Gender, Armed Conflict and Peacemaking

Graduate Consortium in Women Studies

 

Carol Cohn, Gordana Rabrenovic and Lisa Rivera

 

Peacekeeping operations involving both military and civilian personnel have been deployed in a number of countries such as Bosnia, Kosovo East Timor and now Afghanistan. These interventions have come about following intense levels of violence, breakdown in law and order, systems of governance and social systems as well as violations of human rights. This course is designed to review the phenomena of conflict, forced migration and militarization from a gender perspective to highlight the policy and operational implications that arise from this analysis.

 

The gendered nature of conflict and intervention will be explored from a multi-disciplinary framework involving anthropology, sociology, politics, philosophy and the arts. Presenters will utilize literature, poetry, film, witness testimonies from the field, ethnographic narratives and other resources to explore the complex ways in which women and men experience, manage and respond to violence and situations of protracted crises.

 

Objectives:

  1. 1.     To promote an understanding of the gendered nature of conflict and displacement.
    1. 2.     To explore the relationships between conflict, militarization, gender and emerging nationalistic identities.
      1. 3.     To analyze the policies and practices of international peacekeeping and aid agencies.
        1. 4.     To promote a sensitization of the ethical, moral and personal issues involved in doing research and working in the context of violence and war.

          2.  

           

          Course Readings:

           

          Cynthia Cockburn. The Space Between Us: Negotiating Gender and National Identities in Conflict. Zed Books. London. 1998.

          Cynthia Enloe. Maneuvers: The International Politics of Militarizing WomenÕs Lives. University of California Press. 2000.

          Laura Sjoberg. Gender, Justice and the Wars in Iraq, Lexington Books. 2006.

           

          Various articles accessible via web-site.

           

          Course Assignments: 

           

          1. Each week a team of 2 or more students from different disciplines will make a presentation on the readings to the class. This will include (a) a 1-2 page written summary of key issues in both hard and soft copy to be placed on the web site or circulated via email, (b) a 20 minute presentation framing the readings, and (c) additional questions to help guide the class discussion. Questions and the draft summary are due via email to Carol, Gordana and Lisa 24 hours before class. Presentations are expected to present ideas from readings fairly and accurately and show critical analysis of the theoretical and empirical claims raised there. The intention is to engage the class in thinking about the issues and to create a structured and open forum for discussion. (30% of grade) 

           

          2. An 8 to 10 page paper based on class readings will be due in week 8. This will focus on the relationship of the idea of militarism to the student's own academic discipline or graduate program emphasis. (20 % of grade) For example, what assumptions does your discipline make about militarism? How are the readings and discussions in the class so far, moving you from your discipline to seeing multiple ways of seeing militarism and what are they? Has this changed over time? These questions are not meant to limit your papers but give a sense of issues that you may wish to think about. Papers are expected to defend a thesis on the issues using good reasons and evidence and will be assessed according to clarity, persuasiveness, accuracy and thoroughness.

           

          3. A 15 to 20 page research paper on a topic of the student's choice that engages with the issues of "militarism " and "peacemaking". Lisa, Gordana and Carol will give comments on a draft paper if it is handed in before week 9. (50 % of grade)

           

           

          Suggested Weekly Outline

           

          Week One:                  Introduction

           

          Week Two:                  Gendered Nature of Conflict and Social Change

           

          Week Three:                Emerging Trends in the Feminist Analysis of Violence and War

           

          Week Four:                 Women and Men as Combatants

           

          Week Five:                  Gender and Militarization

           

          Week Six:                    The Functionality of Sexual Violence and Rape in War

           

          Week Seven:               Spring break (tentative)

           

          Week Eight                  Managing Crisis, Community View

           

          Week Nine:                 Peacekeepers as Violators and Domestic Violence in the Military

           

          Week Ten:                   Engendering Policies and Institutions:  Opportunities, Issues, and

          Constraints

           

          Week Eleven:              Gender and Humanitarian Intervention

           

          Week Twelve:             Post-Conflict Recovery

           

          Week Thirteen:            Student Presentations

           

          Week Fourteen            Student Presentations

           

           

          Required Readings:

           

          Week 1

          Introduction:

           

          Week 2

          Gendered Nature of Conflict and Social Change:

           

          Laura Sjoberg. Gender, Justice and the Wars in Iraq. Chapters 1-2

           

          J. Ann Tickner: ÒGendered Dimensions of War, Peace, and SecurityÓ in Gendering World Politics. Columbia University Press, 2001, pages: 36-64

           

          Cynthia Cockburn: ÒThe Continuum of Violence. A Gender Perspective on War and Peace,Ó in Sites of Violence, (eds.) Jennifer Hyndman and Wenona Giles, University of California Press: Berkeley (2004), pp. 24-44.

           

          Carol Cohn: "Wars, Wimps, and Women:  Talking Gender and Thinking War," in Gendering War Talk, eds., Miriam Cooke and Angela Woollacott, Princeton University Press, 1993.

           

           

          Week 3

          Emerging Trends in the Feminist Analysis of War:

           

          Lentin, R. (1997) Ò(En)gendering GenocideÓ In: Gender and Catastrophe, Zed Press, pages 2-17.

           

          Laura Sjoberg. Gender, Justice and the Wars in Iraq. Chapters 3-4

           

          Dyan Mazurana. ÒGender and the Causes and Consequences of Armed Conflict,Ó in Gender, Conflict, and Peacekeeping, (eds.) Dyan Mazurana, Angela Raven-Roberts, and Jane Parpart, Rowman & Littlefield: Oxford & Boulder (2004).

           

          Judy El-Bushra, ÒTransforming Conflict: Some Thoughts on a Gendered Understanding of Conflict Processes,Ó in States of Conflict: Gender, Violence and Resistance, (eds.) Susie Jacobs, Ruth Jacobson, and Jennifer Marchbank, Zed Press: London (2000), pp. 66-86.

           

          Wenona Giles and Jennifer Hyndman, ÒNew Directions for Feminist Research and ThoughtÓ in Sites of Violence (eds.) Jennifer Hyndman and Wenona Giles, University of California Press, Berkeley (2004) pp. 301-309.

           

           

          Week 4

          Women and Men as Combatants:

           

          Joshua S. Goldstein. ÒA Puzzle: the Cross-Cultural Consistency of Gender Roles in WarÓ in War and Gender, Cambridge University Press. 2001, pages: 1-58

           

          Karen Kampwirth: ÒNew Roles for SandinoÕs DaughtersÓ in Women & Guerrilla Movements, The Pennsylvania State University Press 2002, pages: 21-44

           

          Dyan Mazurana: Women in Armed Opposition Groups in Africa and the Promotion of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, Geneva Call, 2005.

           

          Dyan Mazurana and Khristopher Carlson, From Combat to Community:

          Women and Girls of Sierra Leone, http://www.womenwagingpeace.net/content/articles/SierraLeoneFullCaseStudy.pdf

           

          Tanya Lyons: Guerilla Girls: Women in the Zimbabwean National Liberation Struggle. Trenton: Africa World Press, 2004.

           

          Segal, M. W. (1995). Women's Military Roles Cross-Nationally: Past, Present, and Future. Gender & Society, 9(6):757-775.

           

          Week 5

          Gender and Militarization:

           

          Cynthia Enloe. Maneuvers: The International Politics of Militarizing WomenÕs Lives. Chapters 1-3

           

          P.W. Singer. ÒChildren at War,Ó in Children at War, California University Press 2006, pages: 3-36

           

          Karen Kampwirth: ÒRethinking Women and Guerrilla Movements: Back to CubaÓ in Women & Guerrilla Movements, The Pennsylvania State University Press 2002, pages: 117-136

           

          Carline O.N. Moser: ÒThe Gendered Continuum of Violence and Conflict: An Operational FrameworkÓ in Victims, Perpetrators or Actors? Edited by Caroline O.N. Moser and Fiona C. Clark, Zed Books, 2001 pages 30-51

           

          Week 6

          The Functionality of Violence and Rape in War:

           

          Cynthia Enloe. Maneuvers: The International Politics of Militarizing WomenÕs Lives. Chapters: 4-7

           

          Moore, H. (1994) ÒThe Problem of Explaining Violence in Social SciencesÓ In: Harvey, P. and Gon P.(Ed.) (1994) Sex and Violence. Issues in Representation and Experience, Routledge, pages 138-155.

           

          Niarchos, C.N. (1995) ÒWomen, War, and Rape: Challenges Facing the International Tribunal for the Former YugoslaviaÓ Human Rights Quarterly, Vol.17:649-690.

           

          Donohoe, M. T. (2004). War, rape and genocide: Never again? In Medscape Ob/Gyn. and Women's Health, 9(2). Available at: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/491147. Accessed 9/08/06

           

          Morris, M. (1996). By force of arms: Rape, war, and military culture. Duke Law Journal, 45:651-781

           

          Meredith Turshen. ÒThe Political Economy of Rape: An Analysis of Systematic Rape and Sexual Abuse of Women during Armed Conflict in AfricaÓ in Victims, Perpetrators or Actors? Edited by Caroline O.N. Moser and Fiona C. Clark, Zed Books, 2001 pages 30-51

           

          Week 7 Vacation

           

          Week 8

          Managing Crisis, A Community View:

           

          Cynthia Cockburn (1998) The Space Between Us, Negotiating Gender and National Identities in Conflict . Zed Books London.

           

          Week 9

          Peacekeepers as Violators:

           

          Cooney, M.(1998). Warriors and peacemakers: How third parties shape violence. New York: New York University Press. Chapter xx

           

          Paul Higate and Marsha Henry: ÒEngendering (In)security in Peace Support Operations,Ó Security Dialogue, Vol. 35, No. 4, 481-498 (2004)

           

          Sarah Martin: Must Boys Be Boys? Ending Sexual Exploitation & Abuse in UN Peacekeeping Missions. Refugees International, 2005

           

          Taft CT, Pless AP, Stalans LJ. (2005). Risk factors for partner violence among a national sample of combat veterans. Journal of Consulting Clinical Psychology, 73:151-159

           

          Sandra Whitworth: Men, Militarism, and UN Peacekeeping: A Gendered Analysis. Lynne Rienner, 2004, chs xx.

           

          Week 10

          Engendering Policies and Institutions: Opportunities, Issues and Constraints:

           

          ÒGender Mainstreaming in Peace Support Operations: Moving beyond Rhetoric to Practice,Ó International Alert, July 2002, http://www.reliefweb.int/training/ti1121.html

           

          Colleen Keaney-Mischel. The Role of Gender Advisers in Implementing United Nations Gender Mainstreaming Policy in Peacekeeping Operation. Chapter from the dissertation

           

          Cynthia Cockburn and Meliha Hubic: ÒGender and the Peacekeeping military; a view from Bosnian WomenÕs OrganizationsÓ in Cynthia Cockburn and Dubravka Zarkov, editors. Postwar Moment: Militaries, Masculinities and International Peacekeeping. Lawrence & Wishart, London 2002, pages 103-121

           

          Carol Cohn: ÒMainstreaming Gender in UN Security Policy: A Path to Political Transformation?Ó in Analysing and Transforming Global Governance: Feminist Perspectives, Editors: Shirin M. Rai and Georgina Waylen. Cambridge University Press, forthcoming

           

          Carol Cohn, Nadine Puechguirbal, Nathalie Gahunga, Angela Raven-Roberts: Working in the Field: Practitioners Discuss UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. Boston Consortium on Gender Security and Human Rights Meeting Report, www.genderandsecurity.org

           

          Week 11

          Gender and Humanitarian Intervention:

           

          Lesley Abdela: ÒKosovo: Missed Opportunities, Lessons for the FutureÓ in Development, Women and War: Feminist Perspectives, Oxfam: Oxford (2004) pp. 87-98.

           

          Mark Duffield: ÒThe New Humanitarianism,Ó Global Governance and the New Wars: The Merging of Development and Security, Zed Books: London (2001).

           

          Jennifer Hyndman: ÒRefugee Camps as Conflict Zones: The Politics of GenderÓ in Sites of Violence, (eds.) Jennifer Hyndman and Wenona Giles, University of California Press: Berkeley (2004) pp. 193-212.

           

          Madeleine Rees: ÒInternational Intervention in Bosnia-Herzegovina: The Cost of Ignoring Gender,Ó in The Postwar Moment, (eds.) Cynthia Cockburn and Dubravka Zarkov, Zed Books: London (2002) pp. 51-67.

           

          Suzanne Williams, ÒMission Impossible: Gender, Conflict and Oxfam GB,Ó in Development, Women and War: Feminist Perspectives, Oxfam: Oxford (2004) pp. 315-334.

           

          Week 12

          Post-Conflict Recovery:

           

          S¿rensen, B. (1998) Women and Post-Conflict Reconstruction: Issues and Sources, Occasional Paper No.3, United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, Programme for Strategic and International Security Studies.

           

          Natasa Mrvic-Petrovic and Ivana Stevanovic. ÒLife in refuge-changes in socioeconomic and familial statusÓ in Women, Violence and War, edited by Vesna Nikolic-Ristanovic, Central European University Press 2001: 151-169

           

          Maracia E. Greenberg and Elaine Zuckerman. ÒThe Gender Dimensions of Post-Conflict Reconstruction.Ó  Research Paper No. 2006/62 UNU-Wider 2006

           

          Sheila Meintjes, Anu Pillay and Meredeth Turshen ÒThere is no Aftermath for WomenÓ in The Aftermath: Women in Post-Conflict Transformation, edited by Sheila Meintjes, Meredeth Turshen and Anu Pillay, Zed Books 2002: pages 3-19

           

          Sondra Hale. ÒLiberated, but not Free: Women in Post-War EritreaÓ  Sheila Meintjes, Anu Pillay and Meredeth Turshen ÒThere is no Aftermath for WomenÓ in The Aftermath: Women in Post-Conflict Transformation, edited by Sheila Meintjes, Meredeth Turshen and Anu Pillay, Zed Books 2002: pages 122-141

           

           

          Recommended Readings:

           

          El Bushra, J. and Mukarubuga, C. (1995) ÒWomen, War and TransitionÓ. Gender and Development Vol. 3(3):16-22.

           

          Roche, C. (1992) ÒOperationality in Turbulence: The Need for ChangeÓ. Development in States of War, London Acord, pages 15-25.

           

          Tickner, A. 1999. ÒWhy Women CanÕt Run the World: International Politics According to Francis Fukuyama.Ó International Studies Review 1(3):3-11

           

          Cynthia Cockburn. ÒThe Gendered Dynamics of Armed Conflict and Political Violence.Ó In Victims, Perpetrators or Actors? Gender, Armed Conflict and Political Violence, edited by Caroline O N Moser and Fiona C Clark. Zed Press, pages 13-29

           

          Eritrea.  Women and the Eritrean Revolution.  Chapters 5 and 7.

           

          Wilson, Amrit (1995). The Women and War Reader, Red Sea Press.  Chapters 17, 18, 20, and 21.

           

          Enloe, Cynthia. (1993) ÒThe Gendered Gulf: A DiaryÓ Chapter 6 In: The Morning After: Sexual Politics at the End of the Cold War. Berkeley University of California Press. pages 161-200.

           

          Haque, Evan. (1997)  Rape, Power, and Masculinity:  The Construction of Gender and National Identities in the War in Bosnia-Hezagovina.  Gender and Catastrophe, Zed books, Edited by Ronit Lentin.

           

          Slim, H. (1996) Doing the Right Thing: Relief Agencies, Moral Dilemmas and Moral Responsibility in Political Emergencies and War, Background Paper for the Scandinavian NGO Workshop on Humanitarian Ethics, Nordic African Institute, Upsala.

           

          Macrae, J.(1996) The Origins of Unease: Setting the Context of Current Ethical Debate, Background Paper for the Forum on Ethics in Humanitarian Aid, Dublin, December 1996.

           

          Longwe, S.H. (1995) ÒOpposition to Gender-Sensitive DevelopmentÓ Gender and Development, Vol. 3(1): 47-50.

           

          Chewe, E. and Harrison, E. (1998) ÒThe Gender AgendaÓ In: Crowe, E. and Harris, E.(1998) Whose Development? An Ethnography of Aid, Zed Books, pages 49-68.

           

          Dowler, Lorraine. (1997) ÒThe Mother of All Warriors, Women in West Belfast, Northern Ireland.Ó Gender and Catastrophe, Zed books, Edited by Ronit Lentin