and CSOs:

The representatives of the League of Arab States expressed interest in cooperating with the Global Network for the prevention of armed conflict (GPPAC) and Middle East and North Africa Partnership for the prevention of armed conflict (MENAPPAC) to organize a Second International Conference on

The reality proved that the so-

ciety has two wings; it cannot

fly with one wing, the civil

society and the Arab League. Mahmoud Rashed, LAS


strengthening the cooperation between regional organizations and civil society organizations, this conference will be the follow up to the first conference held under the same title in Madrid in 2011. The conference could be held in the second half of 2013 in one of the countries of the Middle East. The Ambassador Wael al-Assad, director of multilateral relations and disarmament in the League of Arab States showed willingness to be part of the steering group of the regional organizations and civil society organizations proposed during the Madrid conference, which will discuss possible options for the creation of a permanent mechanism for coordination. The proposed date for the first meeting of the Steering Group is during October 2012.


List of Participants

Name Organisation Country

Fadi Abi Allam PPM/MENAPPAC/GPPAC Lebanon

Darynell Rodríguez Torres GPPAC The Netherlands

Wael Al Assad League of Arab States Egypt

Mahmoud Rached League of Arab States Egypt

Galal Ali Moqbil Yemeni Government Yemen

Fateh Azzam OHCHR Lebanon

Abedmnam Alhur Arab Organisation for Human Rights Libya

Lucy Nusseibeh Middle East Nonviolence and Democracy Palestine

Sidi Ethman Northern League for Development of Democ-

racy and Human Rights

Mauritania

Elie Abouaoun Arab Human Rights Fund Lebanon

Nabila Hamza Foundation for the Future Jordan

Suhair Mahdi Human Security Initiative Sudan

Grace Ghaleb PPM/MENAPPAC/GPPAC Lebanon

Evaline Schot GPPAC The Netherlands

Taysir Mohmed Abdel Majed Human Security Initiative Sudan

Hussain Alak Human Rights Activists Network Saudi Arabia

Ezzadin Al Asbahi HR Information and Training Center Yemen

Abdou Bendjoudi Ligue Algérienne des Droits de l’Homme Algeria

Hakima Al Chawi Education Center on the HR of Women Morocco

Issa Al Ghayeb Bahrain Human Right Society Bahrain

Ibraheem Al Hayek Partners Jordan Jordan

Wouter Kolk IKV Pax Christi The Netherlands

Emad Kiyaei American - Iranian Council Iran

Hazem Ksouri Free Tunisia Tunisia

Nasser Al Masri Kuwaiti Observatory to Root Democracy Kuwait

Haggag Nael Arab Program for Human Rights Activists Egypt

Dhifaf Mahmood Saad Peace of Mesopotamia Organisation Iraq

Nathalie Adam PPM Lebanon

Rania Fazah IKV Pax Christi Jordan

Ali Al Harby Journalist Saudi Arabia

Walid Al Sayyed Office of the National Congress Party Sudan Egypt


Profile of Speakers

Abedmnam Alhur Abedmnam Alhur works through the Equity and Reconciliation national body, of which emerged a group of committee including the mediation Commission, the committee of goodwill efforts, and the Conciliation Committee. The work of these commissions is to promote national unity and reconciliation through first identifying the offender; determining the victim and the extent of harm on the victim; and then activate justice to work on repairing the harm

Darynell Rodríguez Torres Darynell Rodríguez Torres is the Programme Manager Policy and Advocacy, at the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, GPPAC. His work is focused on strengthening cooperation between GPPAC members and policy makers from governments, regional international organisations and the United Nations to provide inputs for shaping conflict prevention and peace building strategies. He has held different positions in the public, private and non for profit sectors including government, regional organisations and private firms specialised in political risk and public affairs. Darynell's academic background includes a degree in International Studies and Political Science from West Virginia University, a Masters in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science and other postgraduate studies in the field of public policy and political management. Elie Abouaoun Dr. Elie Abouaoun joined the Arab Human Rights Fund as Executive Director in December 2011. Previously, he was a senior Program Officer at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), and managed the Iraq program of the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) and Ockenden International, an INGO that works with refugees and displaced peoples. Elie is a senior trainer and consultant and has worked with several local, regional and international organizations. He is a member of the pool of trainers of the Council of Europe since 2000 and as such regularly delivers trainings on human rights, Euro Mediterranean cooperation, and project development/management. He regularly contributes to publications related to human rights and in 2001 was part of the Reference Group established by the Directorate of Education-Council of Europe to supervise the COMPASS into Arabic and its subsequent diffusion in the region in 2003. Elie regularly writes articles for the French speaking Lebanese daily newspaper “L’Orient le Jour.” Elie is also a visiting lecturer at Notre Dame University Lebanon (teaching civil society networking and advocacy), and at Saint Joseph University Lebanon (teaching human rights and citizenship) Fadi Abi Allam Fadi Abi Allam is founding member and president of the Permanent Peace Movement (PPM), director of the Peace Building Academy in Lebanon and currently the Coordinator of the Middle East and North Africa Partnership for Prevention of Armed


Conflict (MENAPPAC) which is acting as the MENA initiator for the Global Partnership for Prevention of Armed (GPPAC). He is a steering committee member for the (MENANSA) Middle East and North Africa Network for Small Arms and the coordinator of the Non-Violence Network in the Arab Countries. His 20 years of experience on the field enabled him to build bridges across the region to the world. Mr. Abi Allam cooperates continuously with the United Nations through his participation in the international Arms Control Campaign, lobbying to vote positively for the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). From 2010 to June 2011 he furthermore was appointed as a consultant for the Minister AkramChehayeb in the Lebanese Ministry of Displaced, where he was the facilitator of the trust building and the reconciliation processes for displaced people. Fateh Azzam Fateh Azzam is currently Regional Representative for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the United Nations in Beirut. Azzam received LLM in International Human Rights Law from Essex University, Colchester, U.K. in 1992. From September 2003-2006, he was Lecturer in Political Science and Director of the Forced Migration and Refugee Studies Program, American University in Cairo. Fateh was a founder and current Board Chair of the Arab Human Rights Fund and participated in human rights missions and projects by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch in Syria, Algeria, Morocco and elsewhere. Past work includes Program Officer for Human Rights in The Ford Foundation office for the Middle East and North Africa in Cairo, directing al-Haq in Palestine, education and outreach at Oxfam America in Boston, and many years as a theatre performer, choreographer and teacher. His writings on human rights and theatre include Political Rights and the Practice of Democracy (Ramallah: Muwatin - Palestinian Institute for the Study of Democracy, 1995), and articles in Human Rights Quarterly, Nordic Journal of International Law, ICJ Review, Arab Journal for Human Rights, and elsewhere. Galal Ali Moqbil Sallam Representative of Mohammad Ahmed Ali Al Mikhlafi. Dr. Mikhlafi is currently the Minister of Legal Affairs in the government of national reconciliation in the Republic of Yemen since December 2011. He holds a doctorate in private international law and is a Lawyer before the Supreme Court of the Republic of Yemen and Senior Researcher and Professor at the Center for Yemeni Studies and Research. Ambassador Al Mikhlafi is one of the founders and the former President of the Yemeni Observatory for Human Rights and Member of the administrative board of the Information and Training Center as well as a member of the Yemeni Bar Association. Dr. Al Mikhlafi is an expert in the field of intellectual property and trainer in the field of human rights. He wrote and published 18 books and scientific studies on international private law and human rights, among which "Arab regional agreements as a source for the rules of international commercial arbitration" (Center for Yemeni Studies and Research) and "Change - the democratic transition in Yemen - Imperatives - Constraints".


Lucy Nusseibeh Lucy Nusseibeh is the founder and Chairperson of Middle East Nonviolence and Democracy (MEND - www.mendonline.org), based in East Jerusalem, which has since 1998, been pioneering the promotion of awareness about the power of nonviolence, especially in the Israeli-Palestinian context. MEND promotes the principles and practice of active nonviolence among all sectors of Palestinian society, especially activists, youth, and those working in education, and especially using innovative media techniques. Since November 2007, Ms. Nusseibeh has been the Director of the Institute of Modern Media, the media arm of Al-Quds University. In addition to a BA granting media department, the Institute of Modern Media comprises Al-Quds Educational Television (AQTV www. Imm.ps/AQTV.php), which has worked closely with Sesame Workshop, and www.honaalquds.net, a multi-media online news network focussing on Jerusalem. Ms. Nusseibeh is on the Executive Committee of the International Governance Council of the Nonviolent Peaceforce, is a member of the Humanities Advisory Council at the Fetzer Institute, and is on the editorial board of the Palestine-Israel journal. She has served as the co-chair of the GPPAC Outreach and Awareness raising Group. In 2010 she was a guest on TEDx Holy Land and spoke on “The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to Nonviolence”. Nabila Hamza Nabila is the President of the Foundation for the Future (FFF), an independent, international non-profit organisation established in 2005. The Foundation for the Future is committed to enhancing and strengthening civil society organisations (CSOs) in their efforts to advance democracy building and human rights protection. In recognition of her significant role in the Foundation’s continuing efforts to support civil society initiatives, the Arab Pioneer and Innovators Forum granted an award to honour Nabila Hamza in November 2009. This award promoted the dissemination of information on the Foundation’s achievements as a reliable and credible partner to civil society organisations for the promotion of human rights and democracy in the region. Nizar Rammal Nizar Rammal is currently the CEO and managing director of “…for development, c.c.”, a civil company that provides workshop and training services to NGOs, international and multilateral organisations and the public sector. He has extensive knowledge and experience on conflict resolution and development, and community mobilization, and used to be a board member of several non-governmental initiatives, such as the Green Line Association and the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections. Rammal is an experienced trainer and facilitator. Sidi Ethman Ould Sheikh Malainine Sidi Ethman holds a Master degree in International Business Management and is a human rights activists and board member of the Arab Organization for Human Rights (AOHR). Currently, Ethman is the Vice-Chairman of the Mauritanian branch of the AOHR, and is the regional advisor on youth community development. He is particularly specialized in active citizenship, engagement of youth, and cultural exchanges.


Suhair Mahdi Muhi El Din Ahmed Suhair Mahdi has an educational background in economics, with specialties in agricultural economics and socio-economics. Currently she works as Program Manager at Human Security Initiative in Sudan, and is Coordinator of The Sudanese Group for Democracy and Election (SUGDE) for projects on voter education, Sudanese elections, the South Sudan Referendum and electoral reform. Mrs. Mahdi’s focus in the last few years has been especially on women. Finally, she has co-researched and co-authored the publications “Small arms and community security perceptions” (MENAANSA; Middle East and North Africa Network on Small Arms), and “The Other in the Arabic Press” (The Arab Network for Tolerance).

Wael Al Assad Wael Al Assad has been working within the system of the League of Arab States since 1973. He is currently the director of Multilateral Relations at the Headquarters of the League of Arab States in Cairo. In 2001 he established the Department of Disarmament Affairs in the Arab League and became its Director. He was also the Director of International Organizations Department in the League since 2000. The two departments were merged under the title of “Multilateral Relations”. He established the Governmental “Arab Committee on Drafting a Treaty on the Establishment of a Zone Free of Weapons of Mass Destruction in the 57 Middle East” in 1994 and became its rapporteur since its inception. Ambassador Al-Assad has also been responsible for cooperation with the UN and other international and regional organizations since 1989. He heads the Arab league team in developing mechanisms for cooperation with international and Regional Organisations including the General Cooperation Biennial Meeting with the UN System. He has a number of published papers and articles on Security, Disarmament issues and international relations.

Mena conference report final (1)

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