Women, Gender and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration

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Women, Gender and Disarmament, Demobilization and
Reintegration
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Overview

• Introduction
• Key Principles
• International Mandate
• Security Council Resolution 1325
• Beijing Platform for Action
• Secretary Generals study on Women, Peace and
  Security
• Gender Responsive DDR
• Negotiating DDR
• Assessment phase
• Mandate, scope institutional arrangements
• Package of benefits incentives
• Assembly
• Cantonment Sites
• Disarmament
• Resettlement
• Social and Economic Reintegration

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Introduction

• Women being left out of the DDR efforts because
• Narrow definition
• Process revolves around the male combatants
• Budgetary constraints
• Women can be armed combatants
• have different needs
• are critical participants in peace-building

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Key Principles

• Non-discrimination, Fair and Equitable Treatment
• Gender Equality and Womens Participation
• Respect for Human Rights

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International Mandate

• Security Council Resolution 1325
• Beijing Platform for Action
• Secretary Generals Study on Women, Peace and
  Security

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International Mandate (cont.)Security Council
Resolution 1325

• Adopted in October 2000
• Recognize women's contributions to peace pays
  attention to women and girls in conflict
• Consider different needs of female male
  ex-combatants
• Recalled when establishing the DDR-related
  mandates in Liberia, Sudan and Haiti

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International Mandate (cont.) Beijing Platform
for Action (1995)

• Increase the participation of women in conflict
  resolution at decision-making levels
• Protect women living in armed conflicts
• Reduce excessive military expenditures and
  control the availability of armaments
• Promote women's contribution to fostering a
  culture of peace

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International Mandate (cont.)SGs Study on
Women, Peace Security

• incorporates the needs of women/girls in DDR
• more programmes for child soldiers with needs of
  girl soldiers addressed
• awareness of increased domestic violence
• contribution of women/girls in encouraging
  ex-combatants to lay down arms
• reintegration programmes for women/girls

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Why Support Women and Girls in DDR?

• Women build peace
• Advocate for SALW control
• Create community policing
• Support male ex-combatants and child associated
  with fighting forces

• Women need peace for development
• Basic human right to participate
• Prevent Gender-Based Violence (GBV), human
  trafficking, HIV/AIDS
• Recognize different contributions made by women

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Gender Responsive DDR

• Negotiating DDR
• Assessment phase
• Mandate, scope institutional arrangements
• Package of benefits incentives
• Assembly
• Cantonment Sites
• Disarmament
• Resettlement
• Social and Economic Reintegration

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)

Gender-responsive DDR Chart
Coordination mechanisms with womens
organizations community
Programme and government commitment to SCR 1325
Donor support
Gender responsive needs assessment programme
design
Gender responsive Monitoring Evaluation
Gender Responsive DDR
Gender responsive budget
Appropriate service delivery to female
ex-combatants, supporters and dependants
Gender Advisors and staff
Gender training for programme staff and
stakeholders
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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Negotiating DDR

• Promoting Women's Political Participation
• Gender Aware Interventions
• Female-Specific Interventions

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Assessment phase

• Gender composition of armed groups
• 2. Socio-economic/political status
• 3. Gendered division of labor
• 4. Capacities of local womens groups
• 5. Level of Gender-Based Violence (GBV)
• 6. Female-specific security needs

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Mandate, scope
institut. arrangements

• one-man, one-gun approach excludes many
  women/girls
• narrow definition of a combatant overlooks the
  needs of women/girls
• gender training crucial
• topics Gender Mainstreaming Human Rights,
  Sexual Gender-Based Violence, Gender roles
  relations, Gender identities, Gender issues in
  HIV/AIDS Human Trafficking

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Female Eligibility Criteria (1)
Female Dependants wives, daughters of male and
female ex-combatants
Female Supporters nurse, porter, cook, cleaner,
administrator, sex worker, translator
Female Armed Combatants Fighters with weapons
DDR has focused mainly on this group
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Female Eligibility Criteria (2)

Yes
Q1 Does she possess any type of weapon?
No

Q2 Was the use of weapons an important part of
her function during the conflict?


Eligible for Disarmament
Q3 Did she use weapons was she trained to use
weapons?
Eligible for Demobilization
Q 4 Did she perform essential support functions
within the group during the conflict?
Eligible for Reintegration
Q 5 Is she socially and economically dependent
on a male ex-combatant?
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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Package of
benefits incentives

• Transitional Support Programmes
• Financial resources
• start-up kit, reinsertion package, loan
• Material resources
• tools, land
• Basic training
• corresponds with needs/desires

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Assembly

• Failure to assess their number in the assessment
• phase
• Poorer access to news sources
• Stigma
• Perception or fact that a weapon is needed
• Security concerns or a fear of (re-)exposure to
  sexual and gender-based violence

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.) Cantonment Sites

• separate identity cards
• open well lit facilities
• separate access to education about HIV/AIDS
• childcare provisions
• reproductive and psychosocial health services
• separate registration at the reception centre
• education about their rights
• birthing kits medical facilities in case of
  birth
• same job opportunities in new police security
  forces

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Disarmament

• ensure top security at disarmament sites
• equal access for women to the disarmament sites
• identification and interviewing of female
  ex-combatants is crucial to collect and
  distribute different types of information
• weapons for development projects be seen as ideal
  opportunities to target train women/girls

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Resettlement

• separate transportation facilities
• extra time and special support to women who dont
  know where they want to go
• transitional safety net (housing, healthcare,
  counselling, educational support)
• access to local demobilization support office

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Social
Reintegration

• Level of participation in decision-making
• Public image self image
• Public and private/domestic roles relations
• Long-term psychological rehabilitation
• Support women to cope with caring for sick,
  injured, traumatized and HIV positive combatants
• Public perception of GBV
• Organization of womens ministries NGOs
• Social network
• Media coverage on women/gender issues

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Economic
Reintegration

• Vocational literacy training
• Childcare
• Access to land credit for women
• Sensitization of community and potential
  employers
• Coordination with development agencies

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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Budget
2. Gender training for men and women, local and
intl.

• Female
• specific activities

Gender Responsive Budget
3. Gender specialists
4. Unit Cost by gender
Information sharing with Gender Advisor womens
NGOs
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Gender Responsive DDR (cont.)Monitoring
Evaluation

• Create gender-related female-specific
  indicators to measure programme impacts
• Assess gender equity in DDR gendered impact of
  DDR Disaggregate data by sex
• Transfer lessons learned to future programmes

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Conclusion

• Advocacy to create political will
• Promote participation of womens organizations
  women in community
• Mainstream gender into DDR policies and practices
• Implement gender-responsive DDR