Washington, DC– The Women’s Democracy Network (WDN) will hold its annual Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Award dinner on February 28, 2011, honoring those who have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of women in politics and civil society.  Receiving this year’s award will be the Honorable Frances Fragos Townsend, former Assistant to President George W. Bush for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, and Sherry Rehman, member of the Pakistan National Assembly and ranking member of the National Security Committee.  The awards will be presented as a part of the WDN’s annual International Women’s Day conference held in Washington, DC.

Frances Fragos Townsend is the Senior Vice President of Worldwide Government, Legal and Business Affairs at MacAndrews and Forbes Holdings, Inc.  From May 2004 until January 2008 she served as Assistant to President George W. Bush for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism and chaired the Homeland Security Council.  Townsend has long supported and advocated for women’s public and political engagement.  During her time at the White House, she met with women throughout the Middle East, including women doctors and entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia, women running for elective office in Iraq, female military officers in the Jordan and the United Arab Emirates and female counternarcotics officers in Afghanistan.  In 2010 Townsend moderated a panel for the Daily Beast’s Women in the World conference regarding the critical role of women and women’s rights for the future of Afghanistan.  A long-time supporter of the Women’s Democracy Network, Townsend spoke at the dinner celebrating the first anniversary of the Network.

A leading activist for democracy and women’s rights in Pakistan, Sherry Rehman is the ranking member of the National Security Committee of the National Assembly of Pakistan and is President of the Jinnah Institute, a public policy think tank focused on security issues.  She also served as the Minister for Information and Broadcasting from 2008-2009 before resigning in protest over a crackdown on media freedoms in Pakistan.  Rehman has authored several legislative bills and resolutions on foreign and security policy, human rights and media protections.  Her briefing on security in Pakistan led to the adoption of the Joint Resolution on Terrorism, the first national consensus on the issue of terrorism in Pakistan.  Rehman is an award winning journalist and was the first Pakistani to be recognized by the British House of Lords for independent journalism.  In 2009, she was recognized by Pakistan’s Association of Television Journalists for her support of media independence.  She has also received the International Peace Award for Democrats by the Human Rights Commission.

The Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Award dinner is held each year as part of the WDN’s annual International Women’s Day conference.  This year’s conference brings together women from Albania, Bangladesh, Belarus, Bolivia, Bosnia, Cambodia, Georgia, Guatemala, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Moldova, Morocco, Romania and Russia.  Participants will spend two days at the Leadership Institute in a program designed to train potential candidates and community activists how to run for office successfully and how to build an effective grassroots organization.  Participants will also meet with women members of Congress, officials with the presidential administration and women who are leaders in politics, civil society and business.

The Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Award recognizes honorees for their commitment to increase women’s political and civic participation within their own communities and on behalf of women worldwide.  A long-time board member of the International Republican Institute (IRI) and the first woman to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Dr. Kirkpatrick was a strong advocate for women’s participation in politics.  Her career in women’s political participation and foreign policy is an inspiration to women.

The WDN is an initiative established by IRI to foster relationships among women leaders from around the world, providing them with opportunities to share best practices and develop the skills needed for professional advancement.  The WDN encourages and supports women working to advance the political, civic and economic participation of women in their countries through skills-building trainings by creating regional networks to strengthen their development.