THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION By PATRICIA DE LILLE, MP
2004-08-23. The role of women in conflict resolution is as old as the proverbial mountains. The field of conflict resolution as a study area is relatively young, whilst we have been around for a number of centuries and have raised countless little boys into grown men. They have picked fights with the neighbours' children, in the schoolyard, or in the case of Napoleon, Hitler, Saddam Hoosain and George Bush, with other countries! Suffice to say that these were our distinct failures. The rest did not turn out so badly, therefore, the scorecard is balanced in our favour.
It is important to realize that
gatherings of this nature should not be turned into bashing exercises,
least of all men-bashing, but to seek justice and equality. At
the same time, it is important that we understand the politics of
gender. Jacklyn Cock, who wrote about the role of women during
the apartheid struggle in South Africa, said 'Notions of masculinity
are a powerful tool in the process of making men into soldiers.
There is a connection between masculinity and militarism: the
traditional notion of masculinity resonates with militarist
ideas. The army is an institutional sphere for the cultivation of
masculinity; war provides the social space for its validation'.
It would be presumptuous of me not to tap into your vast and collective knowledge about the role that women play in resolving conflict. Many of you were or still are involved in matters of family violence, and I am sure that you may collectively have counselled enough women in dealing with family violence, to make up the population of a small country. It perplexes my mind, and may likewise perplex yours; too, I am sure, when you consider how women day after day endure abuse in the home, the workplace, on the street, etc. Despite this, the woman would usually want to reconcile, or teach reconciliation to others.
Women, it would appear, are ideally suited for their role in reconciliation because they have so many strengths, amongst which are:
> Good listening and communication skills
> The willingness and flexibility to compromise
> Extensive experience in practical problem solving
> Caring for real people above abstract principles
Angela King, former UN Special Advisor, made the following observations about the role women were playing in the South African peace process; 'The presence of women seems to be a potent ingredient in fostering and maintaining confidence and trust among the local population. In performing their tasks with their male colleagues, women were perceived to be more compassionate, less threatening or insistent on status, less willing to opt for force or confrontation over conciliation, even it is said, less egocentric, more willing to listen and learn …' Such strengths often arise out of women's traditional roles, which are usually practiced within the family and local community.
A well-known African scholar in Conflict Transformation, Professor Hizkias Assefa, describes reconciliation as 'not only trying to find solutions to the issues underlying the conflict, but also to work to alter the relationships of the opponents from that of resentment and hostility to friendship and harmony'. He goes on to say that there is not much understanding of the concept of reconciliation amongst social scientists and that religious people and theologians are a bit better equipped at discussing the concept of reconciliation. Against this description, the role of women in conflict resolution becomes much clearer.
A crucial role for women in most societies is that of a mother. It is the mothers who have to bring about friendship and harmony in the household when our kids are at each others' throats, when women amongst themselves want to take out each others' eyes, etc. You will note that I often refer to conflict inside the home or at a personal level. The reason for this is that I believe that the home serves as the basis of building or destroying the characters of our sons and daughters.
Armed conflict does not erupt out of a vacuum. The most common form of violence is that of violence against girls and women. It is estimated that between 40% to 60% of women and girls in any given culture will experience rape, domestic abuse and/or incest at least once in their lives. The links between this 'private' violence and the 'public' violence of armed conflict need urgent examination. I believe that the attitudes and the values that give rise to the former, lay the groundwork for the latter. Both are rooted in mindsets where domination, control and beliefs in one group's so-called superiority, and other group's so-called inferiority, are central. A mindset that allows and justifies the use of physical and psychological abuse by a so-called 'superior', against a so-called 'inferior', cannot be safely tucked away in one corner of life, such as the home or certain personal relationships. It is bound to become part of public life. It is high time that the traditional female values of tolerance, listening and openness to dialogue, become accepted as values for both sexes.
One of the major problems with reconciliation and reconstruction work is the fact that it is seen as a natural extension of women's role in society. This leads to such work being taken for granted. It also means that the work goes unrecognized and frequently under-resourced. In Africa, we have seen the high priced consultants fly in and out and impart knowledge that we have, in any event, been applying for centuries. Accordingly, the reconciliation work done by women is stripped of its political relevance and rendered like most of women's work, invisible. Therefore, women remain marginalized, their problems ignored, their experiences unanalyzed and their skills under utilized.
The question that this dilemma poses is; 'At what stage does capitalizing on the natural strengths of women become a perpetuation of the stereotyping of the traditional role of women in society?' It is a fact that stereotyping seeks to justify and condone domination and inequality, which are just two of the root causes of violent conflict. This contradiction has caused some activists to reject this notion of traditional stereotyping of women, arguing that the values and attitudes that give rise to stereotyping are inextricably linked to the values and attributes that give rise to war itself. A good example of this is the case of 'Women in Black of Belgrade' which provided the only sustained public opposition to the war in the former Yugoslavia. Realising that their role as mothers, carers, healers, counsellors, and giving shelter was being regarded as a natural extension of their roles as women, they declared that their resistance had nothing to do with their natural role, but that it was a conscious political choice.
Women's peace activism finds expression in many mothers' movements for peace and justice. Many societies make a distinction between the private world of home and family, and the public world where issues such as collective identity and security are defined and decided. Inside this traditional framework, women are defined mainly as mothers and demoted to the private world. Their intervention into the public world as political leaders dealing with questions of peace and war is seen as undesirable. The best known mothers' movement is, perhaps, the Argentinian organization known as The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and their role in the opposition to the dictatorship of Peron. Similarly, movements in Cuba, El Salvador, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Turkey have played important parts in shaping the political future of their countries.
These mothers' movements are often the first public opposition to a conflict. The original intent of these organizations may not always be to oppose the conflict. However, the issues they eventually take on, can lead them to a critical analysis of the conflict and an awareness of the need to reach out to the other side in order to prevent and end further violence.
A common problem that all these organizations face, no matter how the women identify themselves, or what other framework they place their work in, is the critical issue of increasing women's access to political power and political decision-making. It is the age-old issue of how do we, as women, get decision-makers to listen to us. In places like South Africa, Ireland, Rwanda and the DRC, women's groups have had a certain amount of success in gaining the political will to implement their proposals for peace and reconciliation.
To gain access to political decision-making remains a major challenge. Not only must women peacemakers gain political power, they must transform those same political structures and processes to become more democratic and equal. A few token women with political power do not automatically translate into an overall improvement in women's political, economic or social status. These transformative processes are important if women are to become a more effective force for peace. It will certainly lay a more solid foundation for democratic participation and respect for human rights, which are essential parts in building sustainable peace. Moreover, it must be done to effect real change and to deal with the root causes of war.
Real, long lasting reconciliation requires a shift in thinking, values and attitudes. This critical shift cannot occur without a gender perspective. Any effective analysis of the resistance toward reconciliation processes, such as the fear of:
Appearing weak,
Losing face or actual power,
Appearing less than a man if women's leadership towards peace is accepted, must incorporate an analysis of the power relationships between mean and women.
I thank you.
Patricia de Lille
Leader of the independent Democrats
References:
> Hizkias Assefa - Process of Expanding and Deepening Engagement: Methodology for Reconciliation…
> Shelly Anderson - Women's many roles in reconciliation - People Building Peace (35 Inspiring stories from around the world)
> Women and war in South Africa - Jacklyn Cock. Open Letters, London, 1992
It would be presumptuous of me not to tap into your vast and collective knowledge about the role that women play in resolving conflict. Many of you were or still are involved in matters of family violence, and I am sure that you may collectively have counselled enough women in dealing with family violence, to make up the population of a small country. It perplexes my mind, and may likewise perplex yours; too, I am sure, when you consider how women day after day endure abuse in the home, the workplace, on the street, etc. Despite this, the woman would usually want to reconcile, or teach reconciliation to others.
Women, it would appear, are ideally suited for their role in reconciliation because they have so many strengths, amongst which are:
> Good listening and communication skills
> The willingness and flexibility to compromise
> Extensive experience in practical problem solving
> Caring for real people above abstract principles
Angela King, former UN Special Advisor, made the following observations about the role women were playing in the South African peace process; 'The presence of women seems to be a potent ingredient in fostering and maintaining confidence and trust among the local population. In performing their tasks with their male colleagues, women were perceived to be more compassionate, less threatening or insistent on status, less willing to opt for force or confrontation over conciliation, even it is said, less egocentric, more willing to listen and learn …' Such strengths often arise out of women's traditional roles, which are usually practiced within the family and local community.
A well-known African scholar in Conflict Transformation, Professor Hizkias Assefa, describes reconciliation as 'not only trying to find solutions to the issues underlying the conflict, but also to work to alter the relationships of the opponents from that of resentment and hostility to friendship and harmony'. He goes on to say that there is not much understanding of the concept of reconciliation amongst social scientists and that religious people and theologians are a bit better equipped at discussing the concept of reconciliation. Against this description, the role of women in conflict resolution becomes much clearer.
A crucial role for women in most societies is that of a mother. It is the mothers who have to bring about friendship and harmony in the household when our kids are at each others' throats, when women amongst themselves want to take out each others' eyes, etc. You will note that I often refer to conflict inside the home or at a personal level. The reason for this is that I believe that the home serves as the basis of building or destroying the characters of our sons and daughters.
Armed conflict does not erupt out of a vacuum. The most common form of violence is that of violence against girls and women. It is estimated that between 40% to 60% of women and girls in any given culture will experience rape, domestic abuse and/or incest at least once in their lives. The links between this 'private' violence and the 'public' violence of armed conflict need urgent examination. I believe that the attitudes and the values that give rise to the former, lay the groundwork for the latter. Both are rooted in mindsets where domination, control and beliefs in one group's so-called superiority, and other group's so-called inferiority, are central. A mindset that allows and justifies the use of physical and psychological abuse by a so-called 'superior', against a so-called 'inferior', cannot be safely tucked away in one corner of life, such as the home or certain personal relationships. It is bound to become part of public life. It is high time that the traditional female values of tolerance, listening and openness to dialogue, become accepted as values for both sexes.
One of the major problems with reconciliation and reconstruction work is the fact that it is seen as a natural extension of women's role in society. This leads to such work being taken for granted. It also means that the work goes unrecognized and frequently under-resourced. In Africa, we have seen the high priced consultants fly in and out and impart knowledge that we have, in any event, been applying for centuries. Accordingly, the reconciliation work done by women is stripped of its political relevance and rendered like most of women's work, invisible. Therefore, women remain marginalized, their problems ignored, their experiences unanalyzed and their skills under utilized.
The question that this dilemma poses is; 'At what stage does capitalizing on the natural strengths of women become a perpetuation of the stereotyping of the traditional role of women in society?' It is a fact that stereotyping seeks to justify and condone domination and inequality, which are just two of the root causes of violent conflict. This contradiction has caused some activists to reject this notion of traditional stereotyping of women, arguing that the values and attitudes that give rise to stereotyping are inextricably linked to the values and attributes that give rise to war itself. A good example of this is the case of 'Women in Black of Belgrade' which provided the only sustained public opposition to the war in the former Yugoslavia. Realising that their role as mothers, carers, healers, counsellors, and giving shelter was being regarded as a natural extension of their roles as women, they declared that their resistance had nothing to do with their natural role, but that it was a conscious political choice.
Women's peace activism finds expression in many mothers' movements for peace and justice. Many societies make a distinction between the private world of home and family, and the public world where issues such as collective identity and security are defined and decided. Inside this traditional framework, women are defined mainly as mothers and demoted to the private world. Their intervention into the public world as political leaders dealing with questions of peace and war is seen as undesirable. The best known mothers' movement is, perhaps, the Argentinian organization known as The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and their role in the opposition to the dictatorship of Peron. Similarly, movements in Cuba, El Salvador, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Turkey have played important parts in shaping the political future of their countries.
These mothers' movements are often the first public opposition to a conflict. The original intent of these organizations may not always be to oppose the conflict. However, the issues they eventually take on, can lead them to a critical analysis of the conflict and an awareness of the need to reach out to the other side in order to prevent and end further violence.
A common problem that all these organizations face, no matter how the women identify themselves, or what other framework they place their work in, is the critical issue of increasing women's access to political power and political decision-making. It is the age-old issue of how do we, as women, get decision-makers to listen to us. In places like South Africa, Ireland, Rwanda and the DRC, women's groups have had a certain amount of success in gaining the political will to implement their proposals for peace and reconciliation.
To gain access to political decision-making remains a major challenge. Not only must women peacemakers gain political power, they must transform those same political structures and processes to become more democratic and equal. A few token women with political power do not automatically translate into an overall improvement in women's political, economic or social status. These transformative processes are important if women are to become a more effective force for peace. It will certainly lay a more solid foundation for democratic participation and respect for human rights, which are essential parts in building sustainable peace. Moreover, it must be done to effect real change and to deal with the root causes of war.
Real, long lasting reconciliation requires a shift in thinking, values and attitudes. This critical shift cannot occur without a gender perspective. Any effective analysis of the resistance toward reconciliation processes, such as the fear of:
Appearing weak,
Losing face or actual power,
Appearing less than a man if women's leadership towards peace is accepted, must incorporate an analysis of the power relationships between mean and women.
I thank you.
Patricia de Lille
Leader of the independent Democrats
References:
> Hizkias Assefa - Process of Expanding and Deepening Engagement: Methodology for Reconciliation…
> Shelly Anderson - Women's many roles in reconciliation - People Building Peace (35 Inspiring stories from around the world)
> Women and war in South Africa - Jacklyn Cock. Open Letters, London, 1992
