A four days training on Gender-Based Violence in politics organized by TIMRAN for political party members started on February 21, 2023, with the support of CSSP II.
TIMRAN Executive Directress (ED), Eyerusalem Solomon, welcomed the participants and briefed them about TIMRAN and its activities.
She said TIMRAN emerged as a local nonpartisan civil society organization dedicated to advancing women’s participation in politics and public decision-making in Ethiopia regardless of their political opinion or party affiliation. It is founded by nine Ethiopian citizens who steadfastly united to narrow the gender parity in the country’s politics in January 2020. It is dedicated to contributing its share in the nation’s efforts to end the current political environment that is characterized by political gridlock, marginalization, injustice, violence, and rapidly growing ethnic conflict.
The ED informed the participants the major aim to give training on GBV is to create awareness among political party members who came from different political parties so as to be gender sensitive and work for the advancement of women in their respective parties.
The training keynote speaker Kidist Girma, Ethiopian political parties’ joint council women wing chairwoman, addressed the trainees by saying it is obvious that Ethiopian politics is male dominant thus the political sphere is narrow to most women. Not only this, female politicians joining the political parties face have different forms of GBV-related issues including segregation. Thus, political parties should fight for women’s representation, and inclusion and stand against any form of GBV in politics; otherwise, since women represent more than half of society they could not become successful.
As a result, political parties should give focus on gender issues, fight any form of GBV in their respective parties and bring justice if they experience any wrongdoings, she said.
The training guest of honor, Bizuwork Ketete, National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) board member, on her part, deliberated though TIMRAN is a new CSO working on women’s rights advancement, and inclusion in decision-making; it is active in organizing different women empowerment activities.
She noted NEBE made a gender audit within political parties as well as within the board and found interesting learning from the results. The board also made a research on GBV during the time of the election and its result will be recognized soon.
Inclusion of women in political parties has many benefits to the political parties themselves, Bizuwork said. Thus, political parties should become gender sensitive in their organizational structure and day-to-day activities so as to become successful within society.
She also pointed out that participants of the training basically should work to bring gender-sensitive institutional change beyond personal skill development.
NEBE will continue work with TIMRAN and other partners that focus on gender issues, she indicated.
At last, she hopes at the end of the training valuable issues will be collected from the training participants on the advancement of women rights.
