Religions for Peace is the largest international coalition of representatives from the world’s great religions dedicated to promoting peace. Respecting religious differences while celebrating our common humanity, Religions for Peace is active on every continent and in some of the most troubled areas of the world, creating multi-religious partnerships to confront our most dire issues: stopping war, ending poverty, and protecting the earth.

The Women’s Mobilization Program was established in 1998 to advance the role of religious women in international development, peace-making and post-conflict reconstruction. The two overarching aims of the program are to ensure that the concerns and perspectives of women are mainstreamed in all of Religions for Peace’s programming and to build the capacity of religious women of faith organizations to engage in peace building and sustainable development.

At present, the Global Network includes more than 1,000 Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Indigenous, Sikh and Zoroastrian religious women’s organizations. Some organizations in the network have a membership as large as 5,000 groups, while others have less than five. More recently, the program inaugurated four regional women of faith sub-networks in Africa, South East Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Southeast Asia. The North American Women of Faith Network will be launched March 1-2, 2010.

RELIGIONS FOR PEACE LAUNCHES RESTORING DIGNITY--END VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

Religions for Peace advances common action among the world’s religious communities for peace. Attaining lasting peace requires action to confront violence and advance shared security.

• Violence against women causes horrific physical, psychological and spiritual suffering and too often, it kills.
• Religions for Peace advances the concern for wellbeing of all persons, particularly those who are most vulnerable, a concept of shared security found in every religion.
• Religious leaders and people of faith must act now to restore and defend the inviolable dignity of women and girls.

Different Faiths, Common Action— While respecting religious differences, Religions for Peace is aligning faith communities around the shared concern that in order to advance shared security and peace for all, there is need to end violence against women.

Restoring Dignity draws on the commitment and resources of faith congregations, institutions, and communities of believers of diverse faith traditions—Baha’i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jain, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Shinto, Taoist, Zoroastrian, and Indigenous—to bring an end to violence against women. Actions by religious leaders and communities of faith can weave fabrics of respect for all persons, their potential, and their right to live a life free from violence.

Common Goals—Restoring Dignity aims at mobilizing religious communities and leaders for common action to end violence against women through:

Awareness: Increasing awareness on violence against women and girls and the need to address it.

Education: Deepening understanding on the different forms of violence against women & share knowledge on the religious & spiritual teachings & principles to end it.

Advocacy: Joining voices with survivors, women and men of faith, youth, the United Nations and other non-faith actors to advocate on prevention, addressing impunity and ensuring security for women and girls.