Monday 21 May 2007 @ 09:32
Economic and Social Research Council
Economic and Social Research Council
Printable version | E-mail this to a friend |
PEACE PROCESSES ARE FAILING WOMEN
As societies emerge from conflict, men’s dominance at all levels of decision-making ensures women never feel truly secure according to new research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
In a unique study of women’s security and participation in three post conflict societies—Northern Ireland, South Africa and Lebanon—researchers found that women see security differently from men. And because men dominate the institutions of peace-making and peace-building, they often fail to consider the specific security needs of women.
The investigation, which was part of the ESRC’s New Security Challenges Programme, was carried out through a research partnership between the University of Ulster, Queen’s University Belfast and Democratic Dialogue and with research associates in South Africa (Centre for Study of Violence and Reconciliation) and Lebanon (Lebanese American University in Beirut).
In all three case studies, women saw security as much more than physical safety. It was about feeling represented in societal institutions, having a job, an education for their children, a good health service and a feeling that society recognised the specific interests of women.
“For me, the word security in Arabic is not to be afraid. First, not to be afraid to be hungry, to move, to think, and to be misjudged,” explained a Lebanese woman to the researchers.
Yet the ceasefires that signalled the ending of the conflict in all three countries and made the first significant step in bringing security and safety to people’s lives had not been followed by reconstruction efforts that freed women completely from violence.
In Northern Ireland and South Africa women expressed concern that ‘normal’ crime was increasing in communities and that gender-based violence had increased, partly as a result of the demobilisation of ex-combatants. In all three societies women criticised policing in the transitional environment and found that the provision of security remained heavily influenced by patriarchy and gender-insensitivity.
Professor Paddy Hillyard, from Queen’s University, Belfast and the leader of the project, said: “The dominant institutions of the state following peace-processes remain overwhelming male. Their transformation has to be part of the reconstruction effort before women can feel truly secure”.
All the evidence from the research indicates that the UN resolution 1325 on Women Peace and Security must be fully implemented so that women can play a full and equal part in societies coming out of conflict. The UN resolution affirms the important role of women in conflict resolution and peace building, and demands that women be equally represented in all spheres of public life.
The South African experience clearly demonstrated the critical importance of including women at all levels of decision-making. In Northern Ireland the experience of the Women’s Coalition provided evidence that women operate in a manner very different to male politicians, stressing issues that differ from traditional political preoccupations. In Lebanon women played a much more limited role and their marginalisation was reflected in women’s perceptions of their own and their children’s insecurity.
The case studies show how women experience violence in multiple ways and from a myriad of sources. From the family and community, through societal structures of class and power, violence against women continued during post-conflict transition. Measures addressing the inequalities of power between men and women have to be addressed.
As one respondent commented: “There are still too many men in the room when post-conflict settlements are negotiated.”
For further information contact:
Professor Paddy Hillyard, Queen’s University, Belfast, Tel: 028 90973129, e-mail: p.hillyard@qub.ac.uk
Dr Margaret Ward, Tel: 028 9023212, e-mail: margaret.ward@wrda.net
ESRC Press Office:
Alexandra Saxon Tel: 01793 413032/07971027335, email: alexandra.saxon@esrc.ac.uk
Annika Howard Tel: 01793 413119, email: annika.howard@esrc.ac.uk
Notes for editors
- The study ‘Re-imagining Women’s Security: a Comparative Study of South Africa, Northern Ireland and Lebanon’ was carried out by a multi-disciplinary team drawn from history (Dr Ward), politics (Dr Russell), psychology (Dr Hamber), social policy (Professors Robinson and McWilliams), and sociology (Professor Hillyard).
- Methodology: The project was conducted across three regions, Northern Ireland, Lebanon and South Africa, between January 2004 and June 2006 and utilised both quantitative and qualitative approaches involving gender audits, focus groups and key informant interviews.
- The research project is part of the ESRC New Security Challenges Programme. The five year research programme began in 2003 to research a broader agenda in security issues, both conceptually and in policy terms, such as the nature of security, insecurity, who is secure, from whom or what, when, where, and how. More at http://www.newsecurity.bham.ac.uk
- The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK's largest funding agency for research and postgraduate training relating to social and economic issues. It supports independent, high quality research relevant to business, the public sector and voluntary organisations. The ESRC’s planned total expenditure in 2007-08 is £181 million. At any one time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and research policy institutes. More at http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk
- ESRC Society Today offers free access to a broad range of social science research and presents it in a way that makes it easy to navigate and saves users valuable time. As well as bringing together all ESRC-funded research and key online resources such as the Social Science Information Gateway and the UK Data Archive, non-ESRC resources are included, for example the Office for National Statistics. The portal provides access to early findings and research summaries, as well as full texts and original datasets through integrated search facilities. More at http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk
- The ESRC confirms the quality of its funded research by evaluating research projects through a process of peer review. This research has been graded as 'outstanding'.