5/03/2025

On March 5, 2025 Carla Boulos participated at the Dutch Parliament in a roundtable on Syria as a women’s rights specialist, sharing her thoughts on how the Dutch government can support Syrian women in this critical moment.

A few highlights from her speech below:
* Syrian women of all backgrounds have been the backbone of the country, leading civil society, raising families, and driving change, yet they continue to be marginalized by laws, policies, and a society that fail to reflect their contributions or address their challenges.

Key recommendations:
1. Provide direct access to sustainable funding for women-led civil society organizations delivering healthcare, education, economic opportunities, and political participation programs.

2. Support local community initiatives that promote dialogue, social cohesion, and engage men and community leaders in addressing gender-based violence.

3. Ensure inclusive political participation by supporting leadership training and meaningful involvement of women from all ethnic and religious groups, beyond token representation. Support setting up independent local monitoring committees to track inclusivity in political decision-making.

4. Strengthen judicial participation and protections for women by supporting the Syrian judiciary and civil society in establishing gender-responsive mechanisms to address both historical and ongoing violations of women’s rights. This includes ensuring women’s participation in the judiciary, transparent legal processes, accountability for arbitrary detentions, and access to justice for women who have faced imprisonment, abuse, or forced disappearances.

Finally lasting change in women’s rights must be rooted in justice, by ensuring all those responsible for the suffering and violations endured by Syrian women are held accountable.

Listen to the full roundtable here.