International assistance operations still neglect the needs of women and girls in disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) processes. This handbook by Sarah Douglas, Vanessa Farr, Felicity Hill and Wenny Kasuma presents lessons learned and case studies to improve the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on women, peace and security, particularly its call to make DDR processes more inclusive of women. The handbook includes some suggestions for how to develop standard operating procedures on gender and DDR. Intended for DDR practitioners, it recommends integrating women’s needs and perspectives into all phases of DDR.
Because DDR processes traditionally operated with the narrow objective to disarm men with guns, they generally failed to account for the fact that women can be armed combatants and that they also help maintain and enable armed groups. Even though the numbers of women involved in armed groups and forces have steadily increased, token participation of women and under-representation of their issues in DDR processes has underestimated their importance in the transformation of societies from war to peace.
UNSCR 1325 (2000) examines issues of women, peace and security in peace negotiations, decision making, refugee camps, mine clearance and sanctions. It implies major changes in procedure, delivery, attitudes and habits of the international community that are necessary to integrate women’s issues into DDR and other aspects of security programming. This Resolution has played a key role in changing approaches and attitudes to women up in armed conflict, and a slow transformation of DDR processes is now underway.
The following are lessons learned and recommendations for integrating women’s issues into DDR:
- Frameworks and Definitions: Because DDR processes generally define combatants as armed men, women are less likely to be identified as beneficiaries of DDR. Gender expertise and data should be utilised in the planning, assessment and concept operation of every DDR process. The UN should provide all agencies with sample language for the negotiation of gender issues into DDR packages and processes.
- Participation in Decision Making: The utility and relevance of women’s analysis and insight on peace and security issues are underestimated. Women must participate when peace negotiations begin. Public information, training and awareness efforts should extend to women leaders and advocates on all aspects of the DDR process.
- Resources: Human and financial resources committed to gender issues and DDR are inadequate. DDR and gender components must be adequately financed through the UN peacekeeping budgets, not through voluntary contributions alone. When governments fund disarmament, the UN should facilitate gender and DDR financing.
- Participation in DDR: There are too few trained women peacekeepers, civilian police and experts engaged in DDR processes. Donors should facilitate the establishment of a regionally balanced group of women and gender DDR experts, and increase efforts to train those in leadership positions on gender analysis.
- Weapons Collection: Weapons that remain in circulation heighten domestic and political violence and crime. Women and community leaders need training in weapons safety and responsibility. Women affected by gun violence often have good ideas about incentives to remove weapons from their communities.
- Cantonment Sites: Poorly-designed assembly and cantonment sites fail to protect women and girls. Security of women and girls must be assured within camps. Assembly and camp sites should not be constructed before funds are allocated for security.
- Reintegration: Reintegration packages rarely address women’s needs. Receiving communities must be informed about the intention and use of reintegration packages. It cannot be assumed that DDR benefits will reach dependents. Women who care for sick and sometimes dangerous ex-combatants must be recognised as stakeholders in the reintegration process.
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Author: Sarah Douglas | Vanessa Farr | Felicity Hill and Wenny Kasuma
Source: Douglas,S., Farr,V., Hill,F. and Kasuma,W., 2004, ‘Getting it Right, Doing it Right: Gender and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration’, UNIFEM, New York, USA
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