Peace And Security
Women and girls suffer their impact disproportionately.
Peace and Security
Most of today’s conflict take place within states which their root causes often include poverty, the struggle for scarce resources and violation of human rights.
Women and girls suffer their impact disproportionately.
They are the chunk of the population that suffer trauma from bombings, famines, epidemics, mass executions, forced migration, ethnic cleansing threats and intimidation, trafficking, domestic violence, sexual harassment and exploitation. Women do not enjoy equal status with men in any society, where cultures of violence and discrimination against women and girls exist prior to a conflict.
Gender-based and sexual violence
Women participate less in the decision-making structures in a society hence they are unlikely to be involved in the decision about the conflict or the process that follows. Women and girls are often viewed as bearers of cultural identity and thus become prime targets. Gender-based and sexual violence has increasingly become weapons of warfare and is one of the defining characteristics of contemporary armed conflict. In Africa, most of the population that have suffered the ramifications of conflicts are mostly women and to larger extent children.
women in Africa and Ghana
These groups have been victims of political instability which has rendered most refugees and sometimes losing their lives their lives in the course of the conflict. The peace and security of women in Africa and Ghana to be precise are always threatened during a conflict. In Africa over one-quarter of the continent’s 53 countries were afflicted by conflict in the 1990’s. Today armed conflict are predominantly internal, with regional and subregional repercussion and the victims of those conflicts are disproportionately women.
The quest to ensuring peace and security on the globe has not only been the goal of individuals and governments and various peace and security agencies but also Regional and International based organizations are also burdened with the quest to promoting peace and security in member countries. It is governments ultimate goal to ensuring peace and security both internally and externally. Civil Society groups have also taken it upon themselves to ensure peace and security through their projects in their various jurisdictions and possibly beyond.
In this regard, the AU has built up an impressive toolbox for prevention and peacemaking. These include the Continental Early Warning System, the Panel of the Wise, Special Envoys, and ad hoc mediation panels, often comprised of sitting and former Heads of State. The AU also has experience in deploying liaison offices and "special political missions" in countries at risk of, or emerging from, conflict.
A typical example of civil society action plan on peace and security is the initiation of the Women Situation Room across most countries in Africa. WSR which is a woman’s groups that is responsible for mobilizing women and youth to address the particularly gendered nature of electoral violence for women as both candidates and voters. In the context of conflict prevention, the AU and its sub-regional organizations have developed significant institutional capacity over the past decade to undertake early warning analysis and conflict prevention.
The Commission has focused on operational conflict prevention with regular Horizon Scanning briefings provided to the AUPSC on potential threats and emerging peace and security challenges on the continent; production of early warning reports and the conduct of preventive diplomacy missions in Member States at risk of conflict. The Commission has also continued to provide technical assistance to Member States in the establishment and strengthening of national infrastructures for peace, including early warning systems and Situation Rooms.
Women Peace and Security
The United Nations also on its mandate to promote peace and security of women in member countries embarked on series of measures through the UN Security Council Resolution on Women Peace and Security. Some of these are measures are;
- In June 2008, presented by US which stressed that sexual violence and impedes international peace and security.
- Demands that parties involved in a conflict to take measures to protect civilians, including women and girls from all forms of sexual violence.
- Request the General Secretary to strengthen the zero-tolerance policy for UN peacemakers who engage in sexual exploitation and abuse and urges troops and police and countries to conduct training and other preventive actions.
- US in September recognized the promotion and empowerment of women and support for women’s organization and networks are essential in the consolidation of peace security and encourages member states, donors and civil societies to provide this necessary support.
- Also in Vietnam in October 2009 which stresses the need to ensure that women are appointed as high-level mediators and within the mediation team. We at GenCED, in our quest to empowering women in our communities are equally committed to bringing to bare the need to ensure peace and security of women in the country and for that matter in their communities through the following measures;
- Empower and assist women who have been involved in wars and any other form of violence such as trafficking, sexual harassment etc.
- Empower women to play a full and equal part to building the foundations for peace and security in their communities to ensure development.
- Educate and empower women to know their rights and how to fight for their rights in their various communities.
- To educate women about their fundamental human rights in the country.
- To educate women on their role to peacebuilding and the gender dimension of peace processes and conflict resolution.