Eastern Europe

Citation:

Gabbard, Sonnet D’Amour. 2017. “Old Ties and New Binds: LGBT Rights, Homonationalisms, Europeanization and Post-War Legacies in Serbia.” PhD diss., The Ohio State University.

Author: Sonnet D’Amour Gabbard

Abstract:

My dissertation examines the historic links between the anti-war activists in Serbia with the current efforts and work for LGBT justice and rights. As an interdisciplinary scholar, my work integrates a variety of epistemologies across disciplines by putting anti-war and LGBT activists' experience in Serbia into conversation with one another to address unique vulnerabilities. Drawing from transnational feminist and queer critiques of governance, (homo)nationalism, and transnational sexuality studies, I consider how new nonheterosexual identity politics—with roots in anti-war activism—have surfaced in Serbia since the Kosovo War. I argue that it is at the intersection of anti-war and LGBT organizing that new and conflicting identity politics have emerged, in part as a reaction to a pro-war hyper-nationalism and neoliberal globalization.

Keywords: LGBT, Balkans, sexuality studies, feminism, transnational, global studies, international relations, development, Serbia, Yugoslavia, post-conflict, Transgender, lesbian, gay, pride parade, gentrification, Slavic studies, queer

Topics: Civil Society, Feminisms, Governance, Globalization, Justice, LGBTQ, Nationalism, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Rights, Sexuality Regions: Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Serbia

Year: 2017

Citation:

Golic, Zorica. 2019. "Problem of Financing Women Entrepreneurs: Experience of Women Entrepreneurs in Post-Conflict Bosnia and Herzegovina." In Women Entrepreneurs and Strategic Decision Making in the Global Economy, edited by Florica Tomos, Naresh Kumar, Nick Clifton, and Denis Hyams-Ssekasi, 278-304. Hershy: IGI Global.

Author: Zorica Golic

Abstract:

The purpose of this chapter is to explore the problem of financing women entrepreneurs from the perspective of BiH women entrepreneurs. Using an interpretive research methodology and based on face-to-face semi-structured in-depth interviews with 12 women entrepreneurs, the authors examined their perceptions and identified the key barriers to accessing financial means as they were experienced and faced by women entrepreneurs from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The results presented in this chapter indicate that in BiH there is a problem of social inadmissibility of women entrepreneurs, as well as open discrimination by banking officers. If these are accompanied by high interest rates on loans, extensive and costly documentation necessary for applying for a loan, and the inability to provide collateral, it leads to financial exclusion and limited access to finance. Making progress on alleviating or tackling the problem of financing women entrepreneurs is a long-term commitment from governments, non-governmental organizations, financial institutions, and investors.

Topics: Economies, Gender, Women, Governance, Livelihoods, NGOs, Post-Conflict Regions: Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Bosnia & Herzegovina

Year: 2019

Citation:

Potter, Michael. 2020. "Gender and Politics in Northern Ireland and Kosovo." In Inclusion in Post-Conflict Legislatures, 99-126. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

Author: Michael Potter

Abstract:

This chapter explores the dimensions of gender and politics in Kosovo and Northern Ireland. The dynamics of the two conflicts and their transitions are explored in the context of how they impact on women’s empowerment, particularly in the political sphere. The concept of ‘gender’ as an analytical category is discussed and the literature of women and conflict explored. The roles of women and men in the conflicts of Northern Ireland and Kosovo are then analysed, highlighting differences and similarities, for example, the more overt use of sexual violence in Kosovo and the presence of women combatants in Northern Ireland. The gendered nature of the transition from conflict and post-conflict representation is then discussed.

Topics: Combatants, Female Combatants, Conflict, Gender, Post-Conflict, Sexual Violence Regions: Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe, Northern Europe Countries: Kosovo, United Kingdom

Year: 2020

Citation:

Kaufman, Joyce P., and Kristen P. Williams, eds. 2019. Women, Gender Equality, and Post-Conflict Transformation: Lessons Learned, Implications for the Future. Abingdon: Routledge.

Authors: Joyce P. Kaufman, Kristen P. Williams

Abstract:

Topics: DDR, Feminisms, Gender, Gender Mainstreaming, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Justice, Transitional Justice, Post-Conflict, Race, Peace Processes Regions: Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa, Americas, Central America, Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe, Northern Europe Countries: Bosnia & Herzegovina, El Salvador, Guatemala, Liberia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, United Kingdom

Year: 2019

Citation:

Rosul-Gajic, Jagoda. 2016. "Women's Advocacy in Postwar Bosnia and Herzegovina: Implementation of UNSCR 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security." Journal of International Women's Studies 17 (4): 143-59.

Author: Jagoda Rosul-Gajic

Abstract:

In this paper, I address the question of how Bosnian women's NGOs have contributed to the implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325) on Women, Peace and Security in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). What instruments did they use to enforce gender, peace and security norms into state policy and the policy of international actors in the post-conflict internationalized society of BiH? Since national and international actors did not comply with international gender specific norms and standards, I argue that, as norm advocates, Bosnian women's NGOs have been working with a double strategy to influence gender, peace and security policy and enforce change, both by national and international actors. In order to act gender-sensitively, this paper claims--unlike most of the literature on global norm diffusion--it is not only the national actors who need to be socialized to comply with international norms and standards, but also the international political elite. Hence, it not only looks at the process of norm implementation into domestic policies, but also in the policies of international actors in post conflict countries. The methodology followed is a descriptive one wherein the analyses is conducted on information resulting from interviews and published secondary data.

Keywords: UNSCR 1325, gender norms, post-conflict settings, women's NGOs, postwar Bosnia and Herzegovina

Topics: Gender, Women, Gender Analysis, Governance, Post-Conflict Governance, International Organizations, NGOs, Peace and Security, Peace Processes, Security Regions: Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Bosnia & Herzegovina

Year: 2016

Citation:

Baker, Catherine. 2019. “Veteran Masculinities and Audiovisual Popular Music in Post-Conflict Croatia: A Feminist Aesthetic Approach to the Contested Everyday Peace.” Peacebuilding 7 (2): 226–42.

Author: Catherine Baker

Abstract:

In Croatia, campaigners for a more critical public reckoning with the memory of Croatia's 'Homeland War' (1991–5) and the national past confront embeddings of hegemonic myths of the war into everyday life. Among these are the stardom of a musician whose 'patriotic' music claims the same moral authority as the Croatian veterans' movement and whose public persona has embodied militarised masculinity since he became a wartime star. Popular music and youth engagement with it is thus among the sites where everyday understandings of peace are being contested. By exploring the audiovisual aesthetics of the song/video through which this musician re-engaged with veterans' activism in 1998, and showing that popular music spectatorship seeps into the everyday micropolitics of young people building and contesting peace, the paper argues that for critical peace and conflict studies to understand the affective politics of post-conflict masculinities, they must combine a feminist and aesthetic consciousness.

Keywords: audiovisual aesthetics, Croatia, everyday peace, masculinities, popular music, veterans

Topics: Age, Youth, Armed Conflict, Conflict, Feminisms, Gender, Masculinity/ies, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militarization, Post-Conflict, Peacebuilding Regions: Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Croatia

Year: 2019

Citation:

Szedlacsek, Eszter. 2019. “Security Sector Reform, Small Arms and Light Weapons and Gender in the Post-Conflict Western Balkans.” Corvinus Journal of International Affairs 4 (1): 26-38.

Author: Eszter Szedlacsek

Abstract:

We all experience war in a different way – building peace in post-conflict environments requires solutions that bring together various aspects of these experiences at the local, national and international levels. However, the actors involved and the social groups they address are only rarely those at the margin, and the diversity of the catch-all category of “locals” frequently goes unacknowledged when considering Security Sector Reform (SSR) and especially small arms control. Numerous studies have focused on SSR and gender in the Balkans, on perceptions of security in post-conflict environments and its gender-related aspects, as well as on the gendered aspects of small arms, but so far the analysis bringing together all of these aspects is scarce. This paper aims to address this gap, providing an overview of these areas to show that attempts at state-building and security-provision in the Western Balkans have failed to appropriately incorporate gender mainstreaming into their agendas. It is the central claim of this paper that policymakers must realize that gender mainstreaming without a broader understanding of gendered aspects of security does not and will not have transformative power – neither in the Western Balkans, nor in other post-conflict environments.

Keywords: security sector reform (SSR), post-conflict, small arms and light weapons (SALW), Gender, Western Balkans

Topics: Gender, Gender Mainstreaming, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Security Sector Reform, Weapons /Arms Regions: Europe, Baltic states, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Serbia, Yugoslavia (former)

Year: 2019

Citation:

Corrin, Chris. 2000. "Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Gender Analysis in Kosova." International Feminist Journal of Politics 3 (1): 78-98

Author: Chris Corrin

Abstract:

Gender relations fluctuate in times of violent change with flight, exile, displacement and return and relations of inequality between men and women can prevent women from fully participating in the reconstruction processes and gaining political voice. Undertaking a gendered analysis of Kosovar women's involvement in the emerging feminist reconstructive politics highlighted the ways in which international governmental responses at times hindered women's progress. The central concern in this Gender Audit is the extent to which encouragement has been given to increasing women's social,economic,educational and political participation - in both informal civic fora and organizations and at the formal levels of power. The Gender Audit assesses the gaps in policy-making, service provision, data collection and in co-ordination and monitoring of projects designed to increase the participation of women and girls. In post-conflict situations it is vital that all people are enabled to contribute their ideas, expertise and skills in reconstruction and rehabilitation processes leading to democratization and democracy-building. Working in coalitions combining local, national and international elements is providinga positive contribution for somewomen in Kosova.

Keywords: feminism, gender relations, Kosova, participation, peace, post conflict, rehabilitation, reconstruction

Topics: Civil Society, Conflict, Displacement & Migration, Feminisms, Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Genocide, Political Participation, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction Regions: Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Kosovo

Year: 2010

Citation:

Boesten, Jelke, and Marsha Henry. 2018. "Between Fatigue and Silence: The Challenges of Conducting Research on Sexual Violence in Conflict." Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society 25 (4): 568-88.

Authors: Jelke Boesten, Marsha Henry

Abstract:

This paper discusses the meanings of research fatigue and silences in conflict-related sexual violence research. Drawing on field experiences in Liberia, Tanzania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Peru, we discuss some of the unintended consequences of persistent focus on victim-survivors’ narratives and argue for a reflexive feminist perspective that allows us to question the need and context of interviewing survivors and the associated insistence on disclosure.

Topics: Armed Conflict, Conflict, Feminisms, Sexual Violence Regions: Africa, East Africa, West Africa, Americas, South America, Europe, Balkans, Eastern Europe Countries: Bosnia & Herzegovina, Liberia, Peru, Tanzania

Year: 2018

Citation:

Darden, Jessica Trisko, Alexis Henshaw, and Ora Szekely. 2019. Insurgent Women: Female Combatants in Civil Wars. Washington, D.C: Georgetown University Press.

Authors: Jessica Trisko Darden, Alexis Henshaw, Ora Szekely

Annotation:

Topics: Armed Conflict, Civil Wars, Combatants, Female Combatants, Conflict, Post-Conflict, Peacebuilding Regions: MENA, Americas, South America, Asia, Middle East, Europe, Eastern Europe Countries: Colombia, Iraq, Ukraine

Year: 2019