On Wednesday 13 September, representatives of the National, Green and Labour parties joined a political panel to discuss key international issues for women, including our relationships with trade partners, international aid, and feminist foreign policy.
The Feminist Foreign Policy Political Panel was made up of
- Vanushi Walters (Labour),
- Golriz Ghahraman (Green), and
- Gerry Brownlee (National).
The Panel was chaired by one of Radio New Zealand's leading journalists, Susie Ferguson. She expertly set the scene for a dynamic and constructive discussion, with panellists outlining political views and party policies on foreign policy.
Attendance was strong: a full house filling the lecture room space at Victoria University of Wellington, and many more online. The panel discussion covered a range of topics, such as climate change, international security in the Pacific, the continued funding of gender-based aid projects in the Asia-Pacific region, the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals and what role New Zealand can play in the women, peace and security agenda and promoting democracy and human rights overseas. The National Party's Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Gerry Brownlee, committed his government to retaining the Ministry for women and to development funding for sexual and domestic violence aid projects in the Solomon Islands.
(l-r) Vanushi Walters, Gerry Brownlee, Golriz Ghahraman, and Susie Ferguson
The event was the work of NCWNZ's International Action Hub, and a collaborative effort co-hosted by the Hub, the NCWNZ Wellington Branch, Business and Professional Women New Zealand, and Graduate Women New Zealand.
by
Aleisha Amohia, NCWNZ Wellington Branch
and
Siobhan Dilly, NCWNZ International Action Hub
To read more articles from The Circular (September-October 2023) issue 643, click on the tag below.