The Impact of Armed Conflict on Women and Girls - UNFPA

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the decisions take place. Women constitute only 12.7 per cent <strong>of</strong> parliamentary seats all over the world. 95 Although the United Nations, including UNESCO and the World Bank, and other international organizations such as the Council <strong>of</strong> Europe and the European Commission have all produced resolutions and formulated policies for the inclusion <strong>of</strong> women at all levels <strong>of</strong> decision-making, they have not succeeded in significantly increasing the numbers <strong>of</strong> women in their own structures. Indicative <strong>of</strong> this disparity can be shown in the number <strong>of</strong> seats held by women and men in the Parliament <strong>of</strong> the Council <strong>of</strong> Europe where, <strong>of</strong> 10,183 seats in 43 countries, women hold 1,698 seats, or 16.7 per cent. Establishing a quota system is strongly recommended as an initial strategy, although there is no guarantee that the increased representation <strong>of</strong> women in parliament will change the political landscape. Most women tend to side with policies <strong>of</strong> their political parties. <strong>The</strong> changing situation in post-conflict areas and transitional countries, however, <strong>of</strong>fers excellent opportunities to develop new and equitable environments. One example is in South Africa, where the use <strong>of</strong> a 30 per cent quota resulted in considerable increases <strong>of</strong> women in parliament. This, in turn, had a positive effect on heightening concern about population and gender issues and on the passages <strong>of</strong> three far-reaching laws, the Termination <strong>of</strong> Pregnancy Act, the Domestic Violence Act and the Maintenance Act, which improves the positions <strong>of</strong> mothers who depend on maintenance from former partners). Another significant initiative is the international campaign <strong>of</strong> the Women’s Environmental and Development Organization (WEDO). It has launched a global initiative (Title 50-50) to achieve women’s equal representation in decision-making positions by the year 2005. Democracy-building is also an important entry point, and in all countries, civil society has played a significant role in its promotion. Women’s NGOs became especially involved in election campaigns using various strategies to connect democratization with other issues, such as poverty alleviation, healthcare provisions and employment. In Bosnia, 140 NGOs built “Coalition Glas 1999,” urging citizens to vote. <strong>The</strong> Institute <strong>of</strong> Peace and Democracy in Baku produced a “Guide for Journalists” covering the elections in Armenia in 1999, and established an election web site in Serbia. Women in Black were active in the three-month electoral campaign that resulted in the defeat <strong>of</strong> Milosevic. In Bosnia, B.a.B.e. organized group discussions for citizen participation in the 1999 elections, resulting in and increase in the percentage <strong>of</strong> women in parliament from 7.5 per cent to 20.5 per cent; Index Foundation in Bulgaria carried out the campaign “Women can do it!”, encouraging people to vote for women. Another entry point for women’s mobilization is through established landmark dates. Since 24 May 2000, the International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament has been an occasion for women’s mobilization on a global scale. <strong>The</strong> Women’s Forum for Peace and Unification in the Republic <strong>of</strong> Korea 95 “Cross the Lines,” February 2001. 114
organized meetings to promote reconciliation among all Korean women. In Uganda, women participated in peace marches demanding the withdrawal <strong>of</strong> Ugandan troops from the Democratic Republic <strong>of</strong> Congo. In Israel, Arab and Israeli women organized a large protest against nuclear weapons; it demanded that the Government permit arms inspections by local and international NGOs. In the United Republic <strong>of</strong> Tanzania, the Centre for Human Rights Education organized a seminar on women’s human rights in a refugee camp. Finally, in Congo, a day-long workshop entitled “Women: peace in our hands,” was organized by Semadev-Femmes. Another occasion for collective action is 28 May, the International Day <strong>of</strong> Action for Women’s Health. Every year, women’s NGOs, health groups and advocates all over the world organize a wide range <strong>of</strong> activities focusing on reproductive and population issues, including maternal mortality, free abortion, health-care services, HIV/AIDS, “stop harmful practices,” population policies and violence. Many women’s NGOs focus their activities on education for peace and training on conflict transformation. <strong>The</strong> International ECO Peace Village, established by Greek Cypriot women, provides training for women and youth on peace education and conflict resolution. This training also includes environmental management training, advocacy action and networking between institutions and countries with common interests. In addition, WINPEACE, a Greek Turkish Women’s Peace Network with a mandate to build a culture <strong>of</strong> peace in the Balkans, organizes seminars on “non-violent communities.” It also monitors a bilateral agreement between Greece and Turkey to reduce the defence budget by 5 per cent annually, starting in 2002. In Rwanda, the women’s NGO La Campagne: Action pour la Paix Pr<strong>of</strong>emmes tried to recreate a public space in a village totally destroyed through genocide. <strong>The</strong> people <strong>of</strong> the community gathered there to reintegrate into society men, women and children who were involved in the killings. In another example, the Sudanese Women’s Voice for Peace conducted a number <strong>of</strong> workshops on how to approach war leaders and how to overcome pain experienced during the conflicts. In southern Sudan, the same organization initiated training activities involving Muslim and Christian women working together to address the problems <strong>of</strong> displacement, poverty and lack <strong>of</strong> education. In Colombia, the Organizacion Femina Popular provides medical, legal and social services to civilian women and victims <strong>of</strong> violence. Because <strong>of</strong> their unwavering refusal to join sides in Colombia’s 40-year-old war between guerillas and paramilitary death squads, the group has been subject to constant harassment and death threats. In Romania, the Foundation for Democratic Change conducts research on how people react to conflict situations. <strong>The</strong> Peace Institute in Slovenia conducts research and develops educational materials on the sociology <strong>of</strong> war, security policies, interpersonal violence, conflict resolution and other aspects <strong>of</strong> violence. 115
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A UNFPA Strategy for Gender Mainstr
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FOREWORD The natur
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword List <st
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LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
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PART I. CONSULTATIVE MEETING INTROD
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BACKGROUND Women and girls constitu
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information should include document
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BACKGROUND PAPER SUMMARIES Backgrou
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NGOs feel they have the right to wi
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includes the physical, sexual and e
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services to women and by organizing
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parties, including national and int
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WORKING GROUP REPORTS Working Group
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2) Provide technical assistance on
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4) Provide reproductive supplies an
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Report of Working
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2) Advocacy: Problem: • Insuffici
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• Support, for perpetrators <stro
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Report of Working
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population groups can be disrupted
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• Implementation, monitoring and
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Report of Working
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• Build advocacy skills, networki
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• Coordinate and promote cooperat
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PART II. BACKGROUND PAPERS THE IMPA
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isolation and brings into the analy
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Target Groups Women Women and child
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Approaches The Def
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and take necessary steps to overcom
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Refugees must be involved in defini
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Sexually Transmitted Infections and
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Return and Reintegration In additio
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This will involve much more than th
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• Greater attention should be giv
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Post-conflict regions have not effe
Page 71 and 72: “Although the particular forms <s
Page 73 and 74: A major premise of
Page 75 and 76: participate refused. 15 In the surv
Page 77 and 78: problems. These SO
Page 79 and 80: community. It could destroy a victi
Page 81 and 82: and Herzegovina. The</stron
Page 83 and 84: IPTF operates geographically throug
Page 85 and 86: WOMEN AND GIRLS IN KOSOVO: THE EFFE
Page 87 and 88: More than two years have passed. On
Page 89 and 90: young girls to attend school, among
Page 91 and 92: to different cultural attitudes tow
Page 93 and 94: opportunities as a result o
Page 95 and 96: average rate of 2.
Page 97 and 98: strict rules and have punished thei
Page 99 and 100: One of the issues
Page 101 and 102: difficult issues such as the budget
Page 103 and 104: Legislative reforms are needed in m
Page 105 and 106: Transitional Council and convinced
Page 107 and 108: • All agencies should have instit
Page 109 and 110: insecurity about the future, unempl
Page 111 and 112: Walking the painful path of
Page 113 and 114: decide to return to their husband
Page 115 and 116: Crises usually affect more women th
Page 117 and 118: • Establishing communication chan
Page 119 and 120: • Supporting grass-roots women’
Page 121: Women and men have different approa
Page 125 and 126: Recommendations Post-conflict socie
Page 127 and 128: 7. Presentation and discussion <str
Page 129 and 130: The Role o
Page 131 and 132: Working Group Three: The</s
Page 133 and 134: Country/City Participant Agency Spe
Page 135 and 136: Kyrgyzstan Bernara Alimbaeva Nepal
Page 137 and 138: New York Mohammad Nizamuddin UNFPA-
Page 139 and 140: United Kingdom Sippi Azerbaijani- M
Page 141 and 142: John Snow International Research an
Page 143 and 144: UNFPA: Pamela DeLargy, Emergency an
Page 145 and 146: ANNEX 5: MINIMUM INITIAL SERVICE PA
Page 147 and 148: • Staff trained and sensitized on
Page 149: 220 East 42nd Street New York, NY 1
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