“Femininity” and “Memory” in Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration Programmes in Colombia
Citation:
Gindele, Rebecca, and Gustavo Rojas Páez. 2016. “’Femininity’ and ‘Memory’ in Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration Programmes in Colombia.” In Retos y Perspectivas de la Política Criminal, edited by Marcela Gutiérrez Quevedo and Ana Lucía Moncayo Albornoz, 211-36. Bogotá: Universidad Externado de Colombia.
Authors: Rebecca Gindele, Gustavo Rojas Páez
Abstract:
ENGLISH ABSTRACT:
This article seeks to show the ways in which DDR programmes have an impact on the construction of the memory of female ex-combatants of guerrilla groups in Colombia. The article revolves around the following question: To what extent, the discourse on reintegration and participation surrounding the official frameworks of memory are adequate to the task of making visible the voices of female ex-combatants who participated in guerrilla organizations? In addressing this question, the article highlights two influential aspects in the construction of memory of women who were part of Colombia’s armed conflict as guerrilla fighters. On the one hand, women want to remember their experiences as combatants, and, on the other hand, in the phase of “reintegration” to civil life, women are confronted with expectations on femininity, which traverse their identity. The article suggests that it is important to broaden the analytical frameworks that define the role of the formation of memory of ex-combatants and take into account, the processes of agency advanced by former female fighters and their role as political subjects.
SPANISH ABSTRACT:
Este escrito busca destacar cómo los procesos de Desarme, Desmovilización, y Reintegración (DDR) tienen un impacto en la construcción de la memoria de las mujeres excombatientes en Colombia. El escrito da cuenta de dos aspectos que influyen la construcción de la memoria de mujeres que participaron en el conflicto armado con grupos guerrilleros en distintos contextos. En primer lugar, las mujeres desean recordar y contar sus vivencias como combatientes. De lo anterior surge la pregunta ¿hasta qué punto el discurso de la reintegración y la participación en la paz permiten visibilizar las voces de estas mujeres dentro de los marcos oficiales de la memoria del conflicto? En segundo lugar, nuestra indagación explora las formas como las excombatientes afrontan las transformaciones de identidad y las construcciones de feminidades, dentro de los grupos armados y en la reintegración, cuando la sociedad exige los criterios establecidos de feminidad. El capítulo sugiere que es importante ampliar los marcos analíticos sobre la memoria de las mujeres excombatientes y dar cuenta de distintos procesos de agencia desarrollados por ellas como sujetos políticos.
Keywords: identity, femininity, memory, gender, DDR, transitional justice, identidad, feminidad, memoria, justicia transicional, gênero
Topics: Combatants, Female Combatants, DDR, Gender, Women, Femininity/ies, Military Forces & Armed Groups Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia
Year: 2016
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