Building Blocs for Dutch Policy

With the United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 1325 the topic of gender and armed conflict is firmly placed on the international agenda. Most attention so far has been paid to women's roles in conflict prevention, conflict resolution, and post-conflict rehabilitation. Less consideration is given to women's roles in active warfare and to women who operate as combatants in (ir)regular armies in conflict. This is despite the fact that paragrapgh 13 of Resoultion 1325 encourages all those involved in the planning of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) to consider the different needs of female and male ex-combattants and to take into account the needs of their dependants.