The Role of Women in Peace and Security Processes in Africa - Atuhaire Pearl Karuhanga
The aim of this paper is to elucidate on the various roles women play in the peace and security initiatives. It shows how extreme violence that women suffer during armed conflict does not arise solely out of the conditions of war; it is directly related to the violence that exists in women's lives during peacetime. Throughout the world, women experience violence whether physical, psychological and sexual because they are women, and often because they suffer the imbalances of power relations. This essay explains the role of women in peace making initiatives, peacekeeping and peace building and the role of women as armed combatants. The essay also explains the regional and international instruments that guide women in Peace and security processes.
For so long, women have been marginalized in various ways during and after conflict hence mainstreaming gender analysis of conflict and peace is very important. Women's interests, rights, and specific priorities are rarely given keen attention during formal peace negotiations. Therefore, understanding gender relations is key to effectively addressing armed conflict/violence and building sustainable peace. Member states should have a gender lens that sheds light on the different experiences of women and men in armed conflict, which are in turn the result of socially constructed concepts of masculinity and femininity. Promoting and mainstreaming gender analysis of conflict and peace is a way to understand and address the power dynamics at play at all stages of the peace process.
The United Nations should work hand in hand with civil society organizations to empower women in post-conflict settings especially women in refugee camps and internally displaced camps in Uganda and Africa as a whole. These women have been referred to as the forgotten identity because of the numerous problems they face in their confines. To mention but one major problem is sexual and gender based violence they face on a daily basis because they are forced to comprise their dignity due to poverty, hence vulnerable to abuse by their male counterparts or other community members. Despite the hardships these women face, they are willing and able to work, hence if these women are empowered with knowledge and skills, they will be able to take care of themselves and their families. Very little has been done for these women and therefore a solution such as income generating activities for these women would be efficient to solve their plight.
The systematic nature of patriarchal gender designations and roles constitutes a highly significant and much neglected aspect of the study of gender and peace. This is because gender is perceived virtually as every issue being addressed by peace and conflict studies, hence these elements should be integrated in peace education. Patriarchy has diverse effects on both women and men therefore an inclusive gender perspective which takes into account patriarchy's disadvantages offers a unique opportunity to engage in transformational learning towards peaceful, just and gender equal global order. Hence to fight patriarchy would mean to fight patriarchal cultures and structures and arriving at more equitable power sharing between men and women.
