NGO #15066

The Women’s Affairs Technical Committee was founded in Jerusalem in 1992 as one of the technical teams formed to support the peace negotiations. In addition, it was intended to be part of the organization and infrastructure building of a future Palestinian state, to integrate gender into all preparatory work in support of the peace process, and to build state institutions in a manner that would fulfill the Declaration of Independence (1988) which affirms the principle of equality among Palestinians regardless of sex, religion or race. The Women’s Affairs Technical Committee (WATC) was formed at that stage by unifying the efforts of various active women’s organizations that supported the peace process, among them the Union of Social Work Committees, Women’s Action Union, the Union of Working Women’s Committees, and other centers and women professionals. The intention was to increase the representation of women in the various technical and negotiating teams and to ensure the integration of gender into policies and plans being prepared by these teams. WATC succeeded in widening the representation of women in the negotiating teams (such as the environment, education, and information teams), and it worked for the inclusion of the rights of women in the draft laws being prepared. WATC also worked to draft and revise laws on the basis of the principles of the Declaration Convention issued in 1988. In addition, WATC contributed to developing the women's agenda in harmony with political developments and participated in developing the principles for the Declaration of Palestinian Women Rights, which was issued in 1994 by the General Union of the Palestinian Woman. After the establishment of the Palestinian National Authority in 1994, many of the negotiating teams were institutionalized as ministries. WATC submitted a proposal to the late President Yaser Arafat to establish a Ministry of Women’s Affairs, but the proposal was not accepted at that time. The WATC Board of Trustees met to discuss the means to ensure the continuity of its work and to formulate its vision, mission, goals and objectives with the realization that the Palestinian women’s movement needed a unified body to defend the interests of women and to strive for the establishment of a modern and democratic society. WATC decided to continue its work by inviting various women’s organizations and centers devoted to the same vision and mission to join together as a coalition, unifying efforts to achieve equal rights and to ensure that women have the same kind of partnership in building and decision-making as they do in the struggle for independence. As a result, three women's organizations and a number of women’s centers joined the Woman’s Affairs Technical Committee as members. This was a pivotal moment in the history of the Palestinian women’s movement, in that for the first time a broad women’s coalition was formed that could respond to the expectations of Palestinian women once independence is achieved and could bring the status of women to an outcome that is consistent with their sacrifices and perseverance over the past decades. Such a coalition would work with other civic institutions to solidify the principles of equal opportunity, to ensure that laws are fair to women and to eliminate all forms of discrimination. In 1996, a three year strategic plan was formulated to enhance women’s participation in the political process. It focused on organizing campaigns to enable women to reach decision-making positions (for example, in the elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council), to increase the percentage of women in public employment, and to develop drafts of laws that include women’s political and civil rights. In addition, the plan gave special attention to strengthening and enhancing the capabilities of coalition members, as they are connected to the grass roots. Thus, WATC implemented various programs and projects in cooperation with its coalition members that helped to mobilize its grassroots base again, resulting in the formation of effective local leaderships and launching several advocacy and awareness campaigns and pressure groups to attain equal rights. It also succeeded in reaching many marginalized areas and in building the skills of women in these areas through projects such as Empowerment of Rural Women ( SANABEL) in rural areas, empowerment through the internet (Women of the Future), and Empowerment of Youth. Since then, WATC has worked from its offices in Ramallah and Gaza as a networking body engaged in monitoring and ensuring accountability, following up on legal issues, and working for the defense of women’s rights and their interests. It has succeeded in building a wide network of relations on the local, regional and international fronts, and has participated in many international conferences on subjects related to women’s issues and human rights.