By the time Shamima Ali took the microphone in Suva, the message had already begun to ripple through the room: in the Blue Pacific, peace without women is no peace at all.
“We need to ensure that women are at the table when we are talking about peace,” said the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre coordinator, her voice firm with years of experience on the frontlines of one of the region’s most urgent crises.
“We have very high rates of violence in the Pacific. In fact, Pacific rates double the world average. That is not a good picture.
“Looking at the Pacific and Fiji, women are not at all secure where they should be the most secure— in our own homes.”
The messages from the 2025 Pacific Regional and National Security Conference session on Women, Peace and Security lingered long after the final speaker.
The panel gathered some of the region’s fiercest advocates for gender equality in law enforcement and defence: retired colonel Litea Seruiratu, Samoa’s Deputy Commissioner of Police Papali’i Monalisa Tia’i-Keti, New Zealand Police Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers, and moderator Anna Naupa, a PhD scholar from the Australian National University.
Each woman carried stories forged in systems not built for them. Each brought conviction that the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent and the Biketawa+ Declaration would remain hollow unless women were meaningfully included, not just counted, in shaping peace.
At the heart of the discussion was a difficult reality: that women continue to face systemic barriers in accessing justice, entering security institutions, and being recognised as leaders in national and regional decision-making spaces.
Mrs Seruiratu reflected on her journey to join and progress in the Republic of Fiji Military Forces, where she served for 36 years, including as the RFMF’s first female Chief of Staff.
“I didn’t know what I was getting myself into … and there were no clear conditions of service for the women during that time,” she said.
The Women, Peace and Security agenda was adopted into the military in late 2018, while Mrs Seruiratu was still serving.
“It emphasises the need for women’s increased and meaningful participation in all levels of decision-making related to peace and security, including within the military structures.
“I’m really happy and excited to see the progress that the Republic of Fiji Military Forces is currently engaging in to improve women’s participation, as well as address the barriers that hinder the progress of women.”
Samoa Police Service Deputy Commissioner Papali’i Monalisa Tia’i-Keti was the first woman appointed to her position and has served in the role since 2018. In her more than 20 years in the police force, she has seen a welcome increase in the representation of women, including in leadership positions.
“The increase in the recruitment of women, particularly in policing across the Pacific, is a positive shift for us. That means there are more women who participate in the decision-making of organisations. There’s also a growing recognition of the unique skill set that women bring in law enforcement,” she said.
Deputy Commissioner Tia’i-Keti emphasised the importance of bringing women’s and minority voices into traditionally male-dominated security spaces.
“Women, peace and security is about recognising the voices of others, like women, so that there’s a holistic approach in how we deal with security issues,” she said.
“There needs to be a continuous addressing of the voices of women and also minority groups, so that our leaders, who often are participating in these discussions, will hear our voices and our needs.”
The speakers recognised the increasing numbers of women working in the security sector, and Ms Ali highlighted the need to ensure not just equality, but also equity and supporting women to succeed.
“A woman’s place is everywhere, right? The kitchen, the workplace, everywhere that she wants to be,” Ms Ali said.
“That opportunity should be there, but we have to recognise the uneven playing field and enable an environment for women to thrive in.”
The people-centred message resonated again in the conference’s Human Security and Humanitarian Assistance panel, which brought together SPC Deputy Director General Dr Paula Vivili, Fiji Council of Social Services executive director Vani Catanasiga, Pacific Disability Forum CEO Sainimili Tawake, and Pacific Youth Council chairperson Mori-m Mahoney Mori.
The panellists acknowledged the complex and intersecting nature of human security, and called for inclusive and holistic approaches to human security.
“When we look at the different kinds of security, the reality is, human security is the one that will impact you in a very direct way,” Dr Vivili said.
“Whether that’s through health, as we saw with COVID, or as we’re seeing with climate change, whether it’s disasters and humanitarian pathways. But it’s also the one that we as a person can contribute to most in making a change into traditional security sense.
“There’s no doubt that human security is complex and cross-cutting, and perhaps the most obvious one is climate change, which intersects with gender, food systems, geopolitics, sustainable development and financing.”
He shared how scientific models produced by SPC helped Tuvalu and Marshall Islands tell their climate security story. “When we showed the model for Tuvalu, for the first time, we had people from Tuvalu who can see their houses being inundated in a future scenario with climate change, and some of them were emotional.”
On the Ocean of Peace proposal, which was a central theme across the conference, Dr Vivili said: “It’s encouraging that the draft declaration takes a people-centred approach, emphasising peace and security on our terms, founded on our values, interests and aspirations. It’s a good word, though that we hear a lot. How do we bring this into practice?”
Ms Catanasiga stressed the importance of empowering communities by focusing on both access to essential services and individual agency.
“If we’re going to be addressing the issues of human security in Fiji in particular, in vulnerable communities, we should be addressing our interventions at addressing access and agency; the access of people to social services, so education, health services, other services that people need in a particular society, and as well as addressing their agency, their ability to act independently,” she said.
She warned of the dangers of neglecting marginalised communities during humanitarian crises: “They are often considered beneficiaries, so they don’t have a voice when there’s a humanitarian response that’s being rolled out.
“When you look at the Ocean of Peace, you want to ensure that human security is actually meeting the needs of communities. If it’s going to have meaning to people at that level, the Ocean of Peace needs to be a concept that’s inclusive and holistic.”
The need for inclusive voices across regional and national security discussions, including women, people with disabilities and youth, was a key point across several discussion.
Speaking at the closing of the conference, Policy Analyst with the National Security Coordination Office in Palau, Ayanna Ramarui, said security discussions and planning must involve young people.
“As a youth representative, I speak not just for myself, but also for many young people across the Pacific who are eager to learn, to contribute and to be part of shaping a secure and resilient future,” she said.
“We want to be involved in imagining and building a future that will reflect on our hopes, our values and responsibilities. As we look ahead, I truly believe that the next step is greater youth inclusion in regional security discussions.
“If we are serious about preparing for 2050 we must involve the very people who will inherit and continue the work that we do today and with the collective strength of our Pacific community and the energy and innovation that the youth brings, we may not have to wait until 2050 because together, we can start turning that shared vision into a reality much sooner.”
Across the sessions, one message prevailed: real security must start with those most impacted.
