Welcome
Statement by Minister of State Michelle Müntefering ahead of her visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories
Minister of State Michelle Müntefering issued the following statement this evening (24 November) ahead of her visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories:
I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak at the Women Wage Peace conference in Tel Aviv. This peace organisation has been working for the past four years to ensure women’s equal participation in the peace process and has put the focus in society back on peace.
I firmly believe that foreign and security policy must include women in the 21st century, be this in national governments, parliaments, the UN or its international peace missions.
I am also looking forward to my visit to East Jerusalem, where I will visit the German Schmidt’s Girls School, the Church of the Redeemer and the Augusta Victoria Compound on the Mount of Olives. Along with Dormition Abbey, these institutions were recently allocated funding by the German Bundestag in order to carry out extensive building work.
Background information:
Michelle Müntefering, Minister of State for International Cultural Policy at the Federal Foreign Office, will visit Israel and the Palestinian territories from 25 to 27 November.
The focus of her visit will be her participation in the international conference Removing Barriers to Middle East Peace at Tel Aviv University on 27 November organised by the peace movement, Women Wage Peace, where the Minister of State will give a speech. Other speakers will include opposition leader Tzipi Livni and Minister of Regional Cooperation Tzachi Hanegbi. Minister of State Müntefering will also meet Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely for talks.
During her visit to East Jerusalem, the Minister of State’s programme will include visits to the Church of the Redeemer and the Augusta Victoria Compound on the Mount of Olives. These institutions were recently granted further funding by the German Bundestag.
She will also visit the German Schmidt’s Girls School and an integration project where young Jewish and Arab Israelis learn to surf together.