addition to her duties as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Conference on Disarmament, She was appointed Chairperson of the United Nations First Biennial Meeting of States on Small Arms and Light Weapons, held in New York in July 2003. In this capacity, she instigated numerous consultations with States, regional and international organizations, and non-governmental organizations in the lead-up to the Meeting. As Chairperson, she led the Meeting to a successful conclusion with her unfailing drive and enthusiasm. Furthermore, She served as co-chair of the Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, an intersessional body of the Meeting of the States Parties to the convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction in 2004. She has also made invaluable contributions in her capacity as board member of the Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), and Member of the United Nations Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters, particularly in the field of disarmament and reconciliation. She is also an active member of the Club of Rome. During her term as Ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament, she participated in numerous television programs and documentaries. She also contributed articles to various newspapers and periodicals on a wide range of topics in order to further the causes of disarmament and world peace. Political career Inokuchi was elected to the House of Representatives as a representative of the Tokyo proportional representation block in the September 2005 general election. She entered the Liberal Democratic Party candidate list at the urging of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, and was one of the best-known of the many "Koizumi Children" that entered the Diet as a result of the 2005 election. In a surprise move on 31 October 2005, she was appointed Minister of State for Gender Equality and Social Affairs, and was placed in charge of policies associated with equal opportunities and social justice including gender equality, youth affairs, and consumer protection. She advocated providing additional financial support to families with small children, promoting equal employment policies, and promoting a change in the traditional view that women are to take primary responsibility for child care and housekeeping. Inoguchi declined to run in the 2009 general election after the LDP offered her a lower position on the proportional representation ballot. She returned to the Diet following the 2010 House of Councillors election, in