According to the Ploughshares, in 2005, armed conflicts raged in 27 countries. In five of them, casualties exceeded 100,000 people, and the indirect costs in human capital, infrastructure and effect on future development are beyond estimation. The transition period begins when wars end through negotiated settlements or other means. With international and regional assistance, parties seek ways to deter the cycle of conflict by establishing a stable government to protect and provide for its citizens.
Formally and informally, women around the world are contributing to post-conflict reconstruction in the areas of security, justice and reconciliation, governance and socio-economic development. In 2000, the United Nations (UN) Security Council passed resolution 1325, a landmark decision mandating the participation of women in peace processes. Since the adoption of the resolution, awareness of the importance of including women in peace and reconstruction processes has grown enormously. Yet, implementation of the resolution’s mandate remains sporadic and ad hoc, and the gaps in practice are vast. Nonetheless, women’s participation in post-conflict reconstruction processes continues to increase.
In Sri Lanka, pressure by women’s organizations led to the establishment — within the structure of the formal negotiations — of a ten-member Subcommittee on Gender Issues in 2002. In Northern Ireland, women representatives were trusted as mediators during conflict negotiations, with such trust stemming from the women’s platform of respect for human rights, inclusion and equality. In Haiti, the women’s ministry and women’s organizations participated in a consultative process, resulting in the UN mission incorporating women’s priorities into its mandate and establishing the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Programme. In Rwanda, women formed the first cross-party parliamentary caucus composed of both Hutus and Tutsis, addressing issues of concern to women from all political parties. In Sierra Leone, a women’s task force was established to foster women’s participation in the design of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the special unit investigating war crimes. According to the World Bank, in Afghanistan, efforts by the international community and local women’s organizations have led to girls accounting for 40 percent of all children attending school in 2003, compared to only 9 percent before the war.
While significant and encouraging, such examples and best practices do not equate with the systematic inclusion of women in peace processes. It remains critical to amplify the role and contribution of women during political transitions to capitalize on this window of opportunity.
Women in Yemen are worse off now than a year ago, when they played a significant part in the country's revolution that promised political and economic change, an international aid agency has concluded.
According to Suhair Atassi, a female activist and a Syrian National Council member in Cairo, there is a female brigade in Dera’a numbering around 1,000. In Antakiya, I met rebel fighter, Bassel, on his way out of Syria after spending over a year fighting across the country.
Egypt’s Islamist president Mohammed Morsi on Monday named a team of 21 advisers and aides that includes three women and two Christians and a large number of Islamist-leaning figures, backing off campaign promises to appoint a Christian and a woman as vice presidents.
Thousands of Tunisians rallied on Monday to protest against what they see as a push by the Islamist-led government for constitutional changes that would degrade women's status in one of the Arab world's most liberal nations.
Following the Libyan revolution, in which women played a crucial part, and the participation of large numbers of female citizens in the July 2012 elections, Libyan women are now looking forward to a partnership and full equality with their male counterparts.
Women from the civil society and political activists are demanding for their 30 percent quota as the deadline to the formation of a new government draws near.
More than 75% of assisted Syrian refugees are women and children. The targeting of civilians is well documented. But sexual violence against women and girls receives little attention. Cultural norms often prevent survivors from reporting sexual assault.
Tunisian women are rising up against a proposed article in the new constitution seen by many as an Islamist ploy to reverse the principle of gender equality that made Tunisia a beacon of modernity in the Arab world when it was introduced six decades ago.
When Bothaina Kamel began gathering signatures for her campaign to be not only Egypt’s first democratically elected president, but also its first female leader in centuries, just about everyone knew the campaign wouldn’t succeed.