CLAN LEADERS: MAJOR OBSTACLE TO SOMALI WOMEN’S POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
Imagine being a woman who has lived in a stateless, militarised, and violent country for over two decades. Despite all the challenges that come with war you manage to survive and feed your family; you exercise your agency and build peace within your community; you are a voice for change. In all previous peace processes, you helped the stakeholders to reconcile and reach consensus when they locked horns. But when it comes to power and resource sharing, you are often pushed aside and denied access to power and informal decision-making processes. The society that you live in wants your resources and free labor but it neither wants you to be a part of formal decision-making nor recognises that you being part of the political process will lead to good governance, peace, and security. This is one of the obstacles facing Somali women in their struggle for peace and human rights in Somalia.
Imagine being a woman who has lived in a stateless, militarised, and violent country for over two decades. Despite all the challenges that come with war you manage to survive and feed your family; you exercise your agency and build peace within your community; you are a voice for change. In all previous peace processes, you helped the stakeholders to reconcile and reach consensus when they locked horns. But when it comes to power and resource sharing, you are often pushed aside and denied access to power and informal decision-making processes. The society that you live in wants your resources and free labor but it neither wants you to be a part of formal decision-making nor recognises that you being part of the political process will lead to good governance, peace, and security. This is one of the obstacles facing Somali women in their struggle for peace and human rights in Somalia.
