Changing Roles and Opportunities for Women in Liberia vs. Sierra Leone Peace Building Process - Coursework Example

Changing Roles and Opportunities for Women in Liberia vs. Sierra Leone peace building process Introduction Peace building process has risen in the previous years, leading to an increase in rivalry among countries. This paper will focus mainly on Sierra Leone and Liberia. The peace building process in Sierra Leone began after the civil war. This process was multi-faceted as most of the international actors established a hybrid court system while the locals established the Truth and reconciliation Commission. On the other hand, government organizations and actors reintegrated, demobilized and disarmed most of the sectors in the country. Similarly, the non-governmental institutions provided health care and education services. Different aspects of peace building process caused problems in progress. The disadvantages that Sierra Leoneans have undergone as a result of interactions tend to be less compared to the advantages that arose from the parallel peace processes during the civil war. Actually, the Sierra Leonean’s civil war offered a great example of compound friction due to the existence of different programs in peace building process. Overview of conflict The situations of the conflict can only be understood through the studying the root cause of the conflict. According to many political analysts, Peace building process has been changing with respect to gender perspective in Sierra Leon. In the previous years, only men participated in the peace building process. Women never associated themselves with any peace building movement and this made it difficult for peace to prevail due to gender imbalance. A survey carried out in the past three years shows that the Sierra Leonean women are actively involved in the peace building process. Gender balance in peace-building was seen through by the United Nations in the year 2000. They resolved to recognize gender perspective in the process of peace keeping enhancing equality among Sierra Leonean citizens. According to many researchers, gender balance offers a better way of approaching conflicts. This is because it views social factors such as injustices, poverty, exclusion and environmental degradation. Other initiatives have been born by the idea of this resolution hence creating a strong pillar for peace in the country. There are a lot of benefits attached to women involvement in the peace –building process hence making Sierra Leone a peaceful country in its modernity. Women needed more space for professional positions in various parts of the globe hence forcing promotion of gender perspective in the tenth anniversary of United Nations Resolution. This paper seek recognize the level of participation of women in peace keeping and how their roles have changed in the recent past. It also explores the extent to which the United Nation’s resolution has strengthened the involvement of women in peacemaking between Sierra Leone and Liberia. Peace building According to the United Nation’s resolution, it is worth noting that gender balance is vital in any society as it helps in quick achievement of societal goals. Again, it can be presumed that the rise of conflicts in the two countries was due to gender imbalance. Keen (2005) argues that gender domination and its resultant competition act as catalysts for the conflict. He also claims that adopting feminine characteristics would leave the world in a critical state as peace is only be attained where both males and females are involved. The inclusion of gender in peacekeeping is necessitated by the existence of various gender dimensions in conflict situations. Both masculine and feminine principles are therefore, essential in peacemaking. During the Beijing World Women’s Conference, (2008) it was also stated that both genders have equal stake in peacemaking. This step was established to enhance a balance in the peace-keeping process and to neutralize masculine behaviors which are presumed to be the main causes of societal conflicts. Theoretical Review The theoretical review of peace making process in both Sierra Leone and Liberia are based on Gender evaluation Methodology as developed by Miller & Abbad in their policy analysis. This shows how the United Nations exposed gender disparities facing both men and women in its peacemaking resolution. The analysis framework also draws themes from the paper’s grounded theoretical study on gender peacekeeping. The theoretical data presented in this paper mainly focuses on women and their perception of peace. It also explores their efforts to engage in the peace building process. According to various political analysts, it localizes some of the international laws affecting women. These components lay a strong foundation on which the United Nation’s 1325 resolution is grounded. The theory is based on three main parts; How women are involved in peace building, how the civil society gains and broadening the political space for women. Case Study Analysis Role of Women in Liberia Both Liberia and Sierra Leone haverecords of worst conflicts that have ever existed in West Africa. Liberia was involved in civil war for fourteen years between 1989 and 2003.The fourteen year civil war saw the loss of more than 150,000 people in the country (United Nations Mission in Liberia) while others were left without residences. It is during this period that most of the women were involved in peace making activities such as making peaceful riots and vigils., MARWOPNET was among the women who established themselves during these peace searching processes. This was a pressure group that mobilized the women to approach the parties that were involved in conflicts to stop fighting. They also tried to convince the warring parties to engage in the dialogue instead of engaging in conflict. (Brownell, 2011). These attempts triggered peace talks that took place in Accra, commonly known as Accra Talks. MARWOPNET was invited to the talks in 2003. However, the talks did not yield positive results as fresh fights rose even after signing of the peace agreement. The fresh fights called for new interventions and women rose up for the second time to represent the victims of the fight. The victims comprised of the targets of the war. The groups also plotted to hold all men hostage until they signed the peace agreement. (Ekiyor& Gbowee 105).In retaliation, the warring parties locked the women hostage by locking them in a room. The engagement of women and warring groups saw them return to the negotiation table, which resulted to signing of cease-fire agreement on17th June,2003.Again, the chief mediator to the warring parties recognized women’s hard work and invited them to the signing ceremony (Bekoe et al 156). As a result of the ceasefire, fresh elections were held in 2005.Before the election date, women groups played yet another important role when they appointed members to go across the country offering free civil education about peace to the citizens. This is said to have encouraged the large turn up of women during Liberian 2005 elections, which saw a female candidate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf being elected the president. Roles of Women in Sierra Leone Sierra Leone has suffered under civil war. Mutilations, amputation of limbs, cutting of tongues, rape, and abduction are some of the experiences that the people of Sierra Leone suffered during the decade of civil war (Keen, 2005).One cannot talk about peace making process in Sierra Leone and fail to talk about women of Sierra Leone. During this dark decade, Sierra Leonean women joined hands with others to engage in a rival with the unidentified group of rebels that existed in the initial stages of the civil war. The women mainly organized rallies and called upon the rebels to down their weapons and pave way for peaceful agreements to take course. They went beyond the limits to engage rebels, by writing letters to them (Razon-Abad 86). The rebels would read the letters and reply to their messages. The letter-writing conversations between the women groups and the rebels gave them a new hope for possible negotiations and in the end, they managed to get the rivals to the agreement. During this period, many civil groups emerged in Sierra Leone. These groups were mostly engaged in peace negotiations (Carpenter 78). There was a remarkable leadership percentage of women among these groups. These leaders were involved in mobilizing fellow women to fight for agreements that would end the war that was in the country. At one point it is said that they met the president and tried to convince him to talk to one of the top officials who had refused to engage in a dialogue with the government (Brownell 89). The group went beyond the national level and started seeking advice from international institutions. For instance, during one particular time, women marched to the offices of the president in Monrovia, to protest. They carried signs that advocated for peace rather than war. They tried to urge the leaders to engage in peaceful agreements. At some point, they also threatened to lock the leaders in a room and release them if only they reached agreement. As a result of this, the two leaders agreed to dialogue and in 2002, Mr. Taylor and Mr. Conteh met and agreed to dialogue in presence of the king of Morocco. As mentioned above, most of the assumptions portray women as more peaceful compared to males. However, most of these assumptions do not put into account the changing roles that women play in peacemaking process. It is not a surprise to say that women also act as perpetrators and cause chaos among other roles. Gendered stereotypes also show women as peacekeepers because the natural role of women as life savers is considered. In Africa women fighters comprise up to 30%.It is said that some of these women are abducted to the fighting groups while others voluntarily get into the groups and enjoy fighting and its benefits. Most of the women who get recruited into these groups become crueler than their male colleagues. “Women were really fighting. If you saw us entering Waterloo on the 5th of January (1999), to enter the city (Freetown), you wouldn’t have been able to look at our faces. We were bloody…we were like slaves, very dirty. So to ask about women fighting! Some were even braver than some men”. It is also said that most of these women, particularly in Liberia, were offered high positions such as commanders. In considering women to engage in the peacemaking process, it is important to consider their effective participation in the process of converting grudges to peace talks. First, it is important to note that in West Africa, women are viewed as inferior to men (Fuest 99). They are expected to go by whatever decisions men make even at the family level. As a result of this women turn out to be voiceless sometimes, a fact which is reflected in peace negotiations in this century. This is so different compared to the era of civil war when women had a very strong voice in matters concerning peacemaking. Secondly, it has been noticed that many men and women are violated during civil wars. However, women are the most affected. It is said that some are abducted and made sex slaves. The result is trauma that prevents them from participating in peace building (Aning 66). Likewise, most of the women who contributed to peacemaking during the civil wars are no longer consulted. Their roles in peacemaking have not been common as it used to be. Thirdly, most women lack adequate access to financial resources compared to men. Most of the women earn lower wages than men in Liberia and Sierra Leone. As a result, they turn out to depend on men for their survival. The low earnings also limit them to participating in politics. In an event that some women lose their husbands to death their standards of living go down. This demotivates them even more. The dependence makes them voiceless and as a result they cannot make decisions without consulting men. Most women in Liberia and Sierra Leone lack formal education. More boys are encouraged to go to school as girls stay at home to help their parents with homework. Some of the girls get pregnant in their teenage. Lack of education for women in Sierra Leone and Liberia denies women skills that enable them to gain decision making freedom. Their roles in peace building process have therefore changed drastically. Conclusion In conclusion, women’s appropriate roles in the society have been stereotyped because they are perceived as creatures that cannot contain the stress that is involved in negotiation process during the peace keeping process. This fact has seen a lot of discrimination on women in peacemaking process. Therole of women in African countries, apart from Sierra Leone and Liberia, haschanged. There could be a way forward to this problem if women realized their position in peace making in the continent. Women should form groups that at least portray neutrality in negotiation. They should also acquire formal education to give them the strength and a bigger slot in making decisions concerning the society they live in. This has been encouraged in Sierra Leone where women groups contributed to nomination fees for women who are participating in peacemaking processes. Similarly, women need to be taught on different societal issues that concern both men and women. This will make them assertive and help them understand how to advocate for some political processes better and avoid rivalries from men. The most important of all the possible solutions is that international community has to make effort to see women included in peacemaking.it should also advocate for equal distribution and access to resources between men and women. Therefore, monitoring of member countries’ decision by the UN is important for implementation of UN resolution on women’s participation in peace making processes. ] Work Cited Barrow, Amy. "Like a Rubber Band. Assessing UNSCR 1325 as a Gender Mainstreaming Process." International Journal of Law in Context no. 5 (1):51-68 (2009). Print. Gizelis, T.-I. "Gender Empowerment And United Nations Peacebuilding." Journal of Peace Research: 505-23. Print. Bekoe, Dorina, and Christina Parajon. Womens Role in Liberias Reconstruction. PeaceBrief. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace (2007). Print. Fuest, V. "This Is The Time To Get In Front: Changing Roles And Opportunities For Women In Liberia." African Affairs: 201-24. Print. Carpenter, M. The capabilities approach & critical social policy: Lessons from the majority world? Critical Social Policy.29, 3, 351-373, (2009). Razon-Abad, H. & Miller, V. Policy influence: NGO experiences. Ateneo Center for Social Policy and Public Affairs. (1997). Print. Aning, Emmanuel Kwesi. "Women and Civil Conflict: Liberia and Sierra Leone." African Journal of International Affairs (1998). Print. Brownell, M. interviewed by Okyere, F. and Abdallah, M. Improving West Africas Capacity in Mediation and Peace Processes (29 July, 2011). Ekiyor, T. A. and Gbowee, L.R.. Womens Peace Activism in West Africa: The WIPNET Experience. Available at.http:www.peoplebuildingpeace.org/thestories/article/php. [Accessed 9 May 2015] Keen, D., 2005.Conflict & Collusion in Sierra Leone.New York: Palgrave.United Nations, 2000. Resolution 1325 (2000) Available at http://www/un.org/events/res_1325e.pdf.[Accessed 9 May 2015.] Read More