WUNRN
DISPLACED WOMEN'S AID, SECURITY
NEEDS, OVERLOOKED
Interview with
Elisabeth Rasmusson, Secretary-General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
Source: AlertNet //
thin-lei win – 09 December 2010
For example, in
Unless the aid agencies on the ground had female assessment teams and other
staff in place, these women were "invisible" and could not even visit
the toilets during the day, Rasmusson told AlertNet in an interview.
The assistance they received - including clean water, food, sanitation and
access to maternity care - was limited, she said.
"Worse, during Ramadan, women were fasting from sunset to sunrise, but they
were also looking after the kids so the kids didn't have food or drinks for 12
hours. Many babies and small children were totally dehydrated," recalled
Rasmusson, who visited the region in August.
This is just one example where women's humanitarian needs have been overlooked,
said the head of the NRC, an organisation that promotes and protects the rights
of people who have been forced to flee their homes.
PROTECTION FUNDING SHORT
Around the world, millions of women uprooted by war live in fear of abuse and
discrimination, aid workers say.
There are more than 43 million people displaced by conflict, three quarters of
them estimated to be women and children, according to NRC. Some have fled to
another part of their own country and others have crossed borders.
"Women are exposed to assault and injustice in all kinds of environments,
and by anyone from a military soldier to family members," Rasmusson said.
"And often perpetrators go free, so there is little risk in abusing,
raping, kidnapping or killing women."
A binding Security Council resolution, passed 10 years ago, calls for women and
girls in conflicts to be protected from rape, but only around 20 countries have
implemented it. A recent U.N. report said sexual violence is an increasingly
common weapon of war.
Simple measures such as making sure camps for the displaced are well-lit,
building toilets within compounds, and letting civilians – instead of armed
troops – run the camps can help provide safety for women, Rasmusson said.
But displaced women's voices are not being heard, often because of "a
total lack of understanding of the situation on the ground", she added.
Donor indifference also means funding for activities to protect women from
violence and discrimination has been decreasing.
With
"Few donors are willing to fund protection activities because they're not
visible. The food, the shelter, the water, the health – all visible, tangible,
concrete," Rasmusson said.
INCLUDING WOMEN IN PEACE
EFFORTS
One factor hampering displaced women's security is the increased militarisation
of protection, which is seen as the job of armed personnel even though it
encompasses physical and mental safety as well as human rights, Rasmusson said.
She cited Democratic Republic of Congo as an example, saying U.N. peacekeepers
there have a "contradictory mandate". Although protecting civilians
is part of their mission, they were involved in military operations last year
with the Congolese army "which is one of the main perpetrators" of
sexual violence against women, the top refugee official said.
"What kind of signal is that sending when you have people who are supposed
to protect you supporting those who are violating your rights?" she asked.
From March to December 2009, U.N. troops backed the DRC military in an
operation against Rwandan Hutu rebels in
The rising trend of displacement in urban settings, like
Protecting women more effectively requires a deeper understanding of the role
of men in conflict, Rasmusson said, as they change from providers to warriors
once they take up arms. And that aggressive role may well continue even after
conflict has ended, leading to a rise in domestic violence.
Rasmusson urged peace negotiators to make more effort to seek and incorporate
displaced women's voices and needs into peace agreements and other
post-conflict processes.
"We have seen time and time again (that) only women can communicate their
own needs – not the men, not the foreigners, not all the international experts
negotiating these peace agreements," she said.