I grew up with injustice and could do nothing about it. But once in America, I had freedom of choice.

Women have never been a chief negotiator in any UN-sponsored talks.

Living in war is a co- existence with death.

While women may look different, as some wear suits and others wear saris, or some cover their hair while others wear their hair loose, women need to stand together because they all face the central point of discrimination, although the extremity of which may be different from Kigali to Kabul.

Since war often enters homes through the "kitchen door," we need to understand women's attempts to keep life going in the face of shortage of food, closing of schools and reduced freedoms.

Unfortunately, violence against women is not the only injustice women face globally; it is one of the many inequalities that impede the full development of socially excluded women globally.

Without women's full inclusion at the decision making table, we cannot have any healthy decision making that is good for men and women alike.