26.11.20
A look back at our online High Level Panel Discussion of 25 November 2020 - Event recording, highlights, how you can get involved in the #RaiseAPen campaign
→ See also panelist bios and background information on the invitation article
Our virtual high-level panel discussion answering the call of Afghan mothers for the continued right to education for women and girls in Afghanistan was an inspirational event. There was transparency, courage and honesty not just in the panel discussion room but also in the audience chat room where animated comments and questions flew backwards and forwards – to the panelists – and to fellow attendees.
In her video message, which opened the discussion, Rahela Sidiqi, Founder & Director of the Farkhunda Trust for Afghan Women’s Education, an MMM associate member and partner of the #RaiseAPen campaign, set the tone:
“We need Afghan women’s voices to be a part of the global conversation. Education is a key engine of development and prosperity, the cornerstone for freedom and democracy. Afghan women are a strong catalyst for driving sustainable development and change. There can be no going back for them. The only way is forward.”
It was an emotional wrap to the event. When asked by our Moderator Mary Kaldor, Professor of Global Governance and CEO of the Conflict Research Program, IDEAS, London School of Economics and Political Science, to raise their pens in solidarity, all the panelists in unison did exactly that, pledging to support the campaign going forward.
It is clear that we all have a responsibility to spread the message far and wide, to raise the voices of Afghan women and girls loud and clear. To this effect, MMM President Anne-Claire de Liedekerke called on each of us to commit to concrete actions to take the campaign forward by presenting a ‘how you can get involved’ pledge.
A short video concluded the event, exemplifying what each of us can do: the more pens raised globally, the louder our collective voice.
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