DDR

From Gender-Blind to Gender-Transformative Reintegration: Women’s Experiences with Social Reintegration in Guatemala

Citation:

Weber, Sanne. 2021. “From Gender-Blind to Gender-Transformative Reintegration: Women’s Experiences with Social Reintegration in Guatemala.” International Feminist Journal of Politics 23 (3): 396–417.

Author: Sanne Weber

Abstract:

Disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) processes have become a standard component of international peace and security programming. Yet, in spite of increasing attention to the need for gender-sensitive DDR in policy and academic debates, the stereotypical ways in which female ex-combatants have traditionally been addressed have led to inadequate gendered reintegration policies. This article describes the effects of a gender-blind reintegration process on female ex-combatants’ experiences of long-term social reintegration in Guatemala. Social reintegration is a profoundly gendered process, which involves the rebuilding of civilian identities, social relationships, and trust between social groups. Based on in-depth interviews with female ex-combatants, this article describes how the absence of gender-sensitive reintegration strategies produced various problems for women. They faced difficulties in their emotional and family relationships, leading to mental health struggles and even violence, as well as persistent stigma which produced anxiety and challenges in the labor market. The article concludes with suggestions for making reintegration a gender-transformative process, by crossing the private–public divide, increasing collective strategies, and better aligning with transitional justice processes.

Keywords: female ex-combatants, DDR, social reintegration, gender equality, Guatemala

Topics: Combatants, Female Combatants, DDR, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality Regions: Americas, Central America Countries: Guatemala

Year: 2021

Informe Especial del Instituto Kroc y el acompañamiento internacional, ONU Mujeres, FDIM y Suecia, al seguimiento del enfoque de género en la implementación del Acuerdo Final

Citation:

KROC Institute for International Peace Studies. 2018. Informe Especial del Instituto Kroc y el acompañamiento internacional, ONU Mujeres, FDIM y Suecia, al seguimiento del enfoque de género en la implementación del Acuerdo Final. Bogotá: KROC Institute.

Author: KROC Institute for International Peace Studies

Annotation:

Summary:
Este informe presenta un análisis del proceso de implementación del enfoque de género transversal al Acuerdo Final para la Terminación del Conflicto y la Construcción de una Paz Estable y Duradera entre diciembre 2016 y junio de 2018. La Embajada de Suecia, la Federación Democrática Internacional de Mujeres (FDIM) y la Entidad de las Naciones Unidas para la Igualdad de Género y el Empoderamiento de las Mujeres (ONU Mujeres), junto a la Iniciativa Barómetro del Instituto Kroc de Estudios Internacionales de Paz de la Universidad de Notre Dame presentan este informe de avances y desafíos en la implementación del enfoque de género, con base en la información recopilada en el proceso de seguimiento que cada una de estas organizaciones lleva a cabo.
 
Como apoyo técnico al Componente Internacional de Verificación (CIV), el Instituto Kroc desarrolló una matriz con la cual hace seguimiento a la implementación del Acuerdo Final. El Instituto identificó en el texto de Acuerdo, 578 disposiciones (acciones concretas, observables y medibles), de las cuales 130 tienen un enfoque de género. Estas acciones comprometen a las partes involucradas (Gobierno y FARC) a poner en marcha acciones afirmativas específicas para asegurar el liderazgo y participación de las mujeres y la población LGBTI, en programas e instituciones relacionadas con la implementación del Acuerdo Final. Por su parte, ONU Mujeres identificó 100 medidas con enfoque de género en el Acuerdo que incluyen medidas para el desarrollo normativo. Así mismo, ONU Mujeres hace seguimiento al desarrollo de política pública en materia de implementación con el propósito de identificar alertas, brechas y recomendaciones. La FDIM, ha concentrado sus esfuerzos en los territorios, trabajando con organizaciones de mujeres y en los Espacios Territoriales de Capacitación y Reincorporación (ETCR). En este proceso, FDIM ha recogido las demandas, necesidades básicas e intereses estratégicos de las mujeres en proceso de reincorporación social, política y económica, verificando el nivel de avance en el cumplimiento del Acuerdo Final en esta materia. Por último, la Embajada de Suecia ha venido apoyando la implementación del Acuerdo de Paz a través de apoyo económico y político a proyectos relacionados con la reincorporación, justicia transicional, derechos de las víctimas y desarrollo rural, siempre con un enfoque especial en la realización de los derechos de las mujeres y en una mayor igualdad de género.
 
El análisis de las 130 disposiciones con enfoque de género identificadas por el Instituto Kroc revela que, a 30 de junio de 2018, el 51%, de los compromisos con enfoque de género no se habían iniciado; el 38% estaban mínimamente implementados; el 7% habían alcanzado un nivel intermedio de implementación; y el 4% de los compromisos (cinco disposiciones) se habían implementado completamente. El contraste con el ritmo de implementación de la totalidad de las disposiciones (578), evidencia diferencias importantes en los niveles de implementación del enfoque de género frente a los niveles implementación general del
Acuerdo. Se observa una brecha significativa entre los compromisos con un enfoque de género que no han iniciado implementación (51%) y la proporción del total de compromisos en el Acuerdo que no han iniciado implementación (37%). Esto representa una brecha de implementación de 14 puntos porcentuales.
 
El presente informe se centra en identificar avances y desafíos en el proceso de implementación de estos compromisos en general, y en particular, en temas específicos identificados en las mesas técnicas con
diversos actores, que consideramos son de suma importancia para la
calidad de la paz y para evitar eventuales cascadas negativas en el proceso
de implementación. Dichos temas son:
 
1. Implementación Reforma Rural Integral y Solución al Problema de las Drogas Ilícitas.
2. Implementación de las medidas de participación de las mujeres en la implementación del Acuerdo y en la construcción de paz.
3. Implementación de garantías de seguridad y protección con enfoque de género
4. Implementación de las medidas para la reincorporación de excombatientes.
 
El informe presenta recomendaciones en torno a temas específicos como la inclusión y definición de medidas diferenciales en los proyectos de ley que aún falta por presentar, tramitar e implementar, y el fortalecimiento institucional que permita obtener información desagregada por sexo, etnia y orientación sexual que informen la creación e implementación de políticas públicas con enfoque de género.

Topics: Combatants, DDR, Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Peace and Security, Peace Processes, Rights, Women's Rights Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2018

Tres años despues de la firma del Acuerdo Final en Colombia: hacia la transformación territorial

Citation:

KROC Institute for International Peace Studies. 2020. Tres años despues de la firma del Acuerdo Final en Colombia: hacia la transformación territorial. Bogotá: KROC Institute.

Author: KROC Institute

Annotation:

Summary: 
Three years after the signing of the final peace accord between the Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC-EP or FARC, in Spanish), the implementation process has come to a crucial point of transformation. The armed conflict with the former guerrilla group has ended, and the new institutional framework to execute the measures of the Agreement has been established. The process is entering a new territorial phase in which it is necessary to expand upon on previous achievements and transform the areas most affected by violence, a great challenge for building a stable and lasting peace. Priorities include reducing socioeconomic gaps between rural and urban areas, ensuring the long-term reincorporation of ex-combatants, guaranteeing the rights of victims, and advancing crosscutting measures regarding ethnicity and gender. 
 
In the first two years, implementation focused on short-term commitments, such as the definitive cease-fire, the laying down of arms, the creation of the institutional architecture for peace, and the design of plans and programs contemplated in the agreement. Between December 2018 and November 2019, implementation progressed a total of 6%. To understand this result, it is important to examine the contents and timing of the stipulations. With many short-term stipulations already completed, implementation shifted in 2019 towards the medium- and longterm commitments, especially those focused on the territories most affected by the armed conflict. This new phase requires greater interinstitutional coordination and intense deployment at the local level. Therefore, more time is needed to finalize their implementation.
 
To better understand the timing of the stipulations that the Kroc Institute monitors, the Framework Plan for Implementation (PMI, in Spanish) provides for their categorization into short- (2017–2019), medium- (2020–2022), and long-term commitments (2023–2031), according to their start and end dates. The analysis of the PMI shows that progress was made during the third year of implementation, including on indicators whose completion is scheduled for the medium and long terms. 
 
The PMI analysis identifies the commitments that were finalized during the first period (2017–2019), as well as others that are incomplete and that are necessary to promote implementation in the future. For the second period (2020–2022), the analysis also finds that half of the commitments are likely to be completed on time. Completion of the remaining commitments in their corresponding timeframes will require accelerating the current pace of implementation. For the third period (2023–2031), an important number of long-term initiatives will need to begin implementation in the next two years. 
 
The report presents a quantitative analysis that shows that at the end of the third year of implementation, according to the methodology used by the Barometer Initiative, 25% of stipulations have been fully implemented. Another 15% of stipulations are at an intermediate level of progress, meaning that they are on their way to being fully implemented in their corresponding timelines. A further 34% of commitments are at a minimal state of implementation, having started but made marginal progress. The remaining 26% of commitments have yet to be initiated.
 
The report presents qualitative analyses focused on the cross-cutting approaches and each of the six points of the agreement, all with a territorial lens. One of the promises of the final peace accord is to transform the conditions that generated and fueled the armed conflict, including the  notion that the State lacks legitimacy. The active and effective participation in the implementation of the agreement by civil society and communities affected by violence is central to increasing public confidence in the process and strengthening the legitimacy of the State.
 
Fulfilling the whole of the accord, including the cross-cutting approaches, is necessary in order to guarantee quality implementation and to build sustainable peace. The analysis shows that, nonetheless, there is a gap between the implementation of the stipulations related to ethnic and gender approaches and that of the final agreement in general. The low level of progress is explained partly by a lack of incorporation of these approaches into norms, plans, and programs. Specifically, the stipulations focused on gender are mostly medium and long term. This highlights the importance of accelerating implementation to advance structural reforms for peace, as the Kroc Institute highlighted in the second gender report at the end of 2019. (Summary from KROC Institute)

Topics: DDR, Ethnicity, Gender, Post-Conflict, Peacebuilding, Rights, Land Rights Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2020

A Feminist Perspective and the Challenge of Post Conflict Development in Africa

Citation:

Omotosho, Mashood, and Mariam Adebola Ogunleye. 2018. "A Feminist Perspective and the Challenge of Post Conflict Development in Africa." International Journal for Empirical Education and Research. doi:10.35935/edr/22.3619.

Author: Mashood Omotosho

Abstract:

In the last two decades, Africa has witnessed series of wars and ethno-religious conflicts with devastating impact on women. Various atrocities against women have been recorded during these conflicts and these developments have created a dangerous dimension against non-combatant women in the continent. In an attempt to resolve the conflict and armed conflict on women in the areas of sexual and gender-based violence, series of peace missions and peace building mechanism were put in place. Despite the various peace negotiations, evidence has shown that women are largely absent from formal peace negotiations and their voices are not heard both at local and continental levels especially within the modern-day challenges and post conflict development. In fact, the transformation agenda of post-conflict peace negotiations routinely failed to consider the gendered causes and consequences of armed conflict and post-conflict reconstruction. It is against this backdrop that this paper attempts to reassess the ambivalent role of women in conflict management in Africa. More importantly, the paper argues that there is need to increase women’s participation in peace talks, planning of demilitarisation, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) and determining governance and security structures, especially in conflict prone areas. Ultimately, the paper seeks to also identify challenges hindering the role and the participation of women in post conflict development in Africa.

Keywords: feminist, post conflict, gender, violence, womanism, conflict escalation

Topics: Armed Conflict, DDR, Gender, Women, Gender-Based Violence, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Peacebuilding, Political Participation, Peace Processes, Sexual Violence Regions: Africa

Year: 2018

Liberia’s Women Veterans: War, Roles and Reintegration

Citation:

Vastapuu, Leena. 2018. Liberia's Women Veterans: War, Roles and Reintegration. London: Zed Books.

Author: Leena Vastapuu

Annotation:

Summary:
The Liberian civil wars of the 1990s and 2000s were notorious for their atrocities, and for the widespread use of child soldiers by both sides. Young girls accounted for up to forty percent of these combatants, but their unique perspective and experiences have largely been excluded from accounts of the conflict.
 
In Liberia’s Woman Veterans, Leena Vastapuu uses an innovative “auto-photographic” methodology to tell the story of two of Africa’s most brutal civil wars through the eyes of 133 former female child soldiers. It allows the book to provide a palpable account of these women’s experiences of trauma and stigma. It also illustrates the challenges of reintegration into postwar society, as well as the women’s hopes and aspirations for the future. Vastapuu argues that these women, too often perceived merely as passive victims of the conflict, can in fact play an important role in postwar reconciliation and peace building. In the process, the work overturns gendered perceptions of warfare and militarism, and provides an exceptional take on postconflict societies. (Summary from Zed Books)

Topics: Armed Conflict, Civil Wars, Combatants, Child Soldiers, DDR, Gender, Girls, Health, Trauma, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militarism, Post-Conflict, Peacebuilding Regions: Africa, West Africa Countries: Liberia

Year: 2018

Women, Gender Equality, and Post-Conflict Transformation: Lessons Learned, Implications for the Future

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:

Summary:
The end of formal hostilities in any given conflict provides an opportunity to transform society in order to secure a stable peace. This book builds on the existing feminist international relations literature as well as lessons of past cases that reinforce the importance of including women in the post-conflict transition process, and are important to our general understanding of gender relations in the conflict and post-conflict periods. Post-conflict transformation processes, including disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) programs, transitional justice mechanisms, reconciliation measures, and legal and political reforms, which emerge after the formal hostilities end demonstrate that war and peace impact, and are impacted by, women and men differently. By drawing on a strong theoretical framework and a number of cases, this volume provides important insight into questions pertaining to the end of conflict and the challenges inherent in the post-conflict transition period that are relevant to students and practitioners alike. (Summary from Routledge)
 
Table of Contents:
1. Women Living in a Gendered World
Laura Sjoberg
 
2. The Aftermath of War: Considering Gender in the Process of Disarmament, Demilitarization and Reintegration
Fionnuala Ni Aolain
 
3. Imagined Peace, Gender Relations and Post-Conflict Transformation: Anti-Colonial and Post-Cold War Conflicts
Jane L. Parpart
 
4. The Gender Politics of Negotiating and Renegotiating the Peace in Northern Ireland
Fidelma Ashe and Carmel Roulston
 
5. Bosnia, Women, and Gender in a Post-Dayton World
Kristen P. Williams
 
6. Perpetuating a Gendered Peace? Exploring Gender Mainstreaming in Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (DDRR) in Liberia
Helen S. A. Basini
 
7. Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration and the Poetics of Slavery in Sierra Leone
Megan H. MacKenzie
 
8. Women, Apartheid and the TRC: The Impact of Apartheid on Women in South Africa, Plus 20 Years
Joyrce P. Kaufman
 
9. Engendering Peace: Divergent Post-Conflict Processes for Women in Guatemala and El Salvador
Kara Ellerby
 
10. Conclusions
Joyce P. Kaufman and Kristen P. Williams

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

Conflict, Disaster and Changing Gender Roles in Nepal: Women’s Everyday Experiences

Citation:

K.C., Luna. 2019. "Conflict, Disaster and Changing Gender Roles in Nepal: Women’s Everyday Experiences." PhD diss., Wageningen University.

Author: Luna K.C.

Annotation:

Summary:
Nepal suffered from the civil conflict from 1996 to 2006 as the Communist party of Nepal (so-called Maoist) sought to end the monarchical system that had been in place for 240 years and establish a People’s Republic. The Maoist-party ideology was highly focused upon the structural transformation of the country and had a strong message about women’s empowerment. The conflict brought a dramatic shift in the social, economic, and the political situation of Nepal. In November 2006, the peace agreement was signed, the country then started the post-conflict reconstruction process, such as writing a new constitution, constitution assembly election, state restructuring, and the policy formation.
 
The Maoist conflict produced multiple gendered effects upon women’s everyday lives. One category of women joined as Maoist combatants in search of equality and empowerment and performed roles equal to men in the war. Another category of women stayed behind when the men fled from the war to the cities or neighbouring countries, and their husbands, fathers or sons were killed, or became rebels or disappeared in the war. Women non-combatants experienced a situation where men’s work shifted onto their shoulders and they performed dual roles; at home and outside.
 
After the earthquake happened on 25 April 2015 in Nepal, women were impacted in a different way. When men were killed or became disabled, were away, or lost income in the earthquake, women took over men’s roles and responsibilities, such as rescued their family members, searched for the food, accommodation, financial support, jobs, health care, including took care of the children and elderly people. At the same time, women were also involved in a multiple role during post-earthquake settings.
 
The conflict/post-conflict/disaster period produces gendered effects; thus, gender analysis becomes fundamental during this time to understand how women and men deal with the rapid gender role change in the context of crisis and its aftermath, when there is a certain return to the normal situation.
 
This thesis is about women and changing gender roles in Nepal. The study traces the gendered effects of the Maoist war and the earthquake on women’s everyday lives. It examines how women experience the impact of the Maoist war and the post-conflict era in relation to shifting gender roles, responsibilities, challenges, and new openings. The thesis then asks similar questions about women affected by the earthquake, that happened while the country was still struggling with post-conflict issues.
 
Chapter 1 presents the introduction, which offers an overview of the main concern of the thesis and the theoretical perspectives (the sexual division of labour and power, ideology of gender, structural factors, and the role of the policy) that inform it. Chapter 2 outlines the methodology (in-depth interview, focuses group discussion, participant observation, and key informant interview) applied to conduct this study.
 
Chapter 3 examined how the Maoist conflict in Nepal affected women ex-combatants and non-combatants, looking at changes in gender roles during and after the conflict particularly from the standpoint of livelihood challenges in the post-war period. Major findings indicate that changing gender roles largely depend upon everyday practice of sexual division of labour and power as it evolved during and after the conflict. It also shows that the conflict produced different and contradictory effects on both categories of women who experienced shifts in gender roles. In post-war settings, these changes were partly reversed, and especially ex-combatant women faced severe livelihood challenges and returned to traditional gender roles.
 
Chapter 4 investigated how the Maoist armed conflict in Nepal was a struggle for the emancipation of women and it particularly looked at how women ex-combatants were engaged with ideas of gender equality and women’s empowerment during the Maoist war and afterwards. It further explores what happens to women’s ideological drive as gender roles ‘shift back’ after the war. The results demonstrate that in the Maoist war women ex-combatants were strongly committed to the Maoist gender ideology and experienced empowerment through this process, as they adopted non-traditional roles and crossed gender as well as caste lines. However, in the post-war, they felt ambivalent empowerment because there was a lack of commitment from the Maoist party to issues of gender equality and at the same time the patriarchal structures continued intact and, in some ways, even strengthened, and women faced multiple exclusions. 
 
Chapter 5 looked at how women ex-combatants experienced the reintegration process in the aftermath of war. The study found that the reintegration programming of Nepal lack gender framework due to which woman encountered a range of challenges in the post-war period. Mainly, the challenges were two-fold: At the societal level; they struggled to gain recognition, and at the family level they negotiated/renegotiated to rebuild relationships and safety-nets.
 
Chapter 6 investigated what challenges women faced in the wake of the earthquake and how these were related to their gender position. It asks how gender roles changed in relation to the earthquake in Nepal. Findings illustrate that different categories of women faced the effects of earthquake differently, especially with regards to the intersectionality of gender and migration and family composition. The earthquake provided women a window of opportunity to change gender roles. On the other hand, women encountered great difficulties in addressing their everyday needs and experienced gender-based exclusion.
 
Chapter 7 synthesises the outcomes of the four substantive chapters, discusses the findings, and offers four recommendations for policy implications.
 
Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1: Introduction
 
Chapter 2: Methodology
 
Chapter 3: Changing Gender Role: Women’s Livelihoods, Conflict and Post-Conflict Security in Nepal
 
Chapter 4:Living Maoist Gender Ideology:Experiences of Women Ex-Combatants in Nepal 79
 
Chapter 5: Everyday Realities of Reintegration: Experiences of Maoist ‘Verified’ Women Ex- Combatants in the Aftermath of War in Nepal
 
Chapter 6: Exploring Gendered Effects of the 2015 Earthquake in Nepal through Women’s Eyes
 
Chapter 7: Conclusion and Discussion

Topics: Armed Conflict, Civil Wars, Caste, Combatants, Female Combatants, DDR, Displacement & Migration, Environment, Environmental Disasters, Gender, Gender Roles, Gender Analysis, Gendered Power Relations, Patriarchy, Gender Equality/Inequality, Households, Intersectionality, Livelihoods, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Peace Processes Regions: Asia, South Asia Countries: Nepal

Year: 2019

Reconstrucción de la Masculinidad y Reintegración de Excombatientes en Colombia

Citation:

Theidon, Kimberly. 2009. “Reconstrucción de la Masculinidad y Reintegración de Excombatientes en Colombia.” Serie Working Papers FIP 5, Fundación Ideas para la Paz, Bogotá, Colombia.

Author: Kimberly Theidon

Annotation:

SPANISH SUMMARY:
Este trabajo resulta de una investigación antropológica hecha por Kimberly Theidon, profesora asociada al departamento de sociología de la Universidad de Harvard, sobre el proceso de Desarme, Desmovilización y Reintegración (DDR) en Colombia desde 2005, con el fin de abordar el tema de la masculinidad en el conflicto armado y de esta forma incluir la perspectiva de género en los procesos de postconflicto. Para tal fin se realizaron entrevistas a profundidad a 170 hombres y mujeres ex combatientes de las FARC, ELN y de las AUC ubicados en Bogotá y sus alrededores, Medellín y la región de Urabá. También se realizaron visitas y charlas con funcionarios públicos, representantes de ONG, de iglesias y de diversos sectores de las comunidades receptoras. Con ello, logró obtener una mirada amplia a las realidades de la guerra, del DDR y la justicia transicional en Colombia. El trabajo se concentra en la economía cultural y política de la masculinidad militarizada y aborda el acceso reducido que los excombatientes tienen a los símbolos del prestigio masculino de la sociedad civil. El texto también analiza las “técnicas del cuerpo” que producen tanto el cuerpo como el porte de un soldado entre hombres cuyo único capital suele ser su cuerpo. Además, explora el papel tanto de los hombres como de las mujeres en la construcción de las prácticas utilizadas para producir formas de masculinidad violentas. Por último, el documento concluye con unas consideraciones acerca de cómo se podría incorporar el género al programa de DDR en Colombia como un paso importante hacia la reincorporación exitosa, la construcción de paz y el cambio social sostenible. (Summary from Fundación Ideas para la Paz)

Topics: Armed Conflict, Combatants, DDR, Gender, Masculinity/ies, Justice, Transitional Justice, Post-Conflict, Peacebuilding Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2009

De la Guerra a la Esperanza: Las Estrategias de Afrontamiento de Reintegrados de las Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia

Citation:

Echeverry, Paula Andrea Cárdenas, Ana Milena Montoya Ruiz, y Olga Cristina Gutiérrez. 2018. "De la Guerra a la Esperanza: Las Estrategias de Afrontamiento de Reintegrados de las Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia." Opinión Jurídica 17 (35): 93-116.

Authors: Paula Andrea Cárdenas Echeverry, Ana Milena Montoya Ruiz, Olga Cristina Gutiérrez

Abstract:

SPANISH ABSTRACT:
El presente artículo es producto del estudio exploratorio “Estrategias personales en hombres y mujeres excombatientes de las Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia y resignificación de su proyecto de vida” realizado en la ciudad de Medellín, Colombia, el cual a partir de los testimonios de dos excombatientes, identificó y analizó las estrategias de afrontamiento incorporadas en su proceso y que han incidido en la resignificación de sus experiencias de vida en la guerra. La investigación usó la metodología del estudio de caso, aplicada en un hombre y una mujer excombatientes de las Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) que culminaron su proceso de reintegración −promovido por la Agencia Colombiana para la Reintegración− y que decidieron participar de la investigación voluntariamente. A partir de sus testimonios se realizó un acercamiento a algunas experiencias compartidas por hombres y mujeres en la guerra y se dio cuenta de la influencia que tienen las condiciones socio-históricas y de género para reconstruir un proyecto de vida en la legalidad. Finalmente, como producto de este diálogo se formulan algunas propuestas para las intervenciones de excombatientes del conflicto armado en Colombia como aportes al proceso de reincorporación actual.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT:
This paper is a product of the exploratory study “Personal strategies in men and women, ex-combatants of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia and the resignification of their life project”, carried out in the city of Medellín, Colombia, based on the testimonies of two ex-combatants. It identifies and analyses the coping strategies incorporated in the process that have influen-ced the resignification of their life experiences in the war. The methodology applied was case studies with ex-combatants, a man and a woman, of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) who completed their reintegration process, promoted by the Colombian Agency for Re-integration and who voluntarily participated in the investigation. With their testimonies, an ap-proach to some of the experiences shared by men and women in the war was possible, and the influence of socio-historical and gender conditions to reconstruct a life project in legality was made evident. Finally, some proposals are formulated for the interventions of ex-combatants of the armed conflict in Colombia as contributions to the current reincorporation process.
of the armed conflict in Colombia as contributions to the current reincorporation

Keywords: conflicto armado en Colombia, Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia, reintegración y reincorporación de excombatientes, estrategias personales de afrontamiento, enfoque de género, armed conflict in Colombia, reintegration and reincorporation of excombatants, personal coping strategies, gender approach

Topics: Armed Conflict, Combatants, DDR, Gender, Gender Analysis, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Paramilitaries Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2018

African Democracy and Development: Challenges for Post-Conflict African Nations

Citation:

Veney, Cassandra Rachel, and Dick W. Simpson, ed. 2013. African Democracy and Development: Challenges for Post-Conflict African Nations. Lanham: Lexington Books.

Authors: Cassandra Veney, Dick Simpson

Annotation:

Summary:
Various African nations have undergone conflict situations since they gained their independence. This book focuses on particular countries that have faced conflict (civil wars and genocide) and are now in the process of rebuilding their political, economic, social, and educational institutions. The countries that are addressed in the book include: Rwanda, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In addition, there is a chapter that addresses the role of the African Diaspora in conflict and post-conflict countries that include Eritrea, Liberia, and Somalia. The book includes an examination of the various actors who are involved in post-conflict rebuilding and reconstruction that involves internal and external participants. For example, it is clear that the internal actors involve Africans themselves as ordinary citizens, members of local and national governments, and members of non-governmental organizations. This allows the reader to understand the agency and empowerment of Africans in post-conflict reconstruction. Various institutions are addressed within the context of the roles they play in establishing governance organizations such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Sierra Leone, the African Union, chiefs in Liberia, and non-governmental organizations. Furthermore, the external actors who are involved in post-conflict reconstruction are examined such as international non-governmental organizations and the African Diaspora. They both have their own constituents and agendas and can and do play a positive and negative role in post-conflict reconstruction. It is obvious that countries that are addressed in the book are in dire need of financial assistant to rebuild much needed infrastructure that was destroyed during the conflict. All of the countries covered in the book need schools, medical facilities, roads, bridges, airports, ports, and the government does not have the money to provide these. This is where the international non-governmental organizations and the African Diaspora play an important role. The chapters that address these issues are cognizant of their importance and at the same time, the authors realize that sovereignty can be undermined if Africans are not in the forefront of policy and decision making that will determine their future. There are chapters that provide a gendered analysis of post-conflict when it is appropriate. For example, it is clear that women, men, boys, and girls experienced conflict in different ways because of their gender. They all participated in the conflict in various ways. Consequently, the efforts at peace building are given a gendered analysis in terms of what has happened to women and girls in the demobilization and rehabilitation period including an excellent analysis of land reform in Rwanda and how that affects women and members of a certain ethnic group that are often overlooked in the examination of the 1994 genocide. In sum, this book provides a very good contribution to the literature on conflict and post-conflict African countries because of its depth and the vast topics it embraces. It provides an analysis of the internal and external actors, the role of gender in post-conflict decision making, and it provides the voices of ordinary Africans who were affected by the conflict, and who are determined to live productive lives. (Summary from Google Books)
 
Table of Contents:
1. No Justice, No Peace: The Elusive Search for Justice and Reconciliation in Sierra Leone
Sylvia Macauley
 
2. The Role of Ex-Combatants in Mozambique
Jessica Schafer
 
3. Memory Controversies in Post-genocide Rwanda: Implications for Peacebuilding
Elisabeth King
 
4. Land Reform, Social Justice, and Reconstruction: Challenges for Post-genocide Rwanda
Helen Hintjens
 
5. Elections as a Stress Test of Democratization in Societies: A Comparison of Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
John Yoder
 
6. Partners or Adversaries?: NGOs and the State in Postwar Sierra Leone
Fredline A.O. M'Cormack-Hale
 
7. Chieftancy and Reconstruction in Sierra Leone
Arthur Abraham
 
8. The Role of African Diasporas in Reconstruction
Paul Tiyambe Zeleza
 
9. The Role of the African Union in Reconstruction in Africa
Thomas Kwasi Tieku
 
10. Governance Challenges in Sierra Leone
Osman Gbla
 
11. Challenges of Governance Reform in Liberia
Amos Sawyer
 
12. Achieving Development and Democracy
Dick Simpson

 

Topics: Armed Conflict, Civil Wars, Combatants, DDR, Gender, Gender Analysis, Girls, Women, Genocide, Governance, Infrastructure, International Organizations, Justice, NGOs, Peacebuilding, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction Regions: Africa, Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa Countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Liberia, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia

Year: 2013

Pages

© 2024 CONSORTIUM ON GENDER, SECURITY & HUMAN RIGHTSLEGAL STATEMENT All photographs used on this site, and any materials posted on it, are the property of their respective owners, and are used by permission. Photographs: The images used on the site may not be downloaded, used, or reproduced in any way without the permission of the owner of the image. Materials: Visitors to the site are welcome to peruse the materials posted for their own research or for educational purposes. These materials, whether the property of the Consortium or of another, may only be reproduced with the permission of the owner of the material. This website contains copyrighted materials. The Consortium believes that any use of copyrighted material on this site is both permissive and in accordance with the Fair Use doctrine of 17 U.S.C. § 107. If, however, you believe that your intellectual property rights have been violated, please contact the Consortium at info@genderandsecurity.org.

Subscribe to RSS - DDR