International Alert
Women, Violent Conflict and Peacebuilding
(London: International Alert, 1999, 72pp.)

Lysistrata, immortalized by Aristophanes, mobilized women on both sides of the Athenian-Spartan War for a sexual strike in order to force men to end hostilities and avert mutual annihilation.  In this, Lysistrata and her co-strikers were forerunners of the American humanistic psychologist Abraham Maslow who proposed a hierarchy of needs: water, food, shelter and sexual relations being the foundation. (See Abraham Maslow. The Farther Reaches of Human Nature (New York: Viking, 1977)  Maslow is important for conflict resolution work because he stresses dealing directly with identifiable needs in ways that are clearly understood by all parties and with which they are willing to deal at the same time.

Addressing each person's underlying needs means you move toward solutions that acknowledge and value those needs rather than denying them.  To probe below the surface requires redirecting the energy towards asking 'what are your real needs here? What interests need to be serviced in this situation?'  The answers to such questions significantly alter the agenda and provide a real point of entry into the negotiation process.

It is always difficult to find a point of entry into a conflict, that is, a subject on which people are willing to discuss because they sense the importance of the subject and all sides feel that 'the time is right' to deal with that issue. The art of conflict resolution is highly dependent on the ability to get to the right depth of understanding and intervention into the conflict.  All conflicts have many layers.  If one starts off too deeply, one can get bogged down in philosophical discussions about the meaning of life.  However, one can also get thrown off track by focusing on too superficial an issue on which there is relatively quick agreement.  When such relatively quick agreement is followed by blockage on more essential questions, there can be a feeling of betrayal.

Since Lysistrata, women, individually and in groups, have played a critical role in the struggle for justice and peace in all societies.  However, when real negotiations begin, women are often relegated to the sidelines.  However a gender perspective on peace, disarmament, and conflict resolution entails a conscious and open process of examining how women and men participate in and are affected by conflict differently.  It requires ensuring that the perspectives, experiences and needs of both women and men are addressed and met in peace-building activities.  These are not abstract intellectual musings - they have real implications for the success and sustainability of peace and security.  Today, conflicts reach everywhere.  How do these conflicts affect people in the society - women and men, girls and boys, the elderly and the young, the rich and poor, the urban and the rural?

Awareness that there can be 'blind spots' in men's visions is slowly dawning in high government circles.  The U.N. Security Council, at the strong urging of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), on October 31, 2000 issued Resolution 1325 which calls for full and equal participation of women in conflict prevention, peace processes, and peace building, thus creating opportunities for women to become fully involved in governance and leadership.  This historic Security Council resolution 1325 provides a mandate to incorporate gender perspectives in all areas of peace support.  Its adoption is part of a process within the UN system through its World Conferences on Women in Mexico City (1975), in Copenhagen (1980), in Nairobi (1985) in Beijing (1995) and at a special session of the U.N. General Assembly to study progress five years after Beijing (2000).

Much of the emphasis on peace in these world conferences on women is due to efforts on the part of  NGOs.  Government representatives wanted to keep the conferences focused on 'women's issues,' like child welfare, health and employment.  A few women's NGOs worked to have the word 'peace' included in the aims. Governments could not come out against 'peace' so it was reluctantly added, and the conference aims became 'equality, development, and peace.'

There has been a growing awareness that women and children are not just victims of violent conflict and wars - 'collateral damage' - but they are chosen targets.  Conflicts such as those in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia have served to bring the issue of rape and other sexual atrocities as deliberate tools of war to the forefront of international attention.  Systematic rape, sexual slavery and slavery-like practices during armed conflict constitute violations of human rights, humanitarian, and international criminal law.  Such violations must be properly documented, the perpetrators brought to justice and victims provided with criminal and civil redress.  There must be no impunity for crimes committed against women.

Already in December 1966, the U.N. General Assembly passed Resolution 2200A on the "Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict."  States should make all efforts to spare women from the ravages of war and ensure that they are not deprived from shelter, food, medical aid, and other inalienable rights.  Unfortunately, the U.N. General Assembly provided no new mechanisms for observation or action beyond what the International Committee of the Red Cross was already able to do under the Geneva convention.
This study "Women, Violent Conflict and Peacebuilding" is a report from a conference on the role of women in conflicts organized by  the NGO International Alert in London.  It was a key document given to the members of the U.N. Security Council before their discussion and resolution 1325.

However, it is women as peacemakers and thus women holding the power and authority to negotiate peace that is the new focus of this report.  As Rebecca Tanada of the Philippines writes, "Women must learn to take hold of and generate political power.  Only then can they gain an equal role in peacebuilding.  In the face of the blatantly macho posturing…in the Philippines, women have brought a range of qualities and approaches to the process of peacemaking and peacebuilding.  Often, they are more compassionate and show greater empathy with parties to the conflict.  Yet they are able to maintain impartiality, being open to both sides.  They have a concern for inclusiveness, bringing all parties into the process.  They are ready to take small steps forward, to do the little things, while maintaining a long-term view, thinking of their children's future.  They have shown a particular aptitude for the work of healing and reconciliation."

These views are also underlined in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict where it is said that the skills women bring to their leadership positions enhance their capacity to handle conflicts constructively.  This includes the ability to develop empathy, especially by sharing personal experiences; the capacity to nurture connections and create personal networks; the tendency to form coalitions across conflict lines; the willingness to address emotional issues constructively; and persistence in striving to increase mutual understanding.

Such skills are particularly useful in Track II - that is, non-governmental efforts to build bridges in conflict situations.  As Kek Galabru, a woman human rights leader in war-torn Cambodia said, "Because we are not within the government itself we are not as subjected to political pressure and control as we might otherwise be; nor are we faced with the same temptations of corruption and impunity.  I like to think that we are building a genuine civil society - and with a genuine civil society must come a genuine democracy."

Speaking of the long-running conflict in Northern Ireland, Carmel Roulston of the Northern Ireland Women's Rights Movement observed that "Women have not always been innocent, passive spectators, but have actively supported violent and sectarian organizations on both sides of the national divide.  It is, nonetheless, fair to say that women have been at the fore in a kind of politics that has helped to limit the effects of the conflict on the fabric of society and laid the foundations for a future in which the two major traditions learn to accommodate each other and to express differences without aggression."

Ultimately however, working from the outside is not enough.  It is important to have women in politics, in decision-making processes and in leadership positions.  The strategies women have adapted to get to the negotiating table are testimony to their ingenuity, patience, and determination.  Solidarity and organization are crucial elements.  As Concilie Nibigira of Burundi said rightly, "If we join forces, then our voices will be heard, and we will conquer a real peace for our country."

René Wadlow