Mainstreaming Gender

Pilot Project

Engendering the Peace Movement

Engendering the peace movement

Peace is inextricably linked with equality between women and men. The underlying values of such equality promote respect for human rights and power sharing. These values and attitudes also are essential for good governance. These are the values and attitudes which promote cultures of peace and which provide the rationale for gender mainstreaming.


Mainstreaming Gender

Exploring the role gender plays in constructing cultures of peace or cultures of violence is essential in peacebuilding. The recognition that violent conflict has different consequences for men and women, boys and girls, is also critical for successful intervention strategies. The WPP promotes reflection and action on issues such as these.

WPP staff has served as instructors during the UN University of Peace’s (Costa Rica) annual course on Gender and Conflict Resolution.

A letter to US President Bush and UK Prime Minister Blair on the need for a gender perspective in the reconstruction of Iraq was circulated internationally (by way of www.peacewomen.org) and received widespread support.

Requests for WPP materials on gender and peacebuilding come in steadily from around the world. Additionally the WPP works to mainstream a gender perspective into the peace movement by:

Organising international and regional gender trainings

Producing and distributing materials such as “10 Questions About Gender” poster; and the “Nonviolence for the Brave: Gender-sensitive Active Nonviolence Training” video, as well as the video on masculinities and men's role in the eradication of violence (2010).

Organising a major international “Asking the Right Questions” conference on ways to integrate gender and nonviolence into a variety of training.

The empowerment of women is an equally important issue in mainstreaming gender. Empowerment includes increasing women's access to all decision-making processes dealing with peace and security issues.
There is a need for experienced grassroots women peacebuilders to raise their perspectives in more regional and international fora, and to institutionalise such perspectives. Such mainstreaming must also be done within IFOR and within the broader peace movement.

To make their voices heard, women must be supported in acquiring skills such as lobbying and advocacy. In support of this, the WPP has:

Provided information and funding for women peacemakers from Cambodia and India to attend the Beijing Plus 5 Review, and the UNESCO regional conference "Asian Women for a culture of Peace”.

Supported women peace leaders and activists to attend conferences and seminars on gender, peacebuilding and nonviolence

Disseminated information and collected signatures for the international Women Building Peace Campaign to the UN.

Educated women peacemakers on human rights mechanisms for women in conflict situations; fulfilled requests for accreditation to United Nations bodies; distributed statements and up-to-date information internationally, such as the statements by Women in Black Belgrade during the NATO bombings, or of Bat Shalom in Israel; and provided contact to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women for women reporting on gender violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 




 

Women and Peace Building

A statement from the Dutch Action Agenda for the Future

The Dutch Government must make an effort to fulfill the international agreements on involving women in all stages of armed and unarmed conflict.

Civilians, including women and women’s groups, are able to contribute essentially in preventing and resolving conflicts. The UN Security Council embedded this statement in its resolution about women in conflict situations (UN Resolution 1325). Several Dutch Ministries already pay attention to this issue, and installed a task force on Women, Security and Conflict. However, the concrete execution of this policy still has too little international impact.

In all stages of armed conflict, before and during the outbreak of violence, at negotiations and in peace building afterwards, there are strong effects on women’s lives. In every stage, women and women’s groups should be involved in preventing conflict escalation and in conflict resolving. They should be empowered to do so, i.e. by training and strengthening their power, their autonomy and their influence and control.

Before the outburst of a conflict, women can signal growing tensions. They have to be involved in the development of warning systems. During violent conflict, they have to be protected. Rape and other violations against women are systematically used as war instruments by belligerent forces. During negotiations, women and men should be safe, and represented equally. During reconstruction and reconciliation, there should be explicit attention for women’s rights in economic and political decision-making. The right of ownership of land and heritage for women are important internationally recognized rights. Also, in refugee camps human rights for women have to be maintained.

The Government must strive for an equal representation – 50% - of women in peace negotiations.

The Government must actively support civil peace work as a governmental task.

This statement is an English translation of one of the sixteen recommendations in the Future Agenda from the Beijing +10 manifestation.

The Agenda for the Future has been realized in the framework of the Beijing +10 Time for Action Initiative in the Netherlands. (January 2005)

The Agenda has been presented to the Dutch government, and will play a role in future activities to implement the Beijing action agenda in the Netherlands.

All sixteen recommendations in the Agenda have been developed in workshops.
Former WPP Education Officer Janne Poort-van Eeden was part of the preparation and implementation of the workshop on Women and Armed Conflict.

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