WUNRN
WOMEN EX-COMBATANTS – CHALLENGES TO FIND POST-CONFLICT
RE-ENTRY INTO COMMUNITIES, WORK, PRE-COMBAT ROLES
Fighters from a Kurdish People's Protection Unit, or YPG, pose
near a checkpoint on the outskirts of the destroyed Syrian town of Kobani,
Syria, on June 20, 2015. Ahmet SikAFP/Getty Images
By Kristin Williams - Senior Writer and
Program Officer at The Institute for Inclusive Security.
July 2, 2015 - Cambridge, Massachusetts — These days and you may
see an unfamiliar sight: women in uniform, holding automatic weapons. Strangely
glam portraits of fierce female warriors have recently proliferated. To most,
they seem novel, out of the ordinary. But the truth is that women have taken
active part in conflicts all over the world, from Sri Lanka to Sierra Leone.
Some armed units are 30-plus percent female.
When wars end, though, these women become
next to invisible. In every country, they have been overlooked and underserved
by processes set up to disarm fighters and reintegrate them into civilian life.
Think of the consequences of ignoring 30
percent of an armed force. Ex-combatants who lack viable job opportunities may
again take up arms. If they can’t reconcile with communities — often those that
bore the brunt of violence — underlying tensions may boil to the surface. For
female fighters, who are often doubly stigmatized because they defied
traditional gender roles, the risks are even greater.
Here are eight things you might not know about
women who fight in wars and how to make them partners in building long-term
peace.
1. Not every combatant carries a gun
Female peshmerga
fighters in a Kurdish area of Iraq. Since 2012, an all-female brigade called the
Women’s Protection Unit (YPJ) has battled the Islamic State in northern Syria.
Jan Sefti/Flickr
Women often play support roles in
non-state armed forces. Though some fight on the front lines, others are
porters, cooks, spies, translators, medics, wives, and, sometimes, sexual
slaves.
Whether they volunteered or were forcibly
recruited, are armed or unarmed, these women experience severe disruption,
living for months or years at a time in remote areas. They endure as much
deprivation and danger as any soldier.
Eligibility for post-war services is
typically contingent on turning in a weapon. In Sierra Leone, for instance,
combatants had to present, disassemble and reassemble a weapon before they
could gain access to benefits. Women without guns cannot prove they were active
participants in the war. Eligibility for ex-combatant services needs to be
based on a nuanced understanding of women’s roles.
2. Even women with guns must be carefully
counted
Two female
guerrillas of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), date
unknown. The FARC has recruited significant numbers of women partly because of
its egalitarian Marxist ideology, which allows women to challenge traditional
gender roles.
Silvia Andrea Moreno/ Flickr
Commons
Often, commanders are asked to supply
names of eligible fighters. Some may manipulate this process, excluding those
outside their inner circle or who don’t hold formal ranks.
Women, as a minority within armed groups,
are particularly at risk of being left out. To avoid this, the UN or other
actors implementing the disarmament process must go directly to the source — female
combatants themselves — to obtain reliable data. This will lead to a more
accurate picture of how many women are serving, what roles they play, and what
specific services they may require.
For instance, in Colombia, the government
and the FARC rebel group are currently deciding how to end a decades-long war.
Estimates suggest that women comprise a staggering 30 to 40 percent of FARC
members, many in combat roles. Better data about these female combatants will
ensure that the FARC’s re-entry into civilian life is inclusive and complete.
3. Female ex-combatants require different
health and social services
If planners see demobilization as only for
men, reproductive and gynecological health care will be absent. Many women bear
children during their time in armed groups. Others may have suffered
miscarriages, contracted sexually transmitted diseases, or been victims of rape
or sexual trauma, both at the hands of enemy forces and their fellow soldiers.
They, and their dependents, need
specialized care: reproductive and gynecological check-ups, psychological
counseling, sanitary napkins, and family planning services are all critical to
meeting the particular needs of female ex-combatants.
4. Lump sum cash payments disadvantage
female fighters
Reintegration of ex-combatants typically
includes some form of financial assistance. The assumption is that, without
this safety net, fighters are more likely to return to armed struggle or take
up criminal activities.
Direct cash payments can disadvantage
female combatants. Lump sum disbursements are often determined by rank; many
women hold no formal title or are prevented from advancing to the highest
levels due to their gender.
In some situations, women have reported that their male commanders or
husbands confiscated payments distributed to them. A better approach is to
invest in long-term economic security by providing educational vouchers or food
assistance, rather than cash.
5. Women fix cars, too
An important part of disarming former
combatants is training them for new jobs. Many women join non-state armed
groups to escape traditional gender biases.
Once in the forces, some rise to
leadership positions, managing brigades and making command decisions. Female
combatants, including those in support roles, also learn new skills during
wartime — from weaponry to first aid.
But job-training programs for
ex-combatants often sideline women, pushing them into customary
female responsibilities like sewing or cooking. Programs that seek to
reintegrate women into communities must account for the non-traditional roles
they’ve become accustomed to, providing opportunities for jobs in law
enforcement, medicine, and other fields customarily dominated by men.
6. Who provides services matters. So does
where they do it
The design of demobilization facilities
and the composition of the staffs are critically important. It’s good practice
to provide women with separate bunks, and female-only latrines and washing
facilities in well-lit areas; not only for privacy, but to reduce the risk of
sexual violence.
Strong female representation among staff
and leadership of demobilization centers is essential. Identifying women from
armed units for services, interviewing them about their experiences, and
supporting them with proper care are likely to be more successful if those
providing these services aren’t all men.
7. Women in local communities are
invaluable allies
For peace to succeed, planners must also
engage women within the local communities where fighters will resettle. Many of
these areas experienced severe violence, and residents may struggle to accept
former combatants as their neighbors.
Local civilian women can help — or hinder —
the reintegration process. They can encourage their families and community
members to either welcome combatants or shun them. It’s critical to capitalize
on local women’s formal and informal authority, by making them allies in
reducing stigma, encouraging forgiveness, and delivering services. They should
be engaged early on in planning and implementing those processes by which ex-combatants
and communities learn to live together again.
8. Above all, women’s agency must be
recognized
Decades of disarming forces in dozens of
conflicts have revealed failures and successes. There is no one-size-fits-all
solution. The roles women and men play in armed struggles are complicated and
nuanced. Shouldn’t our efforts to shift combatants into peaceful post-conflict
roles be the same?
Women in armed groups are more than just
an exotic novelty; they are primary agents in building lasting security. If we
want peace to last, we must recognize their power and account for their
presence.