The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation
The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation
The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation
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<strong>The</strong> colonial powers Britain, Italy <strong>and</strong> France divided Somali in<strong>to</strong> five<br />
parts in order <strong>to</strong> assert their colonial rule <strong>and</strong> exploit the people. <strong>The</strong><br />
Brit ish <strong>to</strong>ok control <strong>of</strong> the north-western region <strong>of</strong> Somalia, called British<br />
Somalil<strong>and</strong>, <strong>and</strong> the south-western region, which became part <strong>of</strong> British<br />
Kenya. <strong>The</strong> French <strong>to</strong>ok the northernmost tip, which is now Djibouti,<br />
while the large south-central area came under Italian control; this is the<br />
bulk <strong>of</strong> <strong>to</strong>day’s Somalia. <strong>The</strong> western region largely inhabited by Somalis<br />
was grabbed by Ethiopia’s Menelik monarchy.<br />
Colonialism affected Somalia’s socio-economic <strong>and</strong> political life. Before<br />
the colonial era, there was a pas<strong>to</strong>ral traditional governance system<br />
which Somalis had relied on <strong>to</strong> govern their personal <strong>and</strong> community affairs.<br />
Men were, <strong>and</strong> still are, the leaders <strong>and</strong> members <strong>of</strong> this government;<br />
women are only represented. Upon the arrival <strong>of</strong> colonial powers,<br />
Somalis were forced <strong>to</strong> submit <strong>to</strong> the rules <strong>and</strong> regulations <strong>of</strong> the colonialists’<br />
centralized system <strong>of</strong> government, where all the decision-making<br />
<strong>and</strong> resources lay in the h<strong>and</strong>s <strong>of</strong> the colonial administra<strong>to</strong>rs. <strong>The</strong><br />
colonial rulers viewed the local governance system as backward <strong>and</strong><br />
considered theirs progressive. This colonial system was contrary <strong>to</strong> the<br />
traditional decentralized system <strong>of</strong> government which Somalis exer -<br />
cised. This does not mean that there was gender equality in Somalia prior<br />
<strong>to</strong> the arrival <strong>of</strong> colonial powers. <strong>The</strong> introduction <strong>of</strong> the colonial governance<br />
system not only affected the traditional Somali system <strong>of</strong> governance<br />
in which Somalis had a sense <strong>of</strong> ownership, but it also produced<br />
a new political elite <strong>and</strong> perpetuated gender inequalities. For example,<br />
like the pre-existing traditional system, the new system <strong>of</strong> governance<br />
favoured certain men hailing from certain clans over other men <strong>and</strong><br />
women <strong>and</strong> so a few Somali men were appointed <strong>to</strong> promote the interests<br />
<strong>of</strong> the colonial powers in order <strong>to</strong> completely subjugate the Somali<br />
people. Some <strong>of</strong> these interests included assisting the colonial rulers <strong>to</strong><br />
maintain their rule over the people <strong>of</strong> Somalia <strong>and</strong> collecting taxes from<br />
an already impoverished population. Colonial appointees from certain<br />
clans were also provided with education <strong>and</strong> training <strong>to</strong> carry out their<br />
duties while the majority <strong>of</strong> the people, including women, were denied<br />
access <strong>to</strong> education. This was also done <strong>to</strong> create clan <strong>and</strong> class division,<br />
mistrust, envy, <strong>and</strong> competition among the people. <strong>The</strong> method became<br />
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