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Alliance for a responsible and united world
"Yin Yang" Workshop
Women and Peace
Experience sheets
August 1999
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Presentation
This file was written on the occasion of the participation of the "Yin Yang" (masculinefeminine) workshop of an Alliance for a Responsible and United World at the Hague
Conference from May 11th to 15th in response to the call of a hundred organizations
representing civil society to commemorate the centenary of the first international peace
conference, organized by Czar Nicholas II of Russia and the Queen of the Netherlands, and
launch a detailed international action plan for the coming decades. This resulted in the Hague
Agenda for Peace and Justice for the 21st Century in the areas of conflict prevention, the
effective application of human rights, disarmament, maintaining peace, and the treatment of
the fundamental causes of violence.
Several women involved in peace movements were invited to Amsterdam to work together for
three days just before the conference. This preparatory workshop grouped seventeen women
from different countries (Burundi, the United States, Italy, Philippines, Algeria, France,
Turkey, Sudan, Palestine, Western Sahara, India, Georgia, Azerbaidjan, Afghanistan). Three
of them, (Algeria, Philippines and India) were unable to attend the workshop due to
difficulties in obtaining visas. Following this workshop, the participants organized a session at
the Hague on May 13th during which they presented the network they had set up and the
conclusion of their collective work.
To prepare this workshop, an initial collection of files on different experiences of women
acting for peace, taken from the DHP (Dialogs for Human Progress) database, was distributed
to all the participants. It entailed, by putting forward the experiences of each person,
collective consideration on the specific contribution of women to prevent and solve conflicts,
thereby widening the scope to questioning the importance of gender difference in the
organization of our societies, on the material level and on that of mentalities, and on the
essential place of women in any process of social evolution and transformation.
Besides this work on women and peace, the Alliance workshops also contributed to the
conference on the subjects of religions, drugs and the conversion of arms industries, with the
support of the Charles Léopold Mayer Foundation for the Progress of Humankind (FPH).
In addition to the first experience sheets, this dossier covers the reports on the work done in
the Netherlands as well as a certain number of texts written by the participants in the
framework of this meeting. These texts can be obtained by contacting Nadia Aissaoui.
Nadia Leïla AISSAOUI
Centre pour l'innovation sociale, Apartat 145
08290 Cerdanyola, SPAIN
Phone: 34-935 866017. Fax: 34-935 866001
E-mail: [email protected] ; [email protected]
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Summary
1 - Women and peace: what could be the contribution of the Yin Yang workshop to the Hague
conference ?
The perception of the way in which male-female relations are expressed in the social order (and how they
make it change) is an essential dimension of the analysis of the conditions that permit violence to occur in
collective and systematic forms. Moreover, no approach to solving conflicts can ignore the experiences and
strategies of women in this area.
2 – Women and peace: report on the preparatory workshop
The participants gathered at Amsterdam agreed on the need to extend the definition of war to other forms
of violence that affect society, and to assert that women have a permanent role to play in this area, by
publicly expressing ideas and attitudes capable of preventing social relations from giving in to this logic of
domination and constraint.
3 – When women invent non-violent means to deal with conflicts. Report of the Hague session
By presenting their conclusions at the Hague conference, the participants tried to introduce a wider
horizon to preventing and solving conflicts. Their experiences and successes illustrate how peace building,
to be efficient, must also deal with social behavior that favors resorting to violence.
First part: a wide definition of war
4 – A wide definition of war
Our approach to war must encompass all systematic forms of violence and the way these forms develop
and reside in societies, finding their cultural roots in a patriarchal order that glorifies the use of
domination and constraint as a means of assertion.
5 – Italian women against the Mafia
Since the beginning of the nineties, women have been involved in combating the culture of fear and silence
on which the Mafia bases its power. They promoted setting up an alliance of organizations throughout
Italy to refuse the straightjacket imposed on society by Mafia practices, and they especially promote the
teaching of non-violence and respect of legality in schools.
6 – Colombian feminists and the fight against violence
To fight against the reign of death in Colombia, which touches every sphere of civil life, militant feminists
insist on the link between armed violence and the daily violence aimed at women, and carry out symbolic
actions to highlight and transform the patriarchal order at the root of this warlike spirit.
7– Mothers around the world unite to defend justice
Groups of mothers from around the world whose commitment to peace often finds its source in the loss of
a child or a loved one, agree to assert that their refusal of violence cannot be separated from a
commitment for social justice.
8 – The mothers of the Plaza de Mayo in Argentina
By widening their protest against the arbitrary behavior of the Argentine dictatorship to the defense of
moral principles and respect of life against all forms of injustice, the mothers of May Square have been
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able to weave links all over the world and diversify their methods of action and intervention, especially in
the area of education and peace.
9 – The association of Spanish mothers of conscientious objectors and deserters
The Spanish mothers of conscientious objectors and deserters fight alongside their sons so that their
refusal to join the army is heard everywhere as a refusal to accept the military-industrial policies of
governments, and by consequence the preponderance of the logic of domination at every level.
10 – In Russia, the committee of soldiers' mothers has become a link in civil society that can
no longer be muffled
The committee of soldiers' mothers, founded to protest against living conditions in the army, has been able
to make itself heard by the authorities and media. In spite of the resurgence of militarism after the
collapse of the Soviet Union, they have been a focal point in the fight against the war in Chechnya, by
going to look for young conscripts on the battlefield and by collaborating with women on the other side.
11 – The Corsican women's manifesto for life
Faced with rising violence by armed groups and the negligence of the public authorities, which threaten to
push back the whole of Corsican society into the past, the "anonymous" women's movement has launched
an appeal to stop the spiral of terror by calling for a modern and calm public life based on justice and
transparency.
12 – Women in black: "we are still in the streets of Belgrade"
The women in black of Belgrade are still seeking, after the Dayton agreement, to transform the cease-fire
into a sustainable peace, by forming links with other women of the former Yugoslav republics and by
providing their support to all forms of resistance to militarism and warlike logic.
13 – Women in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The effort of women to influence the evolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has come up against, on
the one hand, their inability to form relations between them that differ from those that predominate
among men, and on the other, the patriarchal nature of Palestinian society, which impedes any initiative
and cooperation between women based on new foundations.
Part two: creative and non-violent peace strategies
14 – Creative and non-violent peace strategies
The initiatives of women in conflict situations have often met with success insofar as they succeed thanks
to the symbolic force of their actions; they substitute the logic of confrontation with dialog, uncouple the
processes of violence and thus build a foundation for sustainable peace.
15 – Building peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia
Any long term peace strategy must start by eliminating the factors of war that remain in people's spirits
by bringing to the fore values found in particular among women and the young.
16 – Experience of a conflict situation in Burundi
By attempting to defuse the polarization of the entire population of Burundi into two opposing camps,
groups of women and artists have devoted themselves to maintaining and restoring possibilities of
communication and mutual recognition in the midst of armed conflict.
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17 – Art and culture as peace builders
By transforming individual behaviors, unhindered art and culture form an essential dimension for
building a just and sustainable peace. Similarly, the participation of women in public life contributes new
ways of doing things in a political world regulated at best by the male value system, and at worst by
military methods, as in the Philippines.
18 – Israeli-Palestinian peace also requires deconstructing the myth of the "enemy"
To avoid a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by separation, it is vital that all those who work to
build peace take inspiration from the experiences and relations formed between groups of women, acting
to strengthen cooperation and interaction between the two peoples.
19 – Drawing in Gaza
In a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, drawing has not only revealed itself to be an efficient method of
social integration and pacification for children made insecure by constant violence, it is also useful for
their mothers.
20 – The Arab women's peace ship : an experience to impose the will of women for peace on
men who want war
Before the Gulf War broke out, women from the Arab world, accompanied by several western and
Japanese women, chartered a ship to supply milk and flour as a symbolic protest against military logic
and the embargo hitting the civilian population of Iraq. Throughout all the incidents of this voyage,
together they displayed the same moral qualities that they wanted to see employed in order to solve the
crisis.
21 – The indian women of Guatemala organize the struggle
Since the peace agreement in Guatemala, Indian women are at the forefront of the combat to gain
reparation for the violence and repression of the civil war, and they are attempting to promote political
participation for women and social recognition for the Mayan people.
22 – The fabric of Rwandan organizations after the civil war of April 1994: Women's NGOs
In Rwanda, a large number of women's organizations took on the task of repairing the sequels of the war
of April 1994, on both material and psychological levels. Those targeted first are often women and
children, who form the support vital to any social reconstruction.
23 – The Zagreb center for women war victims
The center for women war victims is attempting to set up the conditions for peace among Croatian and
Bosnian women and refugees by devoting itself to the reparation (medical, legal, etc.) of the traumas left
by the conflict.
24 – Women's courts in Asia
In Southeast Asia, women are trying to make public opinion aware of the specific violence to which they
are victims, whether during a situation of war or "peace", by gathering and diffusing testimonies, and by
carrying out strong symbolic actions to highlight the lack of justice in this area.
25 – Developing non-violent campaigns
Promoting non-violent forms of action, an increasingly urgent need in the present world context, involves
reconsidering in-depth all the features and modes of our behavior and actions in the public arena.
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Part three: appendices
26 – No to ethnic cleansing, no to bombing. Women's call on the former Yugoslavia to the
Hague Appeal for Peace
The occasion of the Hague conference, during which war raged in former Yugoslavia, gave an opportunity
for women's networks to diffuse this appeal, likening NATO's reaction against the Serb's in Kosovo to the
atrocities perpetrated by their government, and insisting on the role of civil society, particularly women
and international institutions, in building sustainable peace in the Balkans.
27 - Prepare peace
Beyond the mythology that shows women to be by nature opposed to violence, it appears that it is often
them who are at the forefront of peace movements. With the values that they put forward in these
circumstances, they are often bringer, at a well larger level than just armed conflicts, of an opportunity
for renewal in social life.
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Main keywords
Art of living – sheets 14, 16 to 19, 22, 23, 25
What constitutes a "beautiful life". What do our modes of living and surviving, especially for those
whose existence has been ruined, say about the importance of artistic and aesthetic elements in
individual and collective life.
Patriarchy – sheets 1, 4, 6, 9, 11 to 13, 15, 17, 20, 24
How sexual identities and relationships between genders are built socially, and how this construction,
in return, constitutes an essential core of social relations and mentalities, but is also a factor of their
transformation.
Peace strategy – sheets 1 to 3, 5, 6, 8 to 10, 12 to 21, 23, 25 à 27
By what means can violence be brought to an end and above all achieve sustainable peace through
influencing the conditions that make it possible at every level. Is it possible to forecast and prevent the
processes that breed violence.
Public private relation – sheets 2, 5, 7, 8, 10, 20
How contemporary transformations, especially the emancipation of women, cause changes in the
frontiers between public and private areas and behaviours, to the point of eliminating their difference.
What becomes of public life in these conditions.
Violence – sheets 1 to 12, 21 to 24, 26, 27
What are the conditions that make violence possible, and how taking these conditions into account
implies research beyond its most obvious manifestations. Is it possible to think of all forms of violence
(sexual, economical, political, etc.) as a whole?
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Women and peace
Nadia Leïla
AISSAOUI
What could be the contribution of the
Yin Yang workshop to the Hague
Appeal for peace ?
1999/04
World
Peace strategy
Violence
Patriarchy
The perception of the way in which male-female relations are
expressed in the social order (and how they make it change) is an
essential dimension of the analysis of the conditions that permit
violence to occur in collective and systematic forms. Moreover, no
approach to solving conflicts can ignore the experiences and strategies
of women in this area.
The name Yin Yang that our workshop has chosen for itsself expresses the
change in the perception of gender relationships and going beyond binary
thinking in which opposites exclude and dominate each other. One of our
main aims is to identify the changes that have occured in our societies since
the issue of the place and role of women has become unavoidable.
The relationship between men and women in societies has changed
radically since women have made their way into the public arena (work,
politics, etc.). This redefinition has not happened without resistance, for the
identities of both sexes must change. It implies restructuring social
organisation, modifying socio-cultural perceptions of gender roles and
developing new standards and values. This process also requires sacrifices
and calling into questions that is sometimes painful, giving rise to violence.
Consequently, the link between women's access to public life and the rise of
violence against them seems to be increasignly evident. Women were the
first to upset the dominant male order and claim more equal societies. This
awakening has stirred a deep-seated fear that traditional social models
(especially male models) will collapse. The change from an ultra-male
society to one increasingly impregnated with female thinking is seen as a
necessity when confronted by the failure of the previous model , but also as
a threat that tends to blur the references of identity deeply ingrained in the
collective subconscious.
Our motivation to participate in the Hague event
A conference will take place at the Hague from 11 to 15 May 1999 to
commemorate the 100th anniversary of the "Hague Appeal for Peace". It
could not come at a more apprpriate time if one looks at the increasing
number of conflicts in the world. The century now ending will have been
the bloodiest in the memory of humankind.
Today, not a moment passes without the media announcing the breakout of
some new conflict with now almost natural fatalism. As in chain reaction,
the world is turning into a real furnace, with frattricidal conflicts added to
civil wars, whose stakes often go beyond national borders, and that serve
the mighty's interests. The violence is becoming a current practice in
societies as well as at the world level. Henceforth conflicts don't only deal
with questions of territory but also with a cultural hegemony that infiltrates
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societies and with a world economical system whose values (competition,
competition, fruitfulness...) prove to be destructive of the social and
ecological balance.
These same values exacerbate the major features of the patriarchal society :
confrontation and domination from the strongest over the weakest, the rich
over the poor, and men over women. They appear at the political level as
much as at the economical, social and cultural level. Societies with their
crisis of values cannot find any other outlet but violence and war.
The role of women as bringers of feminine values
The contribution of women towards solving conflicts and formulating
strategies for peace is fundamental in many ways. This does not signify that
the link women-peace, men-war, is natural. Many men are also engaged in
combating war and violence. However, the reason that women are often the
first to demand peace and refuse war is because they have objective reasons
for doing so :
During armed conflicts, the possession and mutilation of the female body
becomes a major stake in the assertion on men's power over the enemy.
This was the case in Rwanda, Algeria and Bosnia, where collective rapes of
women and young girls took place in front of their families and clans.
Women are rarely if not to say never associated with political decisions on
war and peace, whereas it is they that give birth to the cannon fodder sent to
the front. This is the reason why the mothers of May Square in Argentina
decided to make their motherhood a public and political issue in protest
against their children's disappearance (see sheet n°8). As for Colombian
women, they decided to cease procreating as long as their children were
destined to certain death. They thus sought to make children rarer, more
precious and thus reverse warlike policies (see sheet n°6).
Following the loss of their men, it is women who face terrifying economic
situations and must continue to provide to their family's needs.
Women understood that solidarity transcends borders and nationalistic
considerations. They know that the pain of the loss of a person that is close
and that the hunger of a child are the same in all camps. The most beautiful
example of this has been given by the "Women in black" (see sheet n°12)
or the Chechnyan women who,in colaboration with the mothers of Russian
soldiers (see sheet n°10), succeeded in stopping the fight simply by
removing their veils and throwing them to the ground...
The peace doesn't only mean the absence of war, but must be a
permanent attitude towards balance, justice and dignity.
By necessity, because they often are discriminated against, women have
acquired long experience in fighting and injustice violence and solving
conflicts without however taking the status of full players in negotiations
and political decisions. Beyond theit experiences, feminist thinking (too
often left in the background) provides a wealth of alternatives for the
development of culture and peace. It offers new visions and explore new
ways to reconsider society. To include the vision of women is a process that
requires strong measures to encourage the emergence of new value in favor
of the peace. attitude that seeks balance, justice and dignity.
It is these aspects that we want to bring to the fore during the work at the
Hague conference.On the one hand, by providing testimonies from different
cultures that illustrate the role of women in resistance to and/or the solution
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of conflicts, and, on the other, by contributing through theoretical
considerations on the need to "feminise" societies and the political
implications of this "feminisation".
Source : Introduction of the file distributed to the participants of the
preparatory workshop in Amsterdam. Translation by Keith Hodson.
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Women and peace
Report on the preparatory workshop
Nadia Leïla
AISSAOUI et
Caroline BRAC de
la PERRIÈRE
1999/05
Netherlands
World
Peace strategy
Private public
relation
Violence
The participants gathered at Amsterdam agreed on the need to extend
the definition of war to other forms of violence that affect society, and
to assert that women have a permanent role to play in this area, by
publicly expressing ideas and attitudes capable of preventing social
relations from giving in to this logic of domination and constraint.
Although most of us had never met before and the fact that we came from
very different origins, we observed - to our surprise and pleasure - that our
points of view on war and solving conflicts coincided. Thus it quickly
became obvious that we had similar opinions on the definition of war and,
by extension, that of peace, and on the evidence of non-violence as a means
to achieve peace.
For all the women present at the meeting, war does not limit itself only to
armed conflicts but encompasses the daily violence practiced against
human beings and most particularly against women (patriarchal violence,
sexual violence, the Mafia, and other economic powers). Thus the
experiences related by Angel Cassidy, the head of an organization of exprostitutes, and Rita Borsellino, who combats the Mafia in Italy (see sheet
n°5), were seen by all the participants as the least known aspects of this
violence, although as important as war, whose obvious dimension is
conflict between two countries or two factions within a territory. Moreover,
while the notion of war cannot be limited to armed conflict, peace does not
mean simply "cease-fire", but justice, equality and freedom. Coexistence
requires respect for the other and a balance between two parties.
The experiences recounted by the participants, whether by Marie-Louise
from Burundi and the way she succeeded in reconciling two opposing
camps (Hutus and Tutsis) by dialog and patience (see sheet n°16), or by
Angel and her determination to quit the hell of prostitution revealed many
common points in the approaches used. Even the way the workshop
proceeded (both flexible and structured, recounting of experiences, no
hierarchy, etc.) brought to light a number of values that we felt were
important to develop and make known. The idea of calling them "feminine
values" was rejected after a short debate by all the participants as a
reproduction of gender based social separation and construction. However,
in our world it is often women who put forward these values, as they do not
set up boundaries between public and private. These values and practices
can be summarized by six points :
1. Non-hierarchical organization and operation,
2. Democratic sharing and transparent power and information,
3. Solidarity,
4. Flexibility,
5. Clear and realistic definition of goals and objectives in order to avoid
loss of energy and motivation,
6. Exchange of successful experiences.
All peace construction strategies have to start before the outbreak of
conflict and after it has stopped. The occurrence of armed conflict never
comes as a surprise. It is preceded by warning signs and it should
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encourage us to act and be vigilant.
Before armed conflict:
- This above all entails forming confidence between women, networks and
channels of communication,
- Expand solidarity networks as much as possible at international level,
- Encourage the political participation of women.
During conflict:
- Above all seek points of agreement between the two parties and
"depoliticize" the debate as much as possible,
- Use traditional positive conflict solving methods for inspiration,
- Use the vacuum in the public arena (social and political) caused by the
absence of males to strengthen and increase the presence of women in
social and political organizations.
Education for non-violence, communication and acquiring self-confidence
by strengthening one's own capacities, training, etc., are obviously points of
permanent concern.
The occupation of areas traditionally monopolized by men has in certain
cases given women the opportunity to implement their know-how in
solving conflicts. This has won them recognition after the event and they
are called for later on to join decision-making bodies. These experiences
led to four interesting consequences:
- considerable changes in models of traditional societies, and awareness of
the need to get women to participate in decision-making bodies;
- the existence of increasingly efficient solidarity networks against war,
- awareness and prevention of possible regressions after conflicts with
regard to the role of women in society (the case of Algeria and the
Sahraoui);
- the snowball effect of successful experiences. Even if very local, they
constitute genuine schools for peace when able to call on adequate
networks to diffuse and highlight their efficiency.
Directions for consideration and actions we thought as important and on
which we agreed on became clear during the two days of discussion.
Directions for consideration
- the importance of demonstrating the link between patriarchy, sexual
discrimination and violence;
- various forms of conflict (armed, militarization, organized crime,
prostitution) are also forms of war that are often related. Any effort to build
peace must take these aspects into account;
- the importance of giving greater visibility to successful local peace
initiatives in order to capitalize on the creative potential of women and their
role in transforming conflicts, since this can trigger the snowball effect
mentioned above.
Paths of action
- peace education,
- action against impunity,
- action against militarization,
- empowerment of women and encouragement of greater political
participation,
- strengthening solidarity networks, and the exchange of experiences by
region and continent,
- strengthening the mechanisms of the United Nations.
The workshop prior to the Hague Conference for Peace was an excellent
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opportunity to gather women active in building peace and solving conflicts.
By sharing experiences and thinking together, we strengthen each other
mutually and propose strategies of resistance to violence and war. Such was
the goal of this meeting.
Source : Report of the preparatory workshop before the Hague Peace
Conference. The full text can be obtained in French by contacting Nadia
Aissaoui (see presentation). Translation by Keith Hodson.
Contact : AWHRC, P.O. Box 1013, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.
Phone: (632) 924 64 06. Fax: (632) 924 63 81.
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Ipek
ILKKARACAN
When women invent nonviolent ways to deal with
conflicts
1999/05
Report of the Hague Session
Netherlands
World
Violence
Peace strategy
By presenting their conclusions at the Hague conference, the
participants tried to introduce a wider horizon to preventing and
solving conflicts. Their experiences and successes illustrate how peace
building, to be efficient, must also deal with social behavior that favors
resorting to violence.
During the workshop, each participant has described the conflict situation
in their country, and shared their individual and group experiences of how
they dealt with the conflict and their initiatives towards a resolution of the
conflict and towards peace building. By the end of the third day of the
workshop we had reached two main conclusions as a group. First, we have
expanded the definition of "war" beyond one that is limited to armed
conflict. Our second common conclusion as a group was the success of
women’s creative strategies of non-violence as a way to resolve conflicts.
Nadia Laila Aissaoui opened the session by speaking about the origin of the
idea by the Alliance for a Responsible and United World to organize a
session on "women and peace" at the Hague Conference. Continuing on the
introduction, Ipek Ilkkaracan has explained the background of the
collaboration between the Alliance for a Responsible and United World and
Women for Women’s Human Rights (WWHR), an NGO based in Turkey.
She explained WWHR’s recent experiences in peace activism. WWHR had
originally booked the workshop space for sharing the experiences of the
WINPEACE Network, but given the difficulties in this work they decided
to share the space with the Alliance which was organizing a preparatory
women and peace workshop in Amsterdam leading up to the Hague
Appeal. Ipek commented that participating in this preparatory workshop
had been an inspiring experience since it brought together a number of
success stories. Before going onto the presenters, the moderators introduced
all the 17 women who had participated in the preparatory workshop in
Amsterdam. It was explained that the group selected only four presenters
for the session at the Hague given the limitations of time. The criteria used
by the group in choosing the presentations was to reflect the expanded
definition of war and also to reflect the diversity of the regions and the
creative peace strategies developed by various groups.
Presentations were made in the following order :
• Angel Cassidy, Standing Against Global Exploitation (SAGE),
USA, made a presentation on the definition of prostitution as war.
• Christina Calvanelli (Italy) has presented on behalf of Rita
Borselino from the Association of Women Against the Mafia in
Italy (Rita Borselino had to leave after the Amsterdam workshop
due to prior commitments at home.) (see sheet n°5)
• Rena Tagirova of Helsinki Citizens Assembly, Azerbaijan spoke
about the armed conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over
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•
the seperatist movement in Nagorno-Karabakh (see sheet n°15).
The last presenter, Marie Louise Sibazuri of the Association of
Women for Peace in Burundi explained the situation of the armed
conflict between the two ethnic tribes of the Hutu and the Tutsi in
Burundi which has lead to a substantial number of internally
displaced people (see sheet n°16).
Following these four presentations there was a short question-answer
session. One participant commented on the expanded definition of war
suggested by the session, saying that she appreciated this perspective which
goes beyond one of armed conflict; she emphasized the importance of
defining any systematic form of violence as a type of war that needs to be
prevented. She mentioned a point from Angel Cassidy’s presentation where
Angel was motivated to start with SAGE the last time she had a life
threatening experience as a prostitute and she was imprisoned with another
ex-prostitute who has become a source of strength and inspiration for her.
The participant posed the question of what motivated the other presenters to
take the first step towards peace. Marie-Louise from Burundi said that once
she escaped a situation of death very closely during the armed conflict. And
she felt that there had to be a reason for it, which she said became her active
involvement in peace building. Caroline Brac answered on behalf of Rita
Borselino from Italy saying that for Rita it was the assassination of the
judge by the mafia; the judge was Rita’s brother and she felt that a peaceful
fight against the mafia was the only way she could make the memory of her
brother live on. For Rena from Azerbaijan, the initiative came through
again a painful experience of the loss of a close Azeri friend in the war.
A final comment was on the importance of two-way dialogue and open
communication in resolving conflicts. The breakdown of communication
leads to conflict, she said; and one needs to favor negotiational, open
communication over defensive, dispositional communication to open the
way for peaceful dialogue.
The session was organized under the Hague agenda point "Prevention,
Resolution and Transformation of Violent Conflict." The session reached
the conclusion that a gendered analysis of the root causes of war is
essential as the phenomenon of violence has organic links to patriarchal
organization of society which fosters the tendency to dominate and the
aggressive fight for power. The main recommendations correspond to the
workshop conclusions : identification of ties between patriarchy, inequality
of sexes and violence, necessity to valorize the local initiatives of women in
the resolution of conflicts, education to peace.
Source : The Hague Appeal Session Report, "When women invent nonviolent ways to deal with conflicts" (compte-rendu de session). The
complete report is available in english (see the presentation).
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A wide definition of war
1999/05
USA
Italy
Colombia
World
Violence
Patriarchy
Our approach to war must encompass all systematic forms of violence
and the way these forms develop and reside in societies, finding their
cultural roots in a patriarchal order that glorifies the use of domination
and constraint as a means of assertion.
The first conclusion we agreed on in our exchanges during the workshop in
Netherlands was the necessity to expand the definition of war far beyond
the limits of armed conflict.
Angel Cassidy (SAGE - Standing against global Exploitation), USA, spoke
about the definition of prostitution as a war (with the body as battleground),
to the extent that it forces women into situations of violence and drelentless
exploitation against their will. We have noted the many parallels that exist
between war as "armed conflict" and the violence caused by prostitution:
For instance, findings of research studies that a majority of sex-workers
suffer from similar post-traumatic stress syndromes observed in veterans of
armed conflict; the violent desire to dominate as a common source of
aggression in armed conflict as well as in prostitution; and the big profits
involved both in the business of armed conflict and the business of
prostitution.
She explained the founding of SAGE by ex-prostitutes for two purposes: To
offer health-related, psychological, social and legal support to women who
wanted to quit prostitution and the related problems of drug addiction and
alcoholism; and to offer a consciousness-raising seminar to men arrested
for soliciting prostitution (an illegal practice in the USA). The SAGE
seminar, known as "the school for John’s", provides an alternative to legal
persecution and aims to prevent men from committing the same offense by
raising their awareness of the violence and the exploitation survived by
prostitutes. The seminar which is conducted by ex-prostitutes started as a
pilot attempt in San Francisco and has set an example which is followed by
other states in the USA. Results are extremely satisfactory, but
unfortunately very insufficient regarding the importance of prostitution.
During the debate that followed the presentations in the Hague Conference
session, a participant commented on Angel’s presentation making the
parallel between violence and patriarchy: He stated that men are brought up
to be misogynists and hence they tend to violence and develop the
aggressive instincts to dominate. How does "the school for johns" deter
men from committing the same offense again? Angel responded that the
most effective part of their seminar is the communication by the exprostitutes of the pain that they suffered in working as prostitutes. Another
participant commented that this is the power of non-violence, that through
peaceful communication, the two sides see each other for the first time as
human beings.
Starting from the experiences of the Association of Women against the
Mafia in Italy (see sheet n°5), we have acknowledged the systematic
violence that is fostered by "organized crime" (the so-called mafia) also as a
form of war. We have noted that such "organized crime" (mafia) groups are
increasingly becoming a source of lawlessness, human rights violations and
violence in many countries around the world, and there are many instances,
21
such as in Georgia or in Turkey, where organized crime has developed
organic links to armed conflict.
The Association of Women Against the Mafia was set up following the
assassination of two judges who were spearheading the legal persecution of
mafia leaders. Women have started organizing first in Palermo where the
second assassination had taken place. They have made peaceful
demonstrations by hanging sheets outside of their windows with slogans of
protest against mafia violence and calling public meetings. This was the
first time that the silent consensus around organized crime, a long-standing
problem in Italy, was broken, and the explicit expression by women of their
protest against organized crime has encouraged other civil society groups to
join in on the wave of protests. This lead to the formation of a country-wide
alliance of civil groups and community organizations. They lobbied the
government to pass a law that requires the allocation of resources
confiscated from the captured Mafia leaders towards social causes. The
Association has also started an initiative for integration of anti-violence,
anti-organized crime training into school curriculum.
Ultimate example, the action of women in Colombia (related by Andrée
Michel - see sheet n°6), linked with a feminist reflection, came to reinforce,
if needed, our definition of war. For us as for them, there is no opposition
between the private violences they encounter in their families and armed
groups violences. The roots of these violences is the patriarchal society
where men are educated to a virility synonymous of violence and women to
submissiveness.
In the same way as this extended definition of the war, we defined peace
not only as "cease-fire", but as "absence of violence, establishment of the
social justice and equality". Coexistence implies respect of the other and a
balance between the two parts. During the workshop in Amsterdam, the
testimony of Palestinians living in Israel challenged us to this topic : even
though they are positive citizens, inequality of treatment (soldiery controls,
use of only one language in institutions, etc.) is omnipresent. Following this
testimony, the debate on non-violence was billowy. The Palestinian,
Sahraoui and Algerian cases put back to the agenda the question of the
necessity of the violence to have its cause acknowledged, or in case of
legitimate defense. How can one be nonviolent when one is either
intimidated or physically menaced? The question of coexistence between
two populations inside a country, one dominating the other, and of means to
make this domination cease, lead automatically to the question of
coexistence between men and women, and of means to make the masculine
domination cease... The time didn't allow us to go very deep into this
question, and a decision was taken to continue the debate from afar inside
the network. A consensus was reached however on the idea that a real
peace cannot be given without the implementation pacific means from the
both sides.
Sources : Report of the workshop in Amsterdam, and report of the Hague
conference session.
22
Italian women against the
mafia
Rita
BORSELLINO
1999/04
Italy
Violence
Peace strategy
Private public
relation
Since the beginning of the nineties, women have been involved in
combating the culture of fear and silence on which the Mafia bases its
power. They promoted setting up an alliance of organizations
throughout Italy to refuse the straightjacket imposed on society by
Mafia practices, and they especially promote the teaching of nonviolence and respect of legality in schools.
In the summer of 1992, conceiving a war-act against Italian state, mafia
killed in Sicilia the judges Giovanni Falcone e Paolo Borsellino, symbols of
the fight against mafia.
In the first case, an highway was mined with a powertful bomb, and the
judge died with his wife and with the three men that escorted him.
In the second case, a bomb-car destroyed an entire street (140 flats) and
killed the judge and four men and a woman that escorted him.
The judge Paolo Borsellino was my brother.
My experience in activism derives from these killings.
Up to that moment, my life had been my family, my children and my job as
a pharmacist.
The death of my brother and the destruction of my house obliged me to
look around myself.
I saw so many people crying that I reached the conclusion that crying was
useless, and that I had to react against the situation.
In those days, in Palermo there had been the creation of pression groups, in
order to protest against mafia and calling for a solution of the problem.
They were composed mostly by women that protested using simple and
punctual methods.
For example:
• The "Women of the fasting" started an hunger-strike in order to
ask for the destitution of those politicians who were responsible
for the lack of protection that led to the death of the two judges;
• The "Women of the cloths" that exposed at the windows cloths
with phrases against mafia written on them.
It was an important fact, because it meant the overcoming of silence and a
public denounce of mafia.
An association of "Women against mafia" already existed; her aim was to
provide support to the women whose familiars had been killed or that had
been harassed by mafia and to encourage them to denounce the criminals
23
and to testify in Tribunal against them.
Therefore, I started to get in touch with these mouvements, that meant
overcoming of fear, of silence and of resignation, that were the fertile
ground on which mafia used to grow.
It was important to group together and to collaborate.
Starting from a small number of associations, in 1994 a co-ordination of
730 associations was created; the co-ordination’s name is LIBERA
(associations, names and numbers against mafias) and it regroups not only
associations that fight specifically against mafias, but also cultural, sporting
and volunteers associations, together with men, women and youths whose
aim is to educate themselves and to educate others to legality, respect of the
other, peace and non-violence.
They fight against mafia as the denial of dignity and human rights.
Up to nowadays, LIBERA has promoted trainings for an education to
legality and democracy that involved 8.000 teachers and almost 800.000
students, starting from primary school, as it’s basilar to form the children to
respect and to peace.
Moreover, the training in primary schools can involve also the children of
the mafia families, or of families living in a mafia environment proposing
them values in opposition to those they are used to inside their families,
where mostly mothers are guardians of mafia disvalues; the children can
become the messengers of positive inputs inside their own family.
One important result of LIBERA has been the proposal, supported by 1
milion signatures, of a law that allows the social use of lands and properties
confiscated to mafia; the law was approuved in the Italian Parliament in
1996, and nowadays, for example, a luxurious villa in Corleone (village of
origin of some dangerous mafia leaders) has been confiscated to the head of
mafia Totò Riina and is now a school.
Also some dangerous links between mafia and politics have started to be
cleared up and many politicians are facing trials in these months.
Nowadays, it’s necessary to focus our attention on the internationalization
of sicilian mafia and on the markets she’s running in collaboration with
mafias all over the world.
It’s not only drug, but also weapons, nuclear toxic wastes, prostitution,
etc…
The main financial flows are controlled by mafia.
Therefore, it’s important to organize ourselves and to internationalize the
struggle.
We should unite because only collaboration can give birth to concrete
results.
LIBERA is looking for contacts with other countries and with similar
associations, in order to extend as much as possible her educational
programms, that destroy the substrate of illegality, indifference and fears on
which mafia develops.
24
Source : Original text, contribution to the preparatory workshop in
Amsterdam.
Contact : LIBERA. Via G. Marcora 18/20. 00153 Roma, Italia. Tel: 003906-58 40 40 6. Fax: 0039-06-58 40 40 3. Mail: [email protected]. Site
internet : http://www.libera.it
25
26
Columbian feminists and the
combat against violence
Andrée MICHEL
1999/04
Colombia
Violence
Peace strategy
Patriarchy
In Colombia, to fight against the reign of terror that now affects every
sphere of civilian life, militant feminists insist on the link between
armed violence and the daily violence practiced against women. They
carry out symbolic actions to highlight and transform, at every level,
the patriarchal order at the root of this warlike spirit.
Colombia is a rich country, too rich, so it generates envies of every kind.
(...) The violence there has been strongly entrenched for fifty years, but it
has now reached its apex: 35,000 violent deaths per year, 10% of which are
political assassinations, as well as 15,000 deaths during military
confrontations. Besides the government army, which has gone into action
against the drug traffickers, and the guerilla armies composed of peasants
and workers who want to take over the power to purge a government
dominated by five or six very powerful families, the population is also the
victim of private militias. These militias belong to the drug traffickers who
want to chase the peasants from their land, the big landowners who want to
expand to the detriment of the peasants, self-defense militias composed of
civilians armed by the State so that they can defend themselves, etc. (...)
Violence of every origin is also present in the cities and in particular in the
"districts", the name given to the "barrios" (shantytowns) of the major cities
such as Bogota and Medellin. (...)
Confirming UNICEF statistics on the civilian status of the victims of
today's armed conflicts, Pablo Emilio Angarita, a lawyer and professor of
law at the University of Antioqua, and human rights activist in an NGO,
made this frightening statement: "In 1995, 43% of victims were civilians, in
1996 this figure was 53%, and it will be 85% in 1997. Those who die are
not combatants but people who travel and work. The more the government
proposes to citizens that they participate in the fight against violence by
arming them, the more civilian victims there will be".
Of this number, it has been estimated that the percentage of female victims
of death by violence is about 9%, higher than in previous years. However,
the suffering of women cannot be limited to this figure. Women are also the
victims of rapes perpetrated by the government army and private militias.
Many women are victims among the 20,000 violent deaths classified as
having "social causes" whose authors are not the armed militias. Even
though murders of women are less common than those of men, they bear
the full brunt of the machismo of South American society. We were told
that it is not rare for women to be murdered because they refuse the
advances of men. (...) Although armed groups spare women in relative
terms, they suffer greatly when they lose a husband, brother, son, parent or
friend or when they are obliged to flee from their homes and villages. Also,
the percentage of murders of women by military groups only represents a
minor facet of all the suffering endured by women due to the militarism and
violence of Colombian society.
The combat of Colombian feminists against violence
27
(...) The struggle of Colombian women for non-violence comes initially
from women who were feminists before their fight for peace or who have
become so progressively in their thinking on the causes of the violence. In a
country ravaged by civil war, these militant feminists for non-violence
constitute the avant-garde of a combat for peace by their imagination,
courage, determination, tenacity, thinking and the new style of human
relations emerging from their organizations against violence.
(...) The Colombian feminists decided to organize a large demonstration in
Mutata, a small village in the province of Uraba, one of the country's most
violent regions. They prepared the demonstration in collaboration with
Indian organizations, responsible for the concept of "active neutrality" and
with ecology organizations from the Uraba region. The preliminary
presentation of their project at the Medellin Women's Forum stirred much
enthusiasm from the women of the city's poor districts and shantytowns.
They baptized the project "Ruta Pacifica" (the Pacific Route). (...) They
made the link between the violence that they suffer in their everyday
private lives and military violence. To their surprise the march gathered
more than six hundred women come from all over the country by bus,
braving roads dangerous both day and night. During the march, they not
only denounced violence against women but also the "supposed
pacification of the country by using deadly totalitarian projects". They
demanded that dialog and negotiation replace armed struggle and some of
them also demanded women to refuse to bear the children of men who carry
arms. They discussed the characteristics of the violence practiced against
women around the world and decided to set up a women's struggle
observatory (that they have called Veedor). They also gave Ruta Pacifica
the objective of winning public opinion over to the concept of "Neutrality"
claimed by Colombia's Indian movements.
These women display courage, determination and tenacity: nothing
weakens their will to continue their pacifist struggle, in spite of death
threats and the daily intimidation in the form of assassinations of feminist
and human rights activists, politicians and union leaders, and university
researchers. These assassinations are obviously committed by those
interested in seeing that the war continues.(...)
At present, they are fighting to abolish the right of military tribunals to
judge crimes perpetrated by soldiers and they have obtained partial
satisfaction.
In parallel with their concrete actions, the ideas of the Colombian feminists
places them at the forefront of feminist thinking on the nature of violence.
There is no contradiction for them between the violence women suffer in
their private, family lives and in society, and the military violence they
have to endure. These two types of violence stem from the same patriarchal
society that has instilled men with a conception of virility related to
violence, whereas women have been educated to submit. However, even
though women do not carry arms, they are involved in the violence since it
affects them even more than men. Men need to acquire another conception
of virility by discovering their feminine sides and solidarity with others,
while women must stop accepting violence, whether of a military or a
private nature. When war approaches, women cry and participate without
understanding. They do so for love of the men who continue to kill those
they love.(...)
The spirit of Ruta Pacifica means escaping from the "androcentrist cage"
imprisoning men and women. Feminist activity will always be a
transgression since, to achieve peace, it is necessary to change the
predominant message and language; women must dare to speak out and
28
present their point of view to prepare the road to peace, by saying: - no
children for the war because they will be killed when they reach
adolescence or adulthood. The women of Ruta Pacifica also ask themselves
how it is possible to be caressed by a husband or boyfriend that has killed?
From here they seek to analyse the link between death and eroticism, sex
and war; - we need to break the links between the instruments of war, by
organizing, for example, a great public debate on the refusal to fuel armed
groups (this means not fuelling them with food and arms).
These feminists think that the use of this symbolic language will promote
the destruction of this warlike and violent mentality. To sum up, in answer
to the question of disarming warlike spirits, their solution starts from the
kitchen and continues into the public arena, since they make no distinction
between the private and public violence, as private violence spreads into
public life.
On the basis of a remarkable book on fifteen Colombian towns by Marie
Dominique de Suremain, Lucy Cardona and Marisol Dalmazzo ("Women
and the urban crisis or the invisible management of housing and urban
services", published by ENDA America Latina in 1995), it is possible to
show that far from being cut off from women of the poorer classes, the
thinking of Colombian feminists can, on the contrary, promote their
interests and participate in their initiatives.
Using a study of women's participation in the management or urban
services and housing, the authors show how poor women have succeeded in
refusing male machismo, by carrying out an activity in the midst or at the
head of an organization in spite of opposition from their husbands, by
educating themselves to speak out, by participating in the public arena, and
by carrying out concrete projects in the service of the public and women.
(...)
Furthermore, the study of how feminist organizations work has shown that,
contrary to mixed organizations in which hierarchical relationships still
dominate, feminists have set up another method of operating where
coordination and friendliness reign.
A large number of organizations in Medellin, such as Enda, are devoted to
education and fighting against violence. Thus, the struggle to eradicate
violence in girl/boy relationships in poor districts is the aim of an original
initiative from the municipality's social services. Thanks to the women
social workers, mixed football teams with both girls and boys have been set
up in Medellin. (...)
The theoretical consideration of Medellin's feminists on violence is
therefore totally consistent with the aspirations of women from poor
districts and with what they have achieved concretely in order to enter the
public arena and refuse private violence.
In feminist theory, as in the lives of Colombian women, everything happens
as if the fight against violence were indissociable from women's fight for
their dignity and emancipation; conversely, they do not want to separate
their fight for their rights from the fight for peace.
Source : Original text, in french, contribution to the preparatory workshop
in Amsterdam, translated by Keith Hodson. The full text can be obtained (in
French) by contacting Nadia Assaoui (see presentation), or on the Internet
at the URL :
http://www.mire.net/penelopes/pages/document/paix/colombie.htm
29
30
31
Mothers of the world unite
to defend justice
Claire
MOUCHARAFIEH
FPH (Fondation
Charles Léopold
Mayer pour le progrès
de l'homme)
1994/06/10
World
Violence
Private public
relation
Groups of mothers from around the world whose commitment to
peace often finds its source in the loss of a child or a loved one, agree
to assert that their refusal of violence cannot be separated from a
commitment for social justice.
The image of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo in Argentina (see sheet
n°8), dressed in black, marching tirelessly around the presidential palace,
demanding the truth about their missing children is known all over the
wold. Their courage, their unshakeable quest for justice and their
humanity have made them a symbol that goes beyond their personal
situation. 17 years after having defied General Videla's military
dictatorship, these mothers, nicknamed the "Madwomen of the Plaza de
Mayo", are still standing, and their movement continues to denounce the
violence of the present regime and its actions against human rights, and
demand that those guilty of past crimes be punished. Beyond their own
struggle, they have become involved in every combat for the freedom of
individuals and peoples. Following their example, other groups of
mothers have sprung up in countries torn by social and political violence,
repression and war.
At the initiative of SOLMA (Solidarity with the Mothers of the Plaza de
Mayo), the first international meeting of mothers was held in Paris last
May. This experience, the only one of its kind, gathered 15 groups of
women together from the four corners of the world (Latin and Central
America, Western Sahara, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia, Israel, Palestine,
Spain, Italy). Most of them have in common the pain of having lost what
is dearest to them, a child, and their fully independent opposition to
violence, terror and fascism. Many of them have progressively been
brought to organising themselves by despair or because they wanted to
break the silence of isolation. Neither "professional" militants, nor
particularly prepared for collective action, they have all risen to defend
their own lives and those close to them, then progressively they have
come to a certain idea of justice, liberty and citizenship. In Ukraine, their
families suffered the aftermath of Chernobyl. In Brazil, their children
were torn away from them and vanished. In Peru, Guatemala, Honduras,
Western Sahara, they are confronted by State terrorism. In former
Yugoslavia, they express their refusal of war and military violence by
helping conscientious objectors and the victims of ethnic purification. In
Israel and Palestine, they defend human rights against the arbitrary and
injustice. In Italy, they fight against the Mafia, and in Spain against drugs
and militarism.
These women spoke for four days, confronting their experiences and
considering together the vital problems that spur them to action. They
reasserted their intention to continue fighting, knowing that they were no
longer alone. The birth of this network of solidarity, still in its infancy, is
based on common values.
"Since certain people sow death with such efficiency, we women commit
32
ourselves to sowing life", read their joint text. The mothers asserted in it
their rejection of all systems of oppression and discrimination, militarism
and violence, drifts towards nationalism and also unbridled
liberalism,"which gives greater importance to profit than human life", and
where "hunger and pollution cause as many victims as weapons", etc.
They commit themselves to fighting under all circumstances for human
rights, freedom of expression and the right to information, the right of
minorities to keep their language and their culture, the rights of refugees
and right of asylum. All of them proclaimed their will to fight so that
conscientious objection becomes a fundamental right in times of peace as
in times of war.
A few examples :
*In Brazil, the mothers of ACARI witnessed the kidnapping of their
children who were then sequestered before being shot dead by the police
(civil and military) or professional killers. This type of crime is common
in Brazil, especially in the poorer levels of society. Since 1990, these
women have been fighting to find the bodies of their children, and they
demand an inquiry and the punishment of the murderers. This is all the
more necessary as the impunity of the latter encourages the appearance of
new bands of organised murderers who act with increasing boldness.
*In Guatemala, some 3,500 widows attempt to organise themselves
against misery. Without resources or qualifications, they are condemned
to earning their livings alone and, too often, to raising children born from
rapes committed by soldiers. Since 1988, CONVIGUA has become a
place of mutual aid that has caused several of its members to become yet
more victims of repression. CONVIGUA's objective is to achieve the
effective demilitarisation of Guatemalan society (see sheet n°21).
*"The Women in Black" groups seven Israeli women's associations that
attempt to influence their government's policies in favour of peace. Every
week, dressed in black, they group together in silence at the major
crossroads in the big cities, carrying placards proclaiming "No to the
occupation". Refusing the frameworks of political parties, they organise a
national conference of pacifist women every year.
*Drawing inspiration from the Israeli women, the Women in Black of
Belgrade demonstrate silently in public places against the war, militarism,
nationalism and violence against women. They have also set up a
"Belgrade anti-war marathon" that backs men opposed to military service
and deserters returned from the front (see sheet n°12).
*At the initiative of the mothers of Kiev, "Mama-86" was set up in 1990
to improve and protect the health of children that had been irradiated or
which suffer from serious immunodifficiencies. In two years, help has
been given to 400 children (distribution of radio-protective substances,
stays at holiday camps, program for the detection of radioactivity in
water, the development of an incandescent biochemistry laboratory, the
opening of a research laboratory to provide free screening tests, etc.).
*In Italy, "the women against the Mafia" association gathers the mothers
of families fallen victim to the Mafia and who have found the strength to
react and fight. Their main activities include denouncing those
responsible for the Mafia and the complicities involved, breaking the
silence surrounding its criminal practices, and educating children to
respect honesty and justice. Despite threats against them, they have
brought proceedings several times against the big wheels of the Mafia
(see sheet n°5).
33
Source : This sheet was written on the basis of a file constituted for the
International Conference of Mothers at Paris, organised by SOLMA, at
which fifteen women's groups from all over the world participated.
Original sheet in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : SOLMA. 18, rue Nollet 75018 Paris. Tel : 01 43 87 59 00.
34
35
The mothers of the Plaza de
Mayo in Argentina
Ada
D'ALESSANDRO
SOLMA (Solidarité
avec les Mères de la
Place de Mai)
1994/03/26
Argentina
Violence
Peace strategy
Private public
relation
By widening their protest against the arbitrary behavior of the
Argentine dictatorship to the defense of moral principles and respect of
life against all forms of injustice, the mothers of May Square have been
able to weave links all over the world and diversify their methods of
action and intervention, especially in the area of education and peace.
April 1977: Fourteen women, pushed to despair by the adminstration's
refusal to answer as to the place where their children were being detained,
met at May Square to present a demand to President Videla but were
dispersed by the police. They then began to march around the May
pyramid, opposite the presidential palace. Called the "Madwomen of the
Plaza de Mayo" because they dared to defy the military dictatorship, fear
could not deter them, even when they were subjected to repression; several
of them were also to disapear. They then discovered the magnitude of the
horror experienced by many victims, of the plan to exterminate all political
opponents. Thus they converted their pain into a struggle and love by
setting up a non-violent movement to which the they gave the name of the
square.
Confronted by the inertia, silence and complicity of the institutions, and
having exhausted Argentina's meager legal machinery, the Mothers called
on international authorities to demand conformity with the universally
accepted norms of civilisation. They attempted to make opinion in their
own country and around the world aware of the seriousness of the human
rights violations committed by the military regime and of the danger of
maintaining a repressive machine after having amnestied all the criminals.
Peace, said the Mothers, was impossible without truth and justice.
They continue to fight today for an independent justice, for a political
transformation that ensures peace, based on respect for life and all its rights,
for the freedom of expression, thought, the right to education, health, and
work. Their movement continues to bring together at Plaza de Mayo all
those suffering from injustice, violations of their human rights and those
who claim, like the Mothers, a life worth living for all. The Mothers do not
look back to the past. The past has become a motor for their struggle and
they therefore build the future by passing from the personal to the
collective. They have their own rhythms and their own strategies. The
extraordinary strength of their intuitions continues to spur women in other
countries to set up similar movements: Latin America, Palestine, Lebanon,
Israel, etc. Now, Yugoslavian women have made contact with them. The
Mothers vigorously defend the moral principles destroyed by lust for
power, corruption, indifference and absence of hope. Many young people
follow and support them, committing themselves to the same ideals and
seeks alternatives based on the respect of human dignity.
After a stage of becoming aware of the reality of the genocide and a
progression of their personal experience towards consideration of a
universal problem, the Mothers have committed themselves to promoting
education for peace. They work ceaselessly and perserveringly :
36
- weekly meetings at Plaza de Mayo on Thursdays,
- a march for resistance for 24 hours followed by thousands of young
people every year since December 1981,
- discussions, formal lectures, lectures in schools, colleges and universities
at home and abroad (in 1991 at the University of Huelva, Spain);
- meetings-training-debates in poor districts and with native groups from
Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Australia, etc.
- travelling photographic exhibitions, film and video shows about their
movement;
- books published in Argentina and abroad;
- participation in walks and demonstrations for the protection of human
rights at home and abroad: Chile, Brazil, , etc.
- publication of a monthly journal called "Madres de la Plaza de Mayo"
giving all the information on the socio-political-economic reality of
Argentina and on violations of human rights;
- publication of newsletters abroad;
- press conferences, programs on Argentinian radio, interviews on local and
foreign television;
- active solidarity with other Mothers' movements around the world that
fight for similar goals (El Salvador, Nicuragua, Yugoslavia, etc.);
- creative workshops and literary exchanges;
- information workshops on current affairs in the country.
Respect and recognition for the Mothers' combat has been expressed in the
awarding of internationally acknowledged prizes.
Source : This sheet is based on a speech made at the International meeting
of mothers held in Paris from 27 to 31 March 1994. Original sheet in
french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : Madres de Plaza de Mayo, Hipoloto Yrigoyen 1442, 1089
Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tel. (541)383-0377/383-6430, Fax: (541)9540381
37
Ada
d'ALESSANDRO
SOLMA (Solidarité
avec les Mères de la
Place de Mai)
1994/03/26
Spain
Violence
Peace strategy
Patriarchy
Conversion of arm
industries
The association of mothers of
Spanish conscientious
objectors and deserters
The Spanish mothers of conscientious objectors and deserters fight
alongside their sons so that their refusal to join the army is heard
everywhere as a refusal to accept the military-industrial policies of
governments, and by consequence the preponderance of the logic of
domination at every level.
"The organization of Spanish deserters is composed of people who see antimilitarism as a means of controlling the fabric of domination that
impoverishes the immense majority of the world's population. A mere
twenty per cent of the population own eighty per cent of the world's wealth.
More accurate statistics mention the misery affecting two thirds of the
population, millions of people suffer situations at the limit of bearable,
fratricidal conflicts, and migratory movements caused by hunger. The arms
trade and the fueling of conflicts, especially in the Third World, contribute
to supporting the economies of several countries. Certain western
governments do not hesitate today to use military force in strategic areas.
Perhaps they will hesitate still less when the demographic tension becomes
unbearable.
"The organization knows that the fair distribution of resources cannot be
obtained without the elimination of the structures in place, such as armies,
that maintain the status quo. It is not enough to refuse to contribute to their
operation. Their elimination requires more active contribution. This is the
aim of the organization.
"No in-depth reform of these structures as they exist now can occur as long
as governments continue to be war machines above all else, directed by the
armed elite, and we entreat our children to claim the role of civil society as
the protagonist of an increasingly equal and juster world, by calling into
question the powers that be and by unmasking the military-industrial
complex, responsible for most of the tragedy through which the major part
of mankind lives. In certain European countries, lawmakers have tried to
get rid of the anti-military character implied by the refusal of military
service and by imposing a substitute service rendered to the State. Although
these laws are capable of solving the problem of those who refuse to take
up arms, it is inacceptable for anti-militarists who pursue an aim that goes
further than exemption from military service. In this context, praise should
be given to the position of the Spanish deserters who reject their position in
the army or in any structure, civil or humanitarian, that could contribute to
maintaining the military structure intact.
"We are opposed to the obligation to do social work, since we consider that
it produces effects contrary to those that we pursue. Giving jobs to
objectors has a negative effect on employment during a period when the
unemployment rate is outrageously high.
"This attitude of disobediance is nothing other than the awareness of certain
38
citizens vis-…-vis laws, such as those regulating obligatory military service
which they consider are detrimental to humanity. We therefore consider
disobediance to the law as legitimate, that it does not serve personal
interests and that it is the passive rejection by citizens faced by the military
actions of the State.
"As anti-militarists and the mothers of conscientious objectors and
deserters, we share with our sons the total refusal of militarism and all its
manifestations. It is our intention to teach them liberty, responsibility,
solidarity, tolerance, pacific coexistence, and compromise, so that they
know how to deal with the socio-political situations they have to live
through. It's for this reason that we rejoice, that at the moment they have to
serve the military institutions, they act in accordance with their ideas, even
if these mean that they must go to prison."
The situation in a few figures :
The number of young people refusing to do their military service (for a
period lasting nine months since 1992) has shot up since the Gulf war. In
1993, 68,000 young people out of 200,000 conscripts asked to be
considered as conscientious objectors. Of these 68,000, 1,300 were
rejected. In 1993, the number of deserters amounted to 4,500. At present
128 deserters are serving jail sentences.
Source : This sheet is based on a speech made at the International Meeting
of Mothers held in Paris from 27 to 31 March 1994. Original sheet in
french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : Madres de insumisos, Corregidor Jos‚ de Pasamonte 29.1 B,
28030 Madrid, Spain, Tel. (34-1) 4309673
39
Odile ALBERT
CDTM (Centre de
Documentation
Tiers Monde)
In Russia, the Committee of
Soldiers' Mothers has
become a link in civil society
that can no longer be muffled
1997
Russia
Violence
Peace strategy
Private public
relation
The committee of soldiers' mothers, founded to protest against living
conditions in the army, has been able to make itself heard by the
authorities and media. In spite of the resurgence of militarism after the
collapse of the Soviet Union, they have been a focal point in the fight
against the war in Chechnya, by going to look for young conscripts on
the battlefield and by collaborating with women on the other side.
"In Russia, the State is everything, the individual is nothing. This is even
truer in military circles where men acquire stereotypes that penetrate their
consciences. Since women are not part of this system, they can stand back
from it, especially when it involves the lives of those dearest to them, their
sons.
"The statistics are terrible: in times of peace, four to five thousand soldiers
die every year, without counting those participating in military actions.
Cold, hunger, and the absence of medicines are to blame. Also, and what is
most terrible, young recruits are subjected to maltreatment and torture by
older soldiers and officers. In 1994, in the far east of Russia, four young
soldiers died and nearly a thousand were hospitalized for serious medical
problems. In 1996, in the same region, two soldiers died of hunger and
nearly two hundred were hospitalized, victims of malnutrition.
"The Committee of Mothers of Russian Soldiers was founded in 1989 after
the Perestroika had already started. The women met together at their own
initiative, without any external bidding. Their first victory was to return 170
soldiers to the university from which they had been illegally pressganged
into the army. Another action concerned mothers whose sons had died in
the army: they obliged the Soviet Government in office to set up a
commission to inquire into the causes of these deaths during peacetime and
to take different measures: obligatory medical insurance for the soldiers,
payment of pensions to families, extension of the list of exemptions for
medical reasons, etc.
"When the inter-ethnic conflicts began in the former Soviet Union
(Armenia and Azerbaidjan, Georgia and Northern Ossetia, Central Asia),
we organized pickets in front of the hotels where the members of the
Supreme Soviet resided, asking them to put an end to the troubles in the
army. We set up permanent contacts with the representatives of the
legislative and executive authorities and also with all the media. Since then,
the Committee works under permanent pressure, as every day, twenty to
forty soldiers come to our premises after having deserted in fear for their
lives. We receive thousands of letters. We participate in all the trials and all
the cases in defence of conscripts and soldiers.
"In the beginning, we were obliged to make close and permanent contacts
40
with the State bodies that dealt with this male issue of military affairs. In
the beginning, we were regarded with circumspection, and they asked what
we women could possibly know about military matters. Now, they are
obliged to listen to what we have to say. In the beginning, everything we
asked for was seen negatively; now, improvements can be seen. For
example, we were the first to speak of military reform, whereas now
everyone is speaking about it.
"We were the first to say the war in Chechnya was illegal and
anticonstitutional. After us, several judges of the constitutional court
expressed the same point of view. We also play an important role of
monitoring: we don't let the authorities mislead the citizens because we
know the truth about what's happening and we explain it to the media. Our
actions are not really political, they are to defend human rights. They
concern the real situation of every human being and we examine every case
to find a solution. In seven years, we have won considerable victories, but
we've had failures, too.
"These last few years, everyone has been able to observe a process of
remilitarisation in Russia which culminated, of course, in the war in
Chechnya. This war led to many human rights violations in the army and in
the whole population. But the Committee, with several years experience
behind it, had already prepared society for the fact that parents not only
could but should defend their children. From the beginning of the war, with
the Committee's help, several women's groups organized journeys to
Chechnya to recover their children. It should be mentioned that they
received help from the "Ba‹oviki", the Chechnyan guerillas. They
understood that these conscripts had not come from their own free will, and
they said to the women "Take your son, but if he falls into our hands again,
we'll shoot him". The mothers then did everything to make sure that their
sons did not return to the war. This often met with success and prevented
their sons from being killed and from becoming killers.
"Up to now, there have been no official figures on the number of dead,
prisoners or missing, whether Russian or Chechnyan. We are practically the
only organization to collect these data and diffuse them to the media. We
think that at least ten thousand conscripts were killed in Chechnya. We
have also counted seven hundred missing.
"We are in close contact with the Chechnyan women. We understand each
other very well. We share the same pain and misfortune and we think we
can overcome them together. When our Russian mothers go to Chechnya,
they live in the houses of the Chechnyan women and share their bread with
them. When the Chechnyan women come to visit us, we help them as we
can, with medicine for example, and we take the list of their missing and try
to publish it.
"Our leaders declare that Russia is already a democracy, whereas they
continue a war against their own people. At this moment, during the G7
summit (Lyon, end of June 1996), we wanted to ask its members how they
could invite Russia, a country in which such violations of human rights
occur.
"International experience has shown that all "internal" conflicts between
different nationalities always end by spreading to neighbouring States and
to the whole international community. That is why we insist -we've stopped
asking for a long time- that military operations in Chechnya stop
immediately, that genuine negotiations take place and that a referendum is
held there.
41
Proposed for the Nobel Peace Prize by a German women's organization,
the Committee of Mothers of Russian Soldiers received the alternative
Nobel Prize (Right Livelihood Award) on 6 December 1996.
Source : This sheet covers the essential contents of the declaration made
by Ludmilla Obraczova, member of the Committee of Mothers of Russian
Soldiers, pronounced at the Summit of Seven Resistances held at Lyon on
27 June 1996, in parallel with the G7 summit. Original sheet in french,
translated by Keith Hodson.
42
43
The Corsican Women's
"Manifesto for life"
Françoise
FEUGAS
PONT
(Popularisation
Organisation des
Nouvelles
Technologies)
1997/01/28
France
Patriarchy
Violence
State and society
relation
Faced with rising violence by armed groups and the negligence of the
public authorities, which threaten to push back the whole of Corsican
society into the past, the "anonymous" women's movement has
launched an appeal to stop the spiral of terror by calling for a modern
and calm public life based on justice and transparency.
"Several political and non-political murders sent Corsica into mourning
during the Christmas period of 1994 (a time when families and
communities usually join in celebration). Little protest was heard, the
authorities appeared paralysed and powerless, and there seemed that little
could be done to stem the terror and resignation that threatened to
undermine this island society. The increase in tension between the different
nationalist factions gripped the whole island, confronted by suicidal
regression, falling back on archaic practices such as vendettas and
customary law that we thought had been abolished."
About thirty women then got together at Bastia, deciding to give voice to
those "who do not want to suffer the unbearable (...) and call for solidarity
capable of stopping this death dealing spiral." Determined to break the
silence, these women wrote a manifesto expressing their revolt against
violence and terror and the policy applied by the French government vis-àvis the Corsican question, inviting the inhabitants to sign the following
declaration :
"I reject manipulations and compromises, intimidation and murder as a
means of regulating society.
I refuse that the government uses armed groups to determine my future in
this country.
I refuse the setting up of a system that excludes the citizen from public life.
I want the application of the law for all and in every area, the unbiased
exercise of justice, transparency in the political choices made and the
management of public affairs, and I want public and responsible debate for
a prosperous, open and democratic Corsican society."
In just a few weeks, this text was signed by two thousand women "from
every political and religious background", and from every social class and
origin". Large demonstrations were to follow and much attention was given
by the media. "The road is long but the women backing the manifesto are
not discouraged, they have been able to awaken opinion and stay together,
make their protests heard (...), and they have been able to protect
themselves from the perverse effects caused by the mediatisation
surrounding them. They have also met the government's representatives
(including the Prime Minister) without, however, approving a repressive
position; and they have rallied the support of local politicians without
giving their allegiance."
This awareness, experienced as an exceptional event, has in turn mobilised
local authorities, associations and artists. "In a society still subject to tribal
reflexes", the women used the strategy of anonymity, merging in with the
44
population, each of them, speaking in her own name, contributing to the
emergence of an awareness among citizens beyond "simple ties": families,
groups, clans. The movement they set in motion wanted to be "free from
manipulation by others, non-hierarchical, without delegation or
representivity".
Since 1995, they have worked to create awareness in schools, in districts
and public places on the problems of violence; they have organised
meetings with people representing the machinery of justice, and organised
debates (in 1996, in the framework of the Trans-Mediterranean Festival,
with Sicilian women combating the Mafia, Algerian women, union
activists, journalists, jurists, etc.).
They attempt by long term work in the field, to contribute towards restoring
the right of expression that had been confiscated or forbidden. They know
that today they have only taken the first step down a long road.
Today, in Corsica, there are six thousand signatories who "defend the
universal values of democracy in a country with obvious singularities and
where the need for justice is generally denied by the very people supposed
to guarantee it". They and the women that organized the petition now have
to be taken into account.
Source : Written on the basis of the text of "Manifesto for Life" and a
presentation text completed by an interview with a woman belonging to the
movement who did not want to sign the sheet. The quoted passages are
indicated. Original sheet in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : Femmes du Manifeste pour la Vie, Madame Desjobert, BP 128 20292 Bastia Cedex. France.
45
Odile ALBERT
CDTM (Centre de
Documentation
Tiers Monde)
1996/09/23
Serbia
Violence
Peace strategy
Patriarchy
The women in black : "We
are still in the streets of
Belgrade"
The Women in Black of Belgrade are still seeking, after the Dayton
Agreement, to transform the cease-fire into a sustainable peace, by
forming relations with other women of the former Yugoslav republics
and by providing their support to all types of resistance to militarism
and the rationale of war.
In Belgrade, since October 9th 1991, every Wednesday morning, women
dressed in black gather in the city's streets and squares. They are known as
the Women in Black. To celebrate their fifth anniversary, on October 12th
1996, they gathered on the main square of Belgrade to make a declaration,
extracts of which are given below.
"We know that despair and pain need to be changed into political action
(...). With our bodies (...), we declare our bitterness and hostility against all
those who want and wage war. During the gatherings, we remain silent,
sometimes whispering encouragement and support to each other when
passersby insult us or anger us. We have continued in this way every
Wednesday, carrying placards and distributing tracts (...). Our numbers at
these gatherings have varied from few to many, with different women
coming to them. Each woman, alone, individually, would not have been
able to last it out. Together we have persevered (...).
"We have not stopped the war, but neither have we given in to
powerlessness and resignation (...).
The political alternative offered by the women
"Although nationalism has not divided us, it has created a kind of
vulnerability among the women from the regions of former Yugoslavia. We
wanted to restore confidence as soon as possible, by writing letters, by
holding "small" meetings and "large" international meetings (...). Since
autumn 1992, we have organized the international meetings of "The
Women United Against War Network" and have thus brought to light the
links between women and their non-violent resistance. We promote
solidarity, exchange, mutual support and common strategies. During the
fifth meeting, in August 1996 at Novi Sad, we were delighted to find that
our friends living in Bosnia were able to visit us for the first time since the
war (...): two hundred women from more than twenty countries and all the
republics of Yugoslavia. We agreed that this year, we would organize
simultaneous demonstrations against war and militarism in each of our
cities.
The deserters are our allies
"Our antimilitarism is not an additional activity to conscientious objection.
Our daily lives confirm how much the military budget and forced
mobilization affects us. We do not want to make the experience of women
46
the only "women's problem", since all problems concern women. We do not
consent to be the victims of militarism; instead we want to call into
question the militarist value system by carrying out small, continuous
actions of nonviolent resistance (...).
Refugees seeking to return
"For two years, we have been going to refugee camps. We have not been
traditional givers of humanitarian (charitable) aid; but rather as the refugees
friends and as witnesses of their degraded conditions at the hands of this
regime and a large number of international humanitarian organizations. We
have denounced their systems of repression everywhere we have been able.
After the signature of the Dayton Agreements, exile does not only mean
waiting to return to a country, but also greater fear of the future. Profound
despair and depression are the realities the refugees have to face, as they
have no place to return to. They do not want their destinies to be
determined by their first and family names. They do not want to serve as
the instruments of colonization by ethnically pure countries (...).
We remember, speak and write
"We remember, speak and write to ensure that the experiences lived by
women are not buried by silence, so we do not forget anything of what has
happened during the war, because by blinkering memory, the politicians
hope to erase the violence and crimes that have been committed. We
publish reviews, newsletters, books, and so forth".
Armed peace
"Before the Dayton Agreement, we had to cross four countries to reach
Bosnia, requiring a journey taking fifty hours. This journey now requires
less time, but the frontiers are guarded by soldiers. What sort of peace is
one that is maintained by arms? For us, there is nothing worse than an
"armed peace". Peace means disarmament, without which there is no
peace".
(...) "Those of us who live in this "armed peace" ask themselves, "Is this a
post-war period?" or "Are we creating military and social structures, with
ideological hypotheses for a new war?" We are afraid that this so-called
post-war period will last so long that it will transform itself into a
preliminary for war. Haven't we learnt to recognize the words and signs that
lead to war?"
"Since Dayton, the war has continued in a different way. The rationale of
war and militarism are everywhere around us, because the Serbian
government still has not relinquished its territorial prerogatives over
Bosnia, because it is still "all the Serbs in a single State", because it is still
oppressing the Albanian population of Kosovo. A war in the future is not
improbable".
"Five years have gone by and we are still protesting. We continue because
we refuse increasing militarism, because this regime continues to wage war
against others, by using fear, repression and blackmail. We continue to
protest because we live in a country where fear and poverty are spreading to
affect most of the population. We continue to protest because this regime is
ready to do anything to remain in power, at the cost of millions of
unemployed, civil war, chaos and obvious dictatorship".
The demonstrations on Wednesday mornings give the opportunity for the
Women in Black to support other struggles similar to their own. Thus they
47
have supported, among other things, the striking workers of the Kragujevac
arms factory and organized a "Belgrade anti-war marathon" to support the
men opposed to military service and deserters returned from the front.
Source : The declaration diffused by the Women under Islamic Law
Network. BP 20023, 34791 Grabels cedex, Montpellier, France. Phone: 33
(0)4 67 10 91 66. E-mail: [email protected]. Original sheet in french
translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : Women in Black. Belgrade, Serbia. Phone/Fax: 381 11 347 877
48
49
Women in israeli-palestinian
conflict
Hoda ROUHANA
et Rim NATOUR
1999/04
Israel
Palestine
Patriarchy
Peace strategy
The effort of women to influence the evolution of the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict has come up against, on the one hand, their inability to form
relations between them that differ from those that predominate among
men, and on the other, the patriarchal nature of Palestinian society,
which impedes any initiative and cooperation between women based on
new foundations.
The cooperation between Palestinian and Israeli women has already started
many years ago, through different frames and in different ways. In our
opinion these efforts were not fruitful and that is due to several reasons
which we will present in this paper.
It is important to mention that the palestinian Israeli conflict is a very
complicated one, both in it’s history and in it’s implications. We can not
cover here all the details of the history and the present, we will focus only
on the most direct points to the issue of women efforts to resolve the
conflict.
Palestinian women suffer from double oppression, first as women living in
a patriarchal society (the Palestinian society) and second as part of the
palestinian people who are oppressed by Israel. According to this
calssification we divided the paper in two parts:
The Palestinian-Israeli relations
The case of the palestinian-Israeli conflict is the case of confrontation with
an exterior enemy, that is to say it is not the struggle of one nation against
the regime, or between ethnic or religious groups from the same nation, it’s
a struggle between an occupier who came before fifty years to plestine and
the occupied, where the balance of power is evidently in favor of the
occupier (similar to former south africa). The oocupier is much more
powerfull, economicaly, politicaly and in the international support aspects.
The essense of the conflict is about the basic of human and national rights,
whereas Palestinians are deprived of the right of self determination, our
lands were took by force and we ended up in being a fragmented nation
between refugees, the diaspora, palestinians in the west bank and gaza strip
and palestinians citizens of Israel.
Therefore the conflict must not be reduced to the coexistence issue. We can
not talk about coexistence when the Palestinian people’s existence is still in
question mark. Our efforts should be focused on providing the palestinian
people with their right to come back to their homeland and with the
freedom of their organization as a nation with its full rights as such.
That is important in this context, women and peace, because the mutual
activities with Israeli women were and are aimed mainly at providing
security to the Israelis and giving the Palestinians some kind of autonomy
in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, in other words, segregation.
The second problem is that the approach of Israeli women is often an elitist
one, they represent in that sense a "superior culture ", in fact the relation
50
between Israeli and Palestinian women is a copy of the model of the official
and unofficial relationship between Israelis and Palestinians, which is a
result of the hegemony of western culture in the Israeli society.
The lack of systematic mutual effort amongst women, in general, has also
lead to the failure of acheiving results, the different actions are scattered
and not necessirily continuos.
These are the reasons related to the Palestinian-Israeli relationship, in brief,
which in our opinion lead to the failure in acheiving significant influence
towards changing the reality of the conflict.
Palestinian women in the Palestinian society
Since the establishment of the state of Israel Palestinians have given
priority to the national struggle and thus women issues were neglected. In
the lines that follow we try to present some of the reflections of this
negligince:
•
•
•
As a consequence of the partition of the Palestinian people, there
are two categories (when talking about the contact with the
Israelis): Palestinians citizens of Israel and Palestinians under
occupation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. These different
positions have emerged in different needs and aspirations. So
when there is a women conference or meeting for peace there are
three parties: Israelis, Palestinians citizens of Israel (that are often
considered as Israelis) and Palestinians from the West Bank and
Gaza. The worst part is that there is no coordination between the
two palestinians parts, from personal experience, we hate these
situations since it contributes in reducing the issue to coexistence
and miserable autonomy that we mentioned before.
Inside the Palestinian society, both inside Israel and in the West
Bank, women are inferior and suffer from descrimination in
several levels such as the freedom of movement , of education,
chosing their husbands, etc. The result is, as claimed by some, that
the politicaly active women are the intellectual elite and they are
often detached from the majority of the women, such as religious
women groups who are excluded from the circle of women’s
action.
As a consequence of the patriarchal education Palestinian women
have internalized male values, for example when active women are
part of a political party, the political affiliation is often given
priority upon women’s cooperation and they adopt the same
models of power conflict. In this context, there is a serious need to
internalize fiminist values amongs women themselves.
Palestinian women are not active enough in the political social and
economic sphere, as a result of the patriarchal order in the palestinian
society, and so our influence is negligible.
Suggestions to help Palestinian Women
To promote the empowerment of Palestinian women through courses,
internships and consultancy, etc., in order, amongst others, to become real
partners in the political sphere.
1.
2.
To promote programs that encourage and build women’s solidarity
and cooperation.
To make possible palestinian-palestinian meetings, including
palestinian women refugees in the arab countries and women from
51
3.
the diaspora, in order to coordinate a mutual attitude, goals and
strategy towards the cooperation with iIsraeli women around peace
issues.
To assist the Palestinian women in setting the agenda of the
cooperation and activities with Israeli women. An agenda that is
often set by the Israelis or by the western donors.
Source : Original text.
Contacts : Hoda Rouhana. E-mail : [email protected]. BP 20023 34791
Grabels Cedex Montpellier, France. Tél: 00 33 4 67.10.91.66 - Rim
Natour. E-mail : [email protected]. 59, Av. Laplace 94110 Arcueil,
France. Tél: 00 33 1 49.85.11.03
52
53
Creative and non-violent
peace strategies
1999/05
Burundi
Azerbaijan
World
Peace strategy
Art of living
The initiatives of women in conflict situations have often met with
success insofar as they succeed thanks to the symbolic force of their
actions; they substitute the logic of confrontation with dialog, uncouple
the processes of violence and thus build a foundation for sustainable
peace.
In most of the experiences of peace activism shared by the workshop
participants, we have identified a common thread of use non-violence as a
strategy to resolve conflicts. It was an example exposed by the
representative of War Resisters International from the USA that led us to
identify this common thread. In 1978, close to 3,000 peace activists had
participated in an pacifist act of civil disobedience against the opening of a
nuclear plant in the USA by blocking the entrance of the plant. This ended
with the arrest of 1,500 people causing much disarray with law enforcement
officials who did not have enough place in prison to lock up so many
people. Thanks to this pacifist protest, no nuclear plants have been built in
the USA since then.
In Georgia, women were running peace education programs for children
from Georgia and Abkhazia aimed at destroying the image of the enemy
and building bridges for mutual dialogue. In Italy, women have
spearheaded an alliance of civil society groups against organized crime;
they integrated anti-violence, anti-crime training into educational
curriculum at schools, lobbied the government for allocation of resources
confiscated from the mafia into use for social causes; and as such they
broke the silent consensus that allowed organized crime to go on (see sheet
n°5). In Sudan, women were identifying and promoting the use of
traditional local methods of conflict-resolution such as communal singing
and dialogue through village councils. In the USA, ex-sex workers have
started a training course for male offenders of prostitution to raise
awareness of the violence and suffering caused by prostitution.
In each of these experiences, women have invented creative non-violent
strategies to resolve conflicts by building bridges of communication
between the opposite sides of the conflict, occupying the empty spaces left
by war to organize around social causes, to build solidarity networks, to
educate children for peace, to foster public diplomacy towards breaking of
the artificial images of the enemy. All of these were aimed at establishing a
solid basis for a sustainable peace building process.
During the Hague session, Rena Tagirova of Helsinki Citizens Assembly,
from Azerbaijan, made a presentation on the armed conflict between
Azerbaijan and Armenia about the separatist movement in NagornoKarabakh. The on-going conflict has fostered the building of the image of
the enemy across the opposite sides. Two women from the two sides of the
conflict in Azerbaijan and in Armenia have started an initiative of public
diplomacy for peace. Rena explained that as a first step the Head of the
Helsinki Citizens Assembly in Azerbaijan went to Yerevan to meet her
counterpart in Armenia, and from there on the two groups started a
54
campaign of peace diplomacy opening up the channels of communication
and dialogue between the civil society groups and the media of the two
countries. One of the successes of this campaign was the formation of a
peace corridor across the border made up of women and children from the
two countries - this was an area that they claimed to be immune from the
armed conflict. The public diplomacy started to break down the images of
the enemy that the Azeri and the Armenian people had of each other and
Rena commented that this is a solid basis upon which the peace process can
build upon (see sheet n°15).
The last presenter, Marie Louise Sibazuri of the Association of Women for
Peace in Burundi explained the situation of the armed conflict between the
two ethnic tribes of the Hutu and the Tutsi in Burundi which has caused a
substantial number of internally displaced people. The fight between the
two ethnic groups was a struggle for political power and control over
resources and the ongoing militarization drove its strength from the
deepening divisions and fostered animosity between the people. The
Women’s Association for Peace which is made up of women from both
ethnic groups started a peace campaign through peace camps established in
each ethnic community and through the broadcasting of peace programs on
the National Radio. In the provinces where the radio programs were
broadcast they received great attention from the public, and a concrete
result was the return of people to their respective villages, decreasing the
number of internally displaced people (see sheet n°16).
During the short debate at the end of the Hague session, two questions
came out about the presentations on armed conflict : Were the women
leaders grassroots women or women with a public profile? In Azerbaijan,
the initiative was led by women with popular public profiles but also
involved women who were not as public but who were active in women’s
organizations. In Burundi, the women going into the peace camps on both
sides were not political leaders but grassroots women - some illiterate - who
were leaders in their respective communities. Their popularity in the
community has lead to the easy recruitment of other women on each side.
The second question inquired about the support of the international
community. In Azerbaijan, such support was crucial as both women leaders
were the heads of the Helsinki Citizens Assembly, an international NGO. In
Burundi, the international support was more of technical and financial from
the European Center for Common Ground and from UNIFEM.
Source : Report of the Hague conference session. The complete report is
available in english by contacting either Nadia Aissaoui (see presentation).
55
Building peace between
Armenia and Azerbaijan
Rena TAGIROVA
1999/06
Any long term peace strategy must start by eliminating the factors of
war that remain in people's spirits by bringing to the fore values found
in particular among women and the young.
Azerbaijan
Armenia
I would like to tell you about the peacemaking initiative of two women
from two conflicting sides, which have set the beginning of peacemaking
process in this region.
Patriarchy
Peace strategy
In 1988 started the conflict for Nagorny Karabakh between Azerbaijan and
Armenia. It is a small portion of land within Azerbaijan with Armenian
population.
This conflict resulted in 11 years war that caused a lot of destructions,
deaths, presence of around 1 million refugees, occupation of 20% of
Azerbaijan territory. And the most awful result : mutual hatred, termination
of friendly relations and vengeance that should have been inherited by
forthcoming generations. During this hard period, two women, leaders of
local committees of Helsinki Civil Assembly, realized the necessity of
changing the current situation by starting a peaceful dialog. Women and
youth have commenced this dialog. Many collateral actions were held, but I
would like to tell you about one action called Peace Corridor.
In June 1994 was taken the decision to hold a meeting between women and
young people on the border of Azerbaijan and Armenia, in the place called
Kazakh-Idjevan, which as it was predicted should have been the place of
military operatings. The meeting has been held as follows, the group of
Azerbaijan women has passed through the boundary and conducted the
meeting on Armenian territory, and the group of Armenian youth has
passed the boundary to meet Azerbaijan youth on Azerbaijan territory. The
main topic to discuss was to cease fighting in this region, and the
proclamation of this zone as Peace Corridor, that would have been a place
for negociations in case if the regime of ceasefire, dated May 12th of the
same year, was violated. The option of arrangement of an "Human Wall" in
case of battle operations was discussed on this meeting as well. Besides
that, the result of this meeting was an agreement about systematical
interchange of information and organization of collateral cultural programs.
This meeting along with other actions of this kind assisted in elimination of
hostility and misunderstanding, that surrounded people in our countries,
myth about the "Enemy", that was kindled by mass media. These meetings
allowed people to look at each other and to understand each other in a
different manner, and what is most important, to make sure that peace is
always better than war, and that no idea is worth being solved by conflict.
After that, more and more people expressed their desire to participate to
such meetings. Today we can say that the national diplomacy makes
concrete steps to obtain peace. And the first people to make these steps
were women. This example is a convincing evidence of how strong
women's potential is. It is an evidence that women carry kindness and
creativeness, and women's participation in peacemaking is very important.
56
Source : Original text, contribution to the preparatory workshop in
Amsterdam.
57
Experience of a conflict
situation in Burundi
Marie-Louise
SIBAZURI
1999/04
Burundi
Art of living
Peace strategy
By attempting to defuse the polarization of the entire population of
Burundi into two opposing camps, groups of women and artists have
devoted themselves to maintaining and restoring possibilities of
communication and mutual recognition, in the midst of armed conflict.
Experience as a woman
An armed conflict broke out in Burundi in October 1993. Although many of
the reasons have not been expressed, the conflict was mostly due to two
factors:
Ethnic: Hutu ><Tutsi antagonism
Partisan: above all the UPRONA party >< the FRODEBU party
These two factors resulted in ferocious slayings on both sides. The
insecurity that accompanied this violence led to considerable numbers of
displaced persons in camps. When the Hutu rebels attacked, the Tutsi
survivors regrouped and when the Tutsi army counter-attacked, the Hutu
survivors regrouped further away. This led to antagonism between the
camps whereas the victims they sheltered lived through the same suffering
and misery. It was all the more unfair and sad as the victims of one camp
had not been displaced by those of the other camp, rather they were all the
victims of external players whose actions concerning them had not been
asked for, and were taken on behalf of an ethnic group they had not asked
to belong to. Most of the inhabitants of these camps were women and
children !
I belonged to a group of women victims of the same armed conflicts and
suspicion that decided to do something within the limit of our meager
means for our sisters in need.
Conscious that we were ourselves the product of the same society in
contradiction and that our will alone did not constitute a decisive tool for
helping others, we called on external organizations for help to train us to
settle conflicts pacifically. International Alert, Search for Common Ground
and UNIFEM gave us their logistic support and instructors to teach us to
listen, communicate, to convince deeply perturbed people, and also to
understand a conflict before seeking to start to solve it. One week's training
was followed by six months practical work in-the-field before returning to
evaluate the success and problems encountered. The training lasted two
years, though our group continues.
The strategy in-the-field consisted in first identifying a Hutu camp and a
Tutsi camp whose inhabitants previously lived together. Then, several
times, the whole group, consisting of both Hutus and Tutsis, visited the
women of each camp to become regulars and become accepted as friends.
This period was also useful for identifying women leaders so we could win
them over to our cause, thereby making allies who would train the others.
When confidence was restored, we spoke of our visit in the other camp and
we let them spill out their heartaches. Some of them took us aside to plead
58
for news of a former neighbor who had rendered them service during
difficult times.
The second stage consisted in asking them whether they wanted to meet the
women of the other camp in a neutral place. At the start of the meeting, we
let the most virulent give vent to their suffering. Then the most rational
spoke which brought the others to see things as they really were. Their
suffering had no ethnic group. The hunger of a Hutu child is the same as
that of a Tutsi child, their feeling of cold the same, too. The pain of the loss
of a loved one is not conditioned by their ethnic group or party; a cadaver is
a cadaver.
Then, those who wanted spoke of gestures of solidarity and rescue shown
by the other ethnic group. Emotion played on the heartstrings of each
woman, especially when talking of mothers suckling orphaned babies left
by others, and those who had hidden, fed, saved children, women, hunted
men, etc.
These acts could be found in both groups.
This was the moment when the link was made and conversation turned to
the events that had struck them, until they realized that they were all
victims. From here, they slowly progressed to the stage of asking how they
could get by together.
All this did not occur at once but little by little. Visits were organized
together to return to their abandoned properties, and when two camps were
close together, they carried out activities to earn income with our help.
After two months, some of the women started to return to their former
homes. Our group could then split up, strengthened by the women of the
two original pilot camps, and go on to several other camps. This women's
movement is called DUSHIREHAMUSE (Ally together) and has spread
across a good part of the country.
Experience as an artist
In February and March 1994, when the bloody conflict raged in certain
districts of the capital, Bujumbura, all cultural activities ceased and
organized theater troupes went underground or broke up.
I directed a theater-ballet company called "GEZA AHO" which was not
only the oldest (founded in 1981) but considered by the public as the best.
Since the actors had not been selected on an ethnic basis but on that of
individual merit, we were as mixed as could be but united.
Since we were devoted to our art, we did not want to abandon it, especially
since we knew that it was at times like these that our message was most
useful. Several attempts to play in theatres turned into fiascoes. We thus
had to find other strategies, as we understood that we were confronted by
two major challenges:
- People were afraid of gathering in a closed space,
- The ethnic groups of the actors did not permit the troupe to visit
"ethnically cleansed" districts without danger.
Starting out from the fact that we did not want to play the game of the
divisionists and break up the troupe, nor did we want to stop our message,
we opted for the following solution:
- We created plays related to the situation we were living in, and made
physical representations in places where we were safe;
- Otherwise, we filmed the plays on video and ensured wide diffusion not
59
only via national television but also via tours, even in ethnically purified
districts where projections were given by the actors who were least in
danger.
- We made sound recordings of the plays to reach a wider public via the
national radio.
Thus the troupe was able to spread its message on the norms of
humanitarian behavior during the conflict:
- On women and orphans of AIDS victims,
- On youth and sexuality in view to promoting responsible parenthood,
- On women in displaced persons camps,
- On violence against women in the Burundan crisis.
N.B.: All these cassettes are available but as they were intended to educate
the majority of the population, they are all in Kirundi. Since increasing
numbers of the public (the listeners) thanked the troupe for its interest in the
population's problems during the conflict, the troupe, helped by an NGO
(Search for Common Ground) started a radio series on pacific coexistence
called 'UMUBANYI NI WE MURYANGO ("Neighbors start with the
family"), to show people that conflicts occur wherever there are men, but
that a solution can be found for any conflict provided that those concerned
really make an effort to sit down together and seek one.
The series was broadcast in episodes of twenty minutes starting at 8 p.m.,
from Monday to Friday. A survey carried out in 1998 by independent
foreign journalists showed that 60% of the Burundan population listened to
the program, which took second place after the news. This is a record
insofar as many listeners do not have radio sets and have to visit their
neighbors to hear it.
I left Burundi just after finishing writing two hundred episodes, ensuring
diffusion until 10th July 1999.
One of the strategies contributing to the success of this challenge deserves
special mention. The fact that the actors and I tried to stay neutral in the
conflict in terms of our actions. Our dialogs deal with all the
misunderstandings and problems, even those considered as taboo. This
required several sacrifices. I myself as the author of the series had to give
up my seat in parliament to avoid certain of my characters depicting, for
example, politicians from being seen from a partisan angle. When one
wants to invest oneself, one must go all the way. At present, the GEZA
AHO theater-ballet troupe is the only one from before 1993 still in
existence and continuing to express its message. There has been no lack of
problems but we have tried to adapt!
Source : Original text, in french, contribution to the preparatory workshop
in Amsterdam, translated by Keith Hodson
60
61
Art and culture as
peacebuilders
Lilia QUINDOZA
SANTIAGO
1999/04
Philippines
Art of living
Peace strategy
Patriarchy
By transforming individual behaviors, unhindered art and culture
form an essential dimension for building a just and sustainable peace.
Similarly, the participation of women in public life contributes new
ways of doing things in a political world regulated at best by the male
value system, and at worst by military methods, as in the Philippines.
In 1972, when the Philippines was placed under martial law by Ferdinand
Marcos, I was one of the student activists rounded up, arrested, placed in
detention centers and tortured by the military. Now, nearly thirty years after
that personal encounter with violence, I thought I should not only tell my
story but help reflect on how to exorcise the memory of torture, attain inner
peace and move on to become an advocate of peace for others.
In the Philippines, there are a thousand other stories like mine. Some ten
thousand victims of human rights atrocities during the Marcos regime have
come out with ten thousand stories of torture and violence in prison.
Claimants in the Philippine Human Rights Litigation case against the
Marcoses have won initial victory in a court in the United States of
America. I am one of these claimants who helped document cases for
litigation. This victory, our victory, is definitely a step toward meaningful
peace--peace that is based on justice. Not being a lawyer however, I cannot
deal with legalities--these are for the courts to hear and decide with legal
instruments.
There are other interesting ways of building peace. In the twenty years of
the Marcos dictatorship in the Philippines, there were many forces that
claimed to promote peace. Even Marcos himself claimed it was because of
the need for peace that he had to impose martial law in 1972. When he was
deposed in 1986, those who deposed him declared to the whole world that
that was the first time people ousted a military dictator without bloodshed.
Even as there was a show of arms, there was no direct and bloody
confrontation. Thus, it was a "peaceful" people-powered revolution.
But is the absence of armed confrontation the essence of peace?
A year after that people power revolution, Philippine society under
President Cory Aquino was wracked by armed conflicts. There were the
attempts at seizing state power through coup d’etat by the Reform the
Armed Forces Movement (RAM). The National Democratic Front (NDF),
the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People’s Army
(NPA) continued the armed struggle. The Moro National Liberation Front
(MNLF) and the Muslim Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) went on with the
armed separatist movement in the South. The peace initiatives and the
peace processes that were pursued were not totally successful. To this day,
the Philippine government has to contend with various groups contesting its
sovereignty.
There has been no real cessation of hostilities between government and
political forces challenging the power of the state. The peaceful dismantling
62
of military rule in 1986 therefore did not solve the basic problems which
give rise to social unrest and violence in Philippine society.
So, what are the foundations of genuine peace and what are the basic
processes that should make it real and lasting for Filipinos?
To answer this question, I will draw from my experience and involvement
in the historical fight against the Marcos dictatorship. However, I will deal
only with particular areas where I have enough knowledge of and this is in
the arena of culture and cultural work. In doing this, I hope to be able to
suggest modes of action which can help build peace in situations where
there is continuing conflict, armed or unarmed, among forces with opposing
political platform and agenda.
Art Toward Inner Peace
One of the most powerful weapons that enable people to build peace is the
imagination. It is the imagination that creatively charts a new way of doing
things, a new order.
In the most solitary confines of detention when I had only the wall and the
self to talk with, I fought desolation by keeping my mind at work. I
imagined and wrote several stories to and of myself. I was re-inventing
myself and began to discover there were other selves other than the one that
was with me. Those other selves were not as bitter and resentful, even as
they were rebellious and free. Those other selves I imagined were better
persons because they were not as shackled and restricted and repressed as I
was.
The imagination and desire to be free led me to write poetry. Part of the
process to poetry however was rather serendipitous. To pass away time in
our detention cell, some political prisoners bonded together to make
greeting cards. This became a popular handicraft activity of political
detainees. With the initiative of some nuns who provided us with the basic
paper material, watercolor and crayon,, we collected leaves, tiny flowers ,
wild grass that grew on the grounds of the detention camp. We dried these
and used them as ornaments on the surface of greeting cards. My favorite
part in the making of the card was the writing of the dedication. Because
the lines needed to be brief and concise to fit the first page, words must be
most appropriate. There was necessity to convey messages through
metaphor and symbols. Making the dedication almost perfect was a tough
challenge. This kept my mind busy grappling for the right word, the perfect
dedication. This was when I began to discover the power of the written
word.
The greeting card we made grew into a business, a cooperative. Later, many
political detainees would use the card to convey messages about
steadfastness in the face of adversity. Others used the cards to start a
dialogue with the military.
For me, drawing images through poetic lines and then later, telling stories
of life’s other possibilities was an avenue toward liberation. It helped me
survive the year in the detention camp and the wider prison of a society
under martial law.
For even as I had decided to go back to the University to study and teach
after detention, I was closely being watched. There was censorship, and
curfew and codes of conduct to follow. There was systematic thought
control through media and various state apparatuses. There was a general
feeling of fear because spies and informers were all over the place. In these
63
situations, the only field that provided enough room for maneuver was the
act of writing, of honing the craft in literature, poetry in particular.
Poetry released pent-up emotions. It also provided the tools for
circumvention of repressive rules and acted as buffer against censorship.
Writing became an outlet for rage, an instrument for compassion and a
calmer of the spirit. The poems I wrote after the death of a friend in an
encounter with the military, or the elegy for a fallen leader of the
Cordilleras, helped me get hold of myself. There was inner peace in
knowing that my convictions were intact and were not clobbered by fear.
It is this inner peace and strength that enabled me to simultaneously teach
in the University, raise a family and make the connection with people who
matter in the movement for freedom and democracy. Of course, not all
prisoners can become poets. Not all persons who encounter violence turn to
art and literature to give vent to their rage. The key however to the
attainment of inner peace is really poetic. Here it must be underscored that
the process is more important than the result. The use of the imagination is
more significant than the output which is the poetry.
Sisterhood for A Cause
In 1981, Marcos declared martial law to be over and, to prove this, he
offered to hold elections. He himself ran and won in that election and again
succeeded in making a travesty of the electoral process. He declared that a "
New Republic - a fifth Republic" was in place. The mock election and the
bravado at declaring a "new republic" was exposed in the opinion columns
of some women writers. These women writers wrote for prominent
newspapers, in particular, the Manila Daily Bulletin. For taunting the
regime and exposing the unrelenting bravado of the dictator, these women
writers were not only fired from their jobs, they were also investigated by
the military for treason and subversion.
The collective trauma experienced by these women writers led us to the
founding of WOMEN, which meant Women Writers in Media Now. I was
one of the women who founded this group. We did it as a form of bonding
with fellow women writers who were under siege from the military.
Collectively we explained how writing newspaper columns in the exercise
of freedom of the press could not be considered treason. On the side
however, we had to answer questions as to why there was a need for a
separate organization of women writers. Why segregate the women from
the men in the profession of writing when they should work together for a
common cause?
The answer to this question was not clearly articulated by us in the
discourse. However, as our activities became more interesting, we
discovered it was not possible to disregard questions of gender and its role
in social formation. As women, we realized we were bonding not only to
collectively claim the freedom of expression for ourselves but also to
expose the patriarchy that was the main structure of power of the
dictatorship. The military that was running the country was composed
mainly of men in uniform. And we were women, an underclass in an allmale military set-up. Perhaps as women, we were bringing to the fore the
possibility of a totally different political dispensation. We were in search of
a more compassionate political regime and we thought this was possible
only with more gender-sensitive individuals in positions of power.
We conducted workshops on the basic tenets of writing and combined
considerations of craft as well as political correctness of content. We
64
critiqued each other’s work when we ventured into investigative
journalism. Our writings probed the deeper problems of the larger society:
corruption in government, waylaid priorities in development programs, the
causes of the continuing armed insurgency in both the Communist
revolution and the Muslim separatist movement. We did features on human
rights violations, militarization, hamletting, demolition of squatters and
many other social issues. There were exposes on the linkages of politicians
to illegal logging, gambling and other atrocious activities. All of these
writings are collected in two volumes of the anthology entitled, Filipina 1
and 2 (1984).
Gender Peace Pacts in the Name of Free Expression
In 1983, with the assassination of Senator Benigno Aquino Jr, the political
crisis intensified and our organization had to reach out to the larger
community of cultural workers. Even as the group was instrumental in the
founding of the feminist association, GABRIELA (General Assembly
Binding Women for Integrity, Equality, Leadership and Action), there were
other needs specific to the artists and writers of the time that needed to be
addressed.
We helped form the Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP) in order to
squarely address the issue of censorship in film and in the other arts.
Members of the association included distinguished directors in the film
industry like the late Lino Brocka, social realist painters, and socially
committed writers. The immediate target of the association was the Censors
Board appointed by Marcos which was responsible for cutting portions of
films, rating these on the bias of pornography or banning entire films for
their political implications and commentary on Philippine society.
With the Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP), we discovered that
freedom of expression is a primary issue without which all other efforts at
promoting progress and development in the Philippines were meaningless.
Freedom of expression and a free press were requisites to an open and free
society. And only an open and free society can build peace and progress for
its people.
Overall then, my personal narrative suggests three modes of action for
building peace. First, inner peace for all individual advocates of peace. This
inner peace must be worked at and solidly built on commitment and
conviction. I believe only persons who have experienced this kind of inner
peace can promote and appreciate the need for a genuine, just and lasting
peace. Two, freedom and empowerment for the women. I think, women,
more than men, have the power and capacity to chart new courses of action
especially in political dispensations ruled mainly by men. Three, freedom
of expression for all regardless of class, gender, ethnic affinity and political
persuasion.
Source : Original text, contribution to the preparatory workshop in
Amsterdam.
65
Claire
MOUCHARAFIEH
FPH (Fondation
Charles Léopold
Mayer pour le progrès
de l'homme)
1994/05/31
Palestine
Israel
Peace strategy
Art of living
Israeli-Palestinian peace also
requires deconstructing the
myth of the "enemy"
To avoid a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by separation,
it is vital that all those who work to build peace take inspiration from
the experiences and relations formed between groups of women,
acting to strengthen cooperation and interaction between the two
peoples.
Founded in 1984 with the aim of encouraging the condition for real
cooperation between Isrealis and Palestinians on the basis of coexistence,
solidarity and equality, the Alternative Information Center produces
information and analyses concerning the social and political reality of
both national communities. The AIC is one of the rare "mixed" Isreali
associations, at both the level of its members and that of its management
board. For many years it has published two newsletters: one a monthly
called "News from Within", the other a weekly called "The Other Front"
which focuses more on the pro-peace Isrealis.
Since the Isreali-Palestinian framework agreement was signed in 1993,
the AIC, fully committed to the fight against the occupation, has been
occupied by a fundamental debate on the conditions of building real and
sustainable peace based on cooperation. Convinced that peace cannot be
built exclusively between the political leaders but also between the
societies they represent, the AIC believes that much work remains to be
done to break down the barriers of fear and hate so that diplomatic
"mutual recognition" takes root at individual and community levels.
Major obstacles remain: the Israelis' ostracism and anxiety is perpetuated
by their education and the media, whereas the Palestinians' anger and
retreat into themselves is fuelled by every new injustice in the field. This
dual phenomenon of defiance strengthens the extremism in both societies.
For the members of this association, the current process can mostly be
assimilated with a truce based on political pragmatism and exclusion. A
large part of the Isreali peace movement, more interested by exclusively
political initiatives than by education for peace, exacerbates this trend: the
separation of two peoples rather than their coexistence, is generally
considered as the only aim of the current peace process. For the AIC, this
"ideal" of separate peace cannot be seen as being viable from every angle.
First of all because it is based on the a priori that suspicion and hate
cannot be overcome, although they perpetuate the conflict; secondly,
because the future of the two nations is inevitably intertwined (sharing of
land, water and resources); and, lastly, because they turn their backs on
the geopolitical realities of the 21st century which will demand all sorts of
cooperation. Cooperation between the two peoples will be indispensable,
not only for the economy and infrastructures but also to promote
educational, social and cultural alliances.
At present, the fragmentation characterising the peace movement harms
its efficiency to act. The different constituent groups are scattered,
separated from each other, and there is no common strategy. Thus the
66
groups operating in a given region are unaware of what is happening
elsewhere. Groups having a religious base have no contact with "citizens"
associations, nor is there any dialogue between young Jews and Arabs,
etc. This absence of unity and coordination prevents any accumulation of
information and any capitalization of experience. Everyone has the
feeling that they are starting from scratch, even when they are merely
following on from previous practices and experiences. Furthermore,
contacts with international peace movements are clearly inadequate.
Working in a network is nonetheless vital in terms of opening out to the
outside world, sharing experiences and comparing strategies, so as to
enrich and increase the efficiency of the peace and solidarity movements
in Israel/Palestine.
The AIC has decided to devote some of its energy and activity to setting
up a research project named "Building peace by cooperation", whose aim
is to improve understanding of this "art" of peace and to develop new
strategies. This process of research-action aims at increasing the peace
movement's present capacity to :
- call into question mutual destructive perceptions so as to break the cycle
of hate and violence and eliminate mutual fear and suspicion,
- develop public awareness of history, culture and the struggles of both
peoples by working simultaneously to reestablish equality,
- demonstrate to both sides the legitimate political rights of the other,
- create models of cooperation based on the respect and vision of a
common future.
The originality of this project depends in particular on the importance
given to the practical and theoretical activity and experience of groups of
Isreali and Palestinian women. In spite of their diversity, women's
committees have for long put into practice the central idea of coexistence.
More than others, they underline the importance of developing
interpersonal relations at grass-roots level and they work concretely to
deconstruct the myth of the "enemy". They also attempt to restore
substance to the concept of difference so that it is understood as a
potential source of resistance rather than antagonism in the fight against
oppression in its different forms.
This work of research and action started in the spring of 1994, and it
should last from 12 to 16 months.
1) It first entails accumulating information on all the local groups that
have worked for coexistence during the last ten years, in order to identify
the obstacles, the failures and also the progress accomplished. Emphasis
will be given to actions aimed at transforming perceptions of the "other"
in one's own camp.
2) The second stage (6 months) will consist of studying the different
"models" of coexistence, by highlighting in particular the specific
contribution of women (e.g., the Black Sea Sash in South Africa, Madre
in Latin America and the United States, Begrade Women in Black, etc.).
To do this, contacts will be made with foreign groups active in the
reconciliation processes stemming from different historical and political
contexts (Northern Ireland, South Africa, Latin and Central America). To
make research easier, the global electronic PeaceNet network will also be
used. The accumulated knowledge and information gathered will be
analysed in the light of the Isreali-Palestine situation to determine what
know-how and methods can be transposed.
3) The last four months will be devoted to setting up a "program" of
strategic actions for coexistence and cooperation. Specific work will be
67
devoted to expansion in order to integrate groups, especially Palestinian
ones, which have not been involved in this movement so far.
Source : This sheet is based on documents from the Alternative
Information Center which presents the project and the general context in
which it is carried out. The CCFD gives financial backing to the project
(study grants). Original sheet in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : FPH, 38 rue Saint-Sabin, 75011 Paris. Tél : 01 43 14 75 75.
Fax : 01 43 14 75 99.
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69
Drawing in Gaza
Mireille SZATAN
ERM (Enfants
réfugiés du Monde)
1997/06/22
Palestine
Art of living
Peace strategy
In a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, drawing has not only revealed
itself to be an efficient method of social integration and pacification
for children made insecure by constant violence, it is also useful for
their mothers.
In 1992, ERM (Enfants Réfugies du Monde) set up a coordination center
for children in the refugee camp of Khan Younnis in the Gaza Strip, in
partnership with five women's committees. The objective was to take
overall responsibility for children's psycho-social problems, which
obviously entailed working closely with them. The magnitude of the work
to be done with the mothers and their children can be illustrated by two
examples.
Drawing
Convinced of the educational and psychological usefulness of drawing,
we set up a drawing and painting workshop at the coordination center.
The objective was to permit children to express what they live through,
encourage their imagination, and promote their social integration by
getting them manage the workshop themselves. This was also a way for
the female coordinators to understand the children better on the basis of
their drawings.
This workshop was a remarkable opportunity for observation and it
resulted in surprises. From the moment it opened, it was used well beyond
our expectations. We knew that children drew what they wanted to say, to
give vent to their feelings, but we did not think that they would have
divested themselves of their adult shells.
For three months, the children drew and painted flags, mosques, and rifles
decorated with political slogans. What they communicated and expressed
very often dealt with their political beliefs.
After discussions, taking stock and case studies, the team allowed this
type of expression to continue, carefully monitoring its progression and
fluctuations. This was an essential step in order to go further. Grown
familiar with drawing, the coordinators then set about carrying out short,
periodic and structured activities, encouraging more types of drawing.
This led to more varied and happier subjects.
Many children continued to come, more open to the pleasure of drawing
new subjects. The guns and slogans gave way to poetic and even
humanitarian drawings.
The coordinators unceasingly repeated this work, since whenever the
situation deteriorated, the children returned to their initial warlike subjects
to express their fear before rediscovering that they could express
themselves more freely. This work of adaptation and tolerance was
difficult for trained teachers and it was even more so for the mothers.
70
Continuing to live
The story of Sherin highlights this difficulty. Sherin is a calm and
affectionate little girl of nine. Her elder brother was killed during a
skirmish, and his body was brought back to her parents. When she
returned to school, she saw her brother's body and began to scream that
there was blood on the walls. The following day at the center, she drew
her brother's body, smearing the page blood red.
"Sherin is not too affected, she's young, she'll forget", confided her
mother several days later. Her teacher noticed a change in her behavior.
Sherin had become quieter, as if absent. However, little by little, by
participating in the activities, she rediscovered the joy of living. Her
mother couldn't stand it, "She can't be happy, she has to think of her
brother's death". This led to long and patient work with the mother so that
she could accept that her surviving child continued to live, without
refusing reality.
Although it was possible to set up the program, expand it and make it last,
it was mostly due to our mostly female partners, the women's committees,
not forgetting the teachers and mothers. Today, our experience in the
Gaza Strip has allowed us to go on to another phase of development, still
in the framework of children's psychosocial needs, in the form of the
Can'an Institute, a center for informal education using new teaching
methods.
Source : Original text, in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : Enfants Réfugiés du Monde. 34, rue Gaston Lauriau, 92512
Montreuil Cedex. Phone: 33 (0)1 48 59 60 29, Fax: 33 (0)1 48 59 64 88
71
The Arab women's peace ship
Andrée MICHEL
Femmes &
Changement
An experiment to impose the will of
women for peace on men who want war
1996/11/20
Iraq
Arabic peninsula
World
Patriarchy
Peace strategy
Private public
relation
Before the Gulf War broke out, women from the Arab world,
accompanied by several western and Japanese women, chartered a ship
to supply milk and flour as a symbolic protest against military logic and
the embargo hitting the civilian population of Iraq. Throughout all the
incidents of this voyage, together they displayed the same moral qualities
that they wanted to see employed in order to solve the crisis.
From Algiers to Bassorah, the goal of the epic journey of the Arab women for
peace's boat was to highlight the desire for peace of women all over the
world, whereas men, heads of government and the majority of ordinary
citizens see military intervention as the only means of settling conflicts.
Indeed, immediately after the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq in August 1990, the
noise of boots resounded with the expedition of a considerable Western
armed force. This operation was supported by Security Council resolutions,
although the United Nations Charter states that everything must be done to
safeguard peace and prevent war. In particular, the charter recommends the
opening of negotiations at any price, eliminating the setting of preliminary
conditions dictated by the strongest. Despite this, the negotiations proposed
by the West to Iraq were subject to preliminary conditions.
Alone, women did not allow themselves to be intimidated by this arsenal of
legal and military measures, the former having as their aim to give
respectability and legitimacy to displays of force, the latter that of showing
Iraq and subject countries that the dominant powers intended using warfare
rather than lose control over the region's oil . Following this, to
counterbalance this "logic of war" and show their desire for peace, the
women of Arab countries met in Yemen. They also wanted to demonstrate
their opposition to the military blockade, set up after the invasion of Kuwait,
which had already caused victims among Iraqi and Jordanian children
deprived of medicines and milk.
To this end, they decided to load a boat, the Ibn Khaldoun, and organize a
voyage from Algiers to the Iraqi port of Bassorah, inviting women from the
countries forming the coalition against Iraq (Europe, United States and Japan)
to participate. Thus 282 women from Arab countries accompanied by a few
children, from western countries and Japan travelled on the same boat to
show that negotiation was the only real alternative to war. Furthermore, the
participants on the boat wanted to show their solidarity with the children of
Iraq whose health and lives were in danger, by bringing them a cargo of
powdered milk and flour.
The experience of the boat of Arab women for peace highlighted the
remarkable qualities they employed in preparing this operation:
- The capacity for planning and organizing the voyage, initially scheduled for
18 days, for some three hundred women and fifteen children. This capacity
was also evident in the collection of funds to buy the powdered milk and
flour. These commodities were hoisted abord the boat at each stop in Arab
72
ports.
- The capacity of organizing daily life where solidarity between the women
functioned very quickly to maintain the ship, the preparation of cultural
evenings of great quality which took place on board every evening, the
holding of conferences and the creation of a collective newsletter. They
showed great courage when they resisted the attack of dozens of American,
English and Australian soldiers who were parachuted, disguised and armed to
the teeth, onto the boat while sailing through the Persian Gulf, just before
arriving at Bassorah. They treated the women, children and male members of
the crew with abominable violence.
They resisted initimidation and armed violence when they refused to bow to
the demands of these invaders who demanded them to throw their cargo of
milk and flour into the sea. They preferred to suffer two weeks of thirst,
hunger, blows and their consequences rather than obey. Finally, after two
weeks of the boat being occupied, they succeeded in getting the cargo
unloaded in a port in the Sea of Oman and sent to Sudanese children. An act
of solidarity between these Arab, Western and Japanese women, who
remained united during the darkest hours under the violence meeted out by
the soldiers, refusing expatriation, except for two women suffering from
cardio-vascular illness. All were unanimous in resisting the invaders' designs
for as long as possible.
- It is a testimony of control of a crisis situation when, at the worst moment,
they succeeded in contacting the Red Cross and addressing the UN Secretary
General and the heads of State of Arab countries to inform them of the
human rights abuses to which they and the crew were victims.
Obviously, the women of the Ibn Khaldoun did not succeed as they wished, to
impose peace and stop a war that began the day after their arrival in
Bassorah. But they showed that the assertion by the Security Council
according to which the blockade of Iraq did not cover medicines and food
was untrue.They shook the legitimacy of the Security Council which
pretended to define the rules of a new world order, whereas it was violating
the rights set out in the universal rights of man.
The fact that the coalition parachuted armed forces onto a boat occupied by
hardly more than 300 hundred women and a few children revealed to what
extent men felt themselves called into question by the potential for peace
represented by women's solidarity, which knows no frontiers. The silence of
the general media also revealed that, for the deciders of war and the arms
traders, it would be dangerous for women to become aware of their strength
and organize themselves, since war made by men would be threatened with
disappearance, allowing peace to triumph.
For the women who participated in the Peace Ship, this experience marked
the beginning of of their commitment in a struggle that has lasted for more
than six years to stop the blockade of Iraq, which cruelly affects its people
and most particularly the most vulnerable of them (children, elderly people,
the sick, etc.), and which should be brought to an end as soon as possible.
Source : Nasra Al Sadoon, "Le bateau des femmes pour la paix",
L'Harmattan, Pairs, 1996. Original sheet in french, translated by Keith
Hodson.
Contact : Femmes & Changement, 14 passage Dubail, 75010 Paris. Tél : 01
44 65 00 66. Fax : 01 44 72 91 69.
73
Anne CAZALES
Femmes &
Changement
The Indian women of
Guatemala organize the
struggle
1997/06/10
Guatemala
Violence
Peace strategy
Since the peace agreement in Guatemala, Indian women are at the
forefront of the combat to gain reparation for the violence and
repression of the civil war, and they are attempting to promote political
participation for women and social recognition for the Mayan people.
More than 60% of the Guatemalan population is Mayan while the other main
ethnic group is constituted by the Ladine population (of Spanish and mixed
blood). The barriers of Guatemalan society still work against the Indians,
with women suffering from a "double" discrimination, being both Indian and
women. However, Indian women play an essential role in the commnuity.
She is the pillar of the family, as wife, mother, and educator of her children,
and she also plays an important economic role. All the women develop craft
activities based on their own culture: weaving, pottery, etc.
Guatemala is the last country in Latin America to have put an end to its civil
war, which has lasted thirty six years. With the signature of the "Firm and
Sustainable Peace" agreement on 29 December 1996 between the URNG
(Guatemalan Revolutionary Unit) and the government, democracy has been
widened to encompass indigenous organizations.
However, this recent peace cannot hide the memory of years of bloody
repression which, using the pretext of destroying centers of guerilla
resistance, was unleashed on the country during the eighties with extreme
violence against the civil rural population. The term "death squad" was
coined in Guatemala. These squads led to the mass exile of whole
communities to Mexico, the displacement of populations towards the cities or
deportation to "model towns" under the control of the army. A consequence
of this process is the fragmentation of traditional community structures and
the destruction of the Indians' social and cultural fabric. Women are at the top
of the list of the victims.
No to military violence : CONAVIGUA
The conflict has widowed 45,000 women and orphaned 250,000 children.
Most of the victims were from Indian communities living in the altiplano.
CONAVIGUA (Committe of Guatemalan widows) was set up in 1988 to
defend widows' rights and protect women whose husbands had been killed
because they were suspected of being guerillas. In less than a year, it has
brought together 3,560 women, most of whom are Indians.
The organization has always been close to peasant protest movements,
particularly the CUC (Peasant Unity Movement), and considered as
subversive from the outset. One of the leaders of the CUC assassinated in
1979 was the father of Rigoberta Menchu, the Nobel Peace Prize winner.
CONAVIGUA and Mrs. Menchu's foundation have often led joint actions in
favor of human rights. During her years in exile, Rigoberta Menchu was
always welcomed in CONAVIGUA's premises during her visits, often
unauthorized by the government. CONAVIGUA's success is both feminist
and political. Feminist because in ten years, Guatemalan women have learnt
74
to speak out and claim their rights. Political because during the last general
elections in January 1996, Rosalina Tuyuc, CONAVIGUA's founder, was
elected Member of Parliament for the Democratic Front for a New
Guatemala, the only party on the left, which despite being marginal, made it
possible for an Indian to sit in Parliament.
CONAVIGUA's victory also means the elimination of the military and
paramilitary structures in the villages and the abolition of pressganging,
measures that the government and the armed forces have undertaken to
respect. However, vigilance is required, especially since CONAVIGUA is
still campaigning for the completion of the inquiry by the national
commission into identifying those responsible for the massacres during the
years of repression.
Women ready for political combat
CONAVIGUA is historically close to the former guerillas who now want to
convert themselves into a political party. This should result in conjunctural
alliances at local level and encourage in-the-field the involvement of women
in political life. Since the demobilization of the guerillas, (May 1997), the
women involved in the armed struggle have decided to follow-up the combat
in the political arena. They form a kernel of five to six hundred women, most
of whom are Indians (at the last count, there were three to four thousand men
in the guerilla movement ), that have experimented with equality between
men and women in the armed struggle. They must now organize themselves
to claim parity and fight for women's rights in a country marked by cultural
male chauvinism in every community, both Mayan and Ladine.
Refusing discrimination in education: CHOLSAMAJ
The education problem in Guatemala is alarming. The illiteracy rate (80%)
reaches 90% among the Mayans. The Mayan women are most affected; they
make up 51% of the population. Organizations and community structures
therefore have to make up for the failures of national education. In Latin
America, it is estimated that an average of 6% of GNP is devoted to the
education budget; this figure is from 1 to 2.4% in Guatemala (source:
UNICEF). Nothing exists for adult education. CHOLSAMAJ was founded in
1984 by self-taught intellectuals from the Mayan Kaqchikel community.
Most of this organization's coordinators are women, reflecting the structure's
desire for openness. Its aim is to support the education effort in indigenous
communities by publishing and distributing good quality works at affordable
prices, by mostly indigenous authors. These tools are made available to the
public by a traditional distribution network (bookshops, libraries, etc.) and in
more specifically Mayan structures such as the Mayan Academy of Language
and the Kaqchikel Linguistic Community. CHOLSAMAJ is the only
publishing house to offer works in bilingual versions: Spanish/Mayan.
A video department is being set up and its management has been entrusted to
a group of women. Its aims are to promote access to image based education,
diffuse traditional knowledge and know-how in Indian communities, and
organise working in a network permitting women to speak out. This
department has the ambition to produce quality documentaries in the long
term. A partnership has been launched with the organization "Femmes &
Changements" in Paris, most particularly in relation with its REEV
(meetings, echanges, experiences, video) program.
Yet more organizations exist in Guatemala, such as CEISAR, which brings
together Ladine and Mayan women in the same project to promote health in
remote villages around Antigua. They already form a very active network and
are ready to participate in all the levels of civil society. The latter has decided
75
to take up its rights to build a new Guatemala as promised by the recent peace
agreements.
Source : Original text. Original sheet in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contacts : -CONAVIGUA, 8 avenida 2-29, Zona 1, Guatemala Ciudad,
Guatemala. Tél. 502 23 25 642
-CHOLSAMAJ, 1 avenida 9-18, Zona 1, Guatemala Ciudad, Guatemala. Tél.
502 23 25 417
-CEISAR : 7 avenida 76 A, Antigua, Guatemala. Tél. 502 93 23 0733
- Pour les femmes ex-membres de la guérilla : Helena Edna Barrios, c/o
FUNDUMAYA, 32 avenida 0-52, Zona 7, Utaltan I, Guatemala, Tél. 599 48
72.
76
77
Florence DA
SILVA
ERM (Enfants
Réfugiés du
Monde)
The fabric of Rwandan
organizations after the civil
war of April 1994
Women's NGOs
1995/08/15
Rwanda
Social activity of
women
Art of living
Violence
In Rwanda, a large number of women's organizations took on the task of
repairing the sequels of the war of April 1994, on both material and
psychological levels. Those targeted first are often women and children,
who form the support vital to any social reconstruction.
Besides the many foreign NGOs operating on its territory (over a hundred),
Rwanda above all benefits from the dynamism of a large number of local
organizations. Founded before or immediately after the genocide of 1994,
these organizations take different forms. We have identified two main
categories: the Rwandan NGOs, which are very institutionalised, diverse and
often of national scale regarding their objectives; and grassroots community
and local groups made up of a small number of people who wish to start or
develop a micro-project to generate income in the immediate locality. Most
of the Rwandan NGOs support these grassroots groups methodologically,
financially and with human resources. This usually entails credit in the form
of cash or in kind to start an activity or improve their operating conditions
(purchase of farm equipment, seeds, water pumps).
The Rwandan women's NGOs
The NGOs that existed before the war have either taken up, or are trying to
take up, their previous activities. For the most part, these cover economic,
legal and social issues and they are particularly attached to rural development
and improving the condition of women. Whatever their primary goal, all
these organizations set up an emergency action plan after the war and they
generally develop programs in favor of sectors of the population stricken by
the war: children, especially orphans and unaccompanied children; women,
particularly widows and rape victims; elderly single persons and the
physically handicapped. If no structured program exists, the organization
supports those of its members who have suffered greatly during the war on an
informal basis, by, for example, purchasing medicines, finding money for
educating an orphan looked after by another person, and quite simply
meeting, speaking and helping each other.
1 - Women's and children's rights. The HAGURUKA organization for the
protection of women's and children's rights has existed since 1991. Up to
1994, it gave legal assistance, either in the form of advice, or by following a
case up to the hearing in the law courts. Informing and making women and
girls aware of their rights and their value in society, as well as providing
education, were the two main directions of HAGURUKA's work. The
complexity of the problems increased after the war and once again women
and children were those most affected. Consequently, the association took on
two new tasks. The first entailed rehabilitation, meaning emergency material
and financial aid, and rebuilding houses. The second task is giving sociallegal assistance to unaccompanied children. Although they are not specialists
78
in this field, Hagaruku's members also give social and psychological
assistance, since the language of law is worthless if it is not integrated in
actions of production (survival) and support (fighting through in spite of
everything). In particular, Hagaruku is preparing the setting up of a
permanent psychological assistance service for women rape victims.
However, the legal difficulties of women and children after the war also
concern heritages, successions, the responsibility for orphans, the
management of the orphans' property, etc.
2 - Women entrepreneurs. DUTERIMBEE ("let's take the lead") was
founded in 1987 to promote women in small businesses. To support the
community and the African family, this organization favors the integration of
women in economic development by giving them access to bank loans or by
granting loans itself. These loans are accompanied by training on how to
choose a profitable project, its management and how to save. Before the war,
besides their own activities, women had other sources of revenue for their
families. Henceforth, 70% of them are widows. They must not only meet the
needs of what remains of their family, but also those of the orphans and
unaccompanied children they look after. Thus Duterimbee faces a flood of
demands for finance: small businesses, craftwork, farming, livestock
breeding, dressmaking, bricks, tiles, etc. Furthermore, confronted by the
magnitude of the destruction and pillage caused by the war, the organisation
has had to support the re-equipping of homes. Although certain families have
been able to retrieve their houses, the latter had been emptied of all their
furniture and material (not a single plate or saucepan) and even robbed of
children's clothes.
3 - Women first. A large number of organizations have been set up by and
for Rwandan women, to promote women in society, legally, economically
and socially. About thirty of them have formed the Pro Femmes Twese
Hamwe cooperative which permits contacting bigger financing organisations
and the redistribution of aid to the member organizations. Grouped together
in this structure, the NGOs are able to consider in-depth the situation of
Rwandan woman and analyse the aftermath of the war. Pro-Femmes also
makes proposals to foreign NGOs, financiers and the government. It
represents Rwandan organizations at national, regional and international
meetings devoted to women, such as the Regional Conference on Women at
Dakar in 1995. In principal, this cooperative does not intervene in the field
itself. However, the consequences of the war have pushed it to organize an
Action Campaign for Peace.
There are many of these women's organizations and mention cannot be made
of all them (Seruka, Asofera, etc.). Some of them have been set up in exile,
such as Benimpuhwe, founded in Burundi by women belonging to the first
great wave of refugees in 1959. Some of them were specifically founded to
solve problems related to the sequel of war, such as AVEGA, the
organisation of war widows of April 1994. These organisations are
sometimes still at an embryonic stage, but they all want to rebuild Rwanda in
peace and tolerance. It is in this spirit that the following was written in the
Women's Network newsletter of June 1995: "Dear women members of the
network, do not despair! Take heart, life continues in spite of everything. Do
not forget that everything depends on us, family responsibilities, our
children's education, rebuilding the country, the search for peace! (...) Let us
work and take the lead. Take heart and good luck!" It is not easy to start
working again after having lost everything, including one's children, to want
to rebuild when one is aware that another war could ruin everything
tomorrow.
79
Source : These lines are the result of observations and interviews with the
quoted associations and man,y others in july and august 1995. Original sheet
in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : ERM, 35, rue Gaston Lauriau, 93512 Montreuil cedex, France.
Tel : 01 48 59 60 29. Fax : 01 48 59 64 88.
80
81
The Zagreb center for women
war victims
Ada
D'ALESSANDR
O
SOLMA
(Solidarité avec les
mères de la place
de Mai)
1994
Croatia
Art of living
Peace strategy
Violence
The center for women war victims is attempting to set up the conditions
for peace among Croatian and Bosnian women by devoting itself to the
reparation (at medical, legal levels, etc.) the traumas left by the conflict.
"The center for women war victims was founded in 1992 by women from
feminist and anti-war movements. It is a non-governmental and independent
organization whose objective is to offer refugee women of all origins
psychological, social, legal and humanitarian aid. Especial attention is given
to rape victims.
About thirty women participate in the center's projects; a third of them are
refugees themselves. They work in thirteen illegal camps located around
Zagreb in which 40 to 60,000 people are crammed (80% are women and
children), half of them Bosnian and half Croatian. Volunteers organize
mutual aid groups in which refugees that have suffered serious traumas can
express their suffering.
In spite of their sometimes terrible living conditions, many refugees display
remarkable courage to recreate an atmosphere conducive to liiving. The
dialogs in the discussion groups help the Croatians and Moslems, between
whom much hostility exists, to overcome their feelings and commit
themselves towards good understanding and equal justice for all.
The center for women war victims works under difficult conditions. The
police sometimes make raids in search for "criminals and deserters", and
adolescents and women are occasionally taken away.
The center's objectives
* stop the war, close the detention camps, and permit the refugees to return
home;
* supply medical assistance to the camps: hygiene, psychosomatic problems,
hospitalizations, etc.;
* find solutions to the legal problems related to the refugees' status;
*set-up shelters for the refugees and their children;
* make rape recognized as a war crime with judgement of the guilty by
female courts;
* obtain the judgement of criminals and those responsible for war atrocities
in order to permit the victims to return to normal life in their districts;
Lastly, we want to make it known that we seek Justice, not vengeance.
Source : This sheet summarizes a speech made at the International Meeting
of Mothers held on March 27th to 31st 1994 at Paris. Original sheet in
french translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : Center for Women War Victims, Dorcéva 6, 41000 Zagreb;
82
Croatia. Phone: (385-41) 434 189. Fax (384-41) 433 416.
83
Women's Courts in Asia
Odile ALBERT
CDTM (Centre de
Documentation
Tiers Monde)
1996
Southeast Asia
Socialization of
information
Patriarchy
Violence
In Southeast Asia, women are trying to make public opinion aware of the
specific violence to which they are victims, whether during a situation of
war or "peace", by gathering and diffusing testimonies, and by carrying
out strong symbolic actions to highlight the lack of justice in this area.
The AWHRC carries out its actions in three directions: - educating the public,
- strengthening the capacities of women and their access to information, combating the dominant thinking that accepts and cultivates violence in the
world.
Over and beyond the jargon used, the AWHRC seems to have succeeded in
translating its rhetoric into reality. Its initiatives and approach deserve praise.
The initiatives
This regional network has started several notable initiatives covering four
areas: - research and data collection, concerning, among other things,
"military prostitution" and sexual tourism; - political lobbying: the AWHRC
participates in national, regional and international conferences, as well as in
commissions and their preparation, including several important UNO
commissions; - the diffusion of information through its own publications, The
Quilt, and Asian Womennews; - the public hearings of witnesses.
Women's courts
This initiative deserves special attention and is particularly interesting for
human rights activists seeking "grassroots" resources to ensure justice and
reparation of crimes committed against women.
AWHRC started to promote these public hearings, known as the "Women's
Court", in 1993. They deal with a wide variety of issues related to "crimes
against women in the Asia-Pacific region". Up to now, the AWHRC has
sponsored and organized seven courts in different towns of the region. These
hearings are attended by Women's groups and a wide cross-section of the
public. They give women who have been victims of persecutions,
discriminations and violence due to sex the opportunity to present their cases.
From 1993 to 1995, seven women's courts were held in Lahore (Pakistan),
Tokyo (Japan), Bangalore (India), Cairo (Egypt), and Manilla (Philippines),
on a variety of issues: violence against women, war crimes and female
slavery, crimes against Dalit and native women, the consequences of
demographic policies on women, the dominant system of development,
nuclear policies. The culmination of these initiatives was a world public
hearing during the NGO Forum during the fourth World Conference on
Women (Peking, September 1995).
Public hearings represent an innovative way of dealing with human rights
abuses against women. What is more, they produce quite impressive results
concerning the victims' awareness; they are given the means of expressing
their pain and anger, and a starting point to finding a cure. By illustrating
their cases, the victims hope to compile documents and data on these types of
crimes. This information can also be used to develop compensation strategies
at local, national, regional and international levels. Finally, AWHRC hopes
84
that these public hearings contribute to a vital structural change and ensure
that justice is not blind to specific abuses and violations perpetrated against
women. The very existence of these hearings demonstrates that our present
judicial system deals with women's rights in a completely inadequate way
when correlated with human rights.
According to "Women Under Islamic Law" (FSLM), AWHRC has recently
organized the defense of "comfort women", women who were used as sex
slaves by the Japanese army of occupation during World War II. Following a
major campaign in several formerly occupied countries, these women, now
aged from seventy to eighty years old, obtained official excuses from the
Japanese government, which should now examine their demands for
reparation. This initiative has snowballed in countries such as Bangladesh,
where, during the war for liberation, some 200,000 thousand women were
raped and made pregnant by Indian and Pakistani troops.
Source : This sheet uses large extracts from an article by Debby Leyh,
published in the journal "Connections" (Netherlands, march 1996, no. 1).
The author was able to meet the coordinator of the Asian Women's Human
Rights Council (AWHRC) whose head office is in Manila (Philippines). The
author was inspired by this woman's enthusiasm and the organization's
history. Original sheet in french, translated by Keith Hodson.
Contact : AWHRC, P.O. Box 1013, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.
Phone: (632) 924 64 06. Fax: (632) 924 63 81.
85
Developing non-violent
campaigns
Joanne
SHEEHAN
Wars Resisters
League
1999/04
Promoting non-violent forms of action, an increasingly urgent need in
the present world context, involves reconsidering in-depth all the
features and modes of our behavior and actions in the public arena.
World
USA
It’s overwhelming to think about what we need to do to make this a better
world for all. How can we do it? How can we not? Martin Luther King Jr.
cautioned that we are confronted with the choice of "nonviolence or
nonexistence." Faced with these choices, we need to re-energize the process
of exploring and experimenting with nonviolence.
Art of living
Peace strategy
The War Resisters’ International’s Statement of Principles explains what
nonviolence means to us. "The WRI embraces nonviolence. For some,
nonviolence is a way of life. For all of us, it is a form of action that affirms
life, speaks out against oppression, and acknowledges the value of each
person.
"Nonviolence can combine active resistance, including civil disobedience,
with dialogue; it can combine non-cooperation - withdrawal of support form
a system of oppression - with constructive work to build alternatives. As a
way of engaging in conflict, sometimes nonviolence attempts to bring
reconciliation with it: strengthening the social fabric, empowering those at
the bottom of society, and including people from different sides in seeking a
solution. Even when such aims cannot immediately be achieved, our
nonviolence holds us firm to our determination not to destroy people."
Barbara Deming, feminist nonviolent activist and author stated that
"Nonviolence is an exploration, one that has just begun." To fully explore the
potential for social transformation that nonviolence holds, we need to
consider all the components of nonviolent campaigns.
The Challenge
In her book Conquest of Violence, The Gandhian Philosophy of Conflict,
Joan Bondurant said: "Gandhi presented us with a remarkable set of
experiments, pregnant with meaning for the future. But we cannot expect that
Gandhi has given us all the answers. The challenge still remains.... For largescale conflict in the second half of the twentieth century takes on dimensions
which threaten annihilation. The alternatives for engaging in conflict
constructively can surely be devised." The challenge still remains as we end
this century.
Gandhi and King developed nonviolent campaigns to accomplish their goals.
Creative campaigns hold the key to exploring the potential of nonviolence. A
nonviolent campaign is a process through which the most number of people
come together with a common vision, setting common goals, creative
strategies and employing a diversity of tactics. A nonviolent campaign is not
simply a matter of identifying a problem and using a tactic to address it —
such as "a leafleting campaign" or a "campaign of civil disobedience". It’s
more than a group of projects strung together over a period of time (ie. write
86
a leaflet, organise an educational forum, then a series of demonstrations). The
power of a nonviolent campaign comes in the creative combination of these
components, the strategic thinking and commitment of the participants.
Components of a Nonviolent Campaign
Common Understanding - Is there a common understanding of the problem
or situation that exists? Have we analysed why that reality exists. Does the
analysis include the social, economic and political structures? Do we have a
common understanding of what it means to have a nonviolent campaign?
(This is work that needs to be done on an ongoing basis, not just when a
campaign is being instigated.Who develops the analysis? Is it a participatory
process or hierarchical?)
Discipline - What is our mutually agreed upon nonviolent discipline? Is it
clearly stated? (In a nonviolent campaign, this might take the form of a list of
nonviolence guidelines that people will abide by when working on all
components of the campaign.)
Research - What do we know, what do we need to know? In accordance with
nonviolent principles, are we searching for the truth, or just trying to "prove
our side"?
Information - Have we used the research to better understand the context?
Are our campaign goals clear? Is the information understandable for the
people we are trying to reach? (A role of nonviolent activists is to take the
research and put it in a form that can be widely used in a campaign.)
Education - Have we developed good educational materials and processes?
Have we considered the different audiences we want to reach? How are we
using the media to raise awareness?
Training - Do we have the skills we need to organise? Do we have training in
nonviolence and nonviolent action so we can better understand that option? Is
the training availabe to everyone?
Allies - Who should we work in coalition with? Who are our allies, who are
likely allies, who are potential allies or supporters if we communicate with
them more?
Negotiation - Do we have clear goals that we can negotiate around? In
developing our common understanding, are we clear about who we are
negotiating with? Have we communicated that to the appropriate parties?
Have we worked to build mutual respect with those we are negotiating with?
Do we also need to negotiate with potential allies?
In his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail", Martin Luther King, Jr. writes "You
may well ask, ‘Why direct action? Why sit-ins, marches, etc? Isn’t
negotiation a better path?’ You are exactly right in your call for negotiation.
Indeed, this is the purpose of direct action. Nonviolence direct action seeks to
create such a crisis and establish such creative tension that a community that
has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so
to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored."
Constructive Program/Alternative Institutions - "Has the movement
undertaken positive, constructive steps with a view to providing services to
its own members and to the public, and even in some cases to the opponent?"
asked Joan Bondurant in Conquest of Violence . (Often missing in campaigns
in the West, and emphasised in the East.)
87
Demonstrations - How can we best demonstrate our concerns? Have we
considered the more than 250 methods of nonviolent action? Are we clear
about the objectives of the demonstration with ourselves and others?
Civil Disobedience - Have we prepared for a nonviolent civil disobedience
action? Have we done all we can to educate, build support, demonstrate our
concerns, and prepare people for a civil disobedience action? How will it
advance our cause? What are the objectives of the action? Are we creative
about our civil disobedience? Will it put the kind of pressure on the adversary
to move them?
Legislative and Electoral Action - Is legislative or electoral action an
educational tactic or a goal of the campaign?
Reconciliation - How can we make peace with the opponents and resolve the
injustice?
A campaign should bring people through processes of empowerment. It
should be personally empowering — people discovering and exercising their
own power against oppression and exclusion and violence, and for
participation, peace and human rights. Groups working on a campaign
develop a collective power, learning how to be organizers and become
political strategists in the process. A progression of campaigns can move us
towards social empowerment that leads to the social transformation we are
working for.
Faced with the horrors of the world, it’s easy to do the nonviolent equivalent
of lashing out – jumping into action or activity without stepping back or
looking ahead. Radicals need to not only get to the roots of a problem — we
need to root ourselves and our own actions in something more
comprehensive.
Source : Original text, contribution to the preparatory workshop in
Amsterdam.
Contact : Joanne Sheehan. War Resisters League. PO Box 1093. Norwich,
CT 06360. USA. 860-889-5337 (ph & fax). E-mail : [email protected]
88
89
No to ethnic cleansing, no to
bombing
1999/04
World
Former
Yugoslavia
Violence
Peace strategy
International
organization
Women's call on the former Yugoslavia
to the Hague Appeal for Peace
The occasion of the Hague conference, during which war raged in
former Yugoslavia, gave an opportunity for women's networks to diffuse
this appeal, likening NATO's reaction against the Serb's in Kosovo to the
atrocities perpetrated by their government, and insisting on the role of
civil society, particularly women and international institutions, in
building sustainable peace in the Balkans.
We refuse the unacceptable choice between a nationalism that promotes
ethnic cleansing on the one hand and a politically and economically driven
manipulation of human rights by NATO countries resulting in acts of war
that violate recognized international law on the other hand. We demand an
alternative that builds on the crucial role that human rights defenders,
feminists, NGOs and peace-loving civil society play in all countries of the
former Yugoslavia including within Serbia. Further, we stress the leading
role of women in the promotion of peace, democracy and human rights, and
in keeping alive human relations between different ethnic, religious and
national entities. Therefore, the undersigned organisations make the
following demands:
Cessation of Hostilities
•
•
•
An immediate cessation of NATO/US bombing and all armed
operations by all parties ;
An immediate end to the ethnic cleansing and forcible expulsions in
the region ;
That the UN Security Council resolve to send in UN forces with a
temporary mandate to protect civilians and to preserve evidence of
war crimes and crimes against humanity for the International
Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia (ICTY).
Peace process
•
•
•
•
A resumption of the peace process with UN mediation at the
regional (Balkan), European, and international levels ;
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
take responsibility for working with countries in the region to find a
peaceful, democratic and long term solution to the crisis ;
Negotiations for a peaceful resolution include representatives of
civil society, with women and women's organisations significantly
represented amongst the negotiators ;
Resolution of the conflict be predicated upon the recognition of all
human rights on the basis of equality.
90
Reconstruction
•
•
•
•
International support for reconstruction based on civil society and
democratic movements within the region, with particular emphasis
on facilitating the participation of women ;
All returns must be voluntary in accordance with international law,
and refugees enabled to return in conditions that respect their human
rights ;
Recognition of women's right to equality in all spheres, such as land
and property rights ;
Full recognition of the importance of economic and social rights,
particularly as they relate to the construction of civil society.
Redress and the Application of Law
•
•
•
•
•
The ICTY act swiftly to ascertain culpability and indict those
responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed
by all parties, including prosecution of crimes of sexual violence ;
Political leaders of both state and non-state forces be held
accountable for commanding and/or condoning war crimes and
other violations of human rights ;
Milosevic be indicted and his arrest authorised and effected ;
All States surrender those so indicted to the Hague ;
Reparations for the victims of human rights violations by the
culpable states and/or non-state actors.
Signatories: Asian Center for Women's Human Rights (ASCENT) Philippines Center for Women's Global Leadership - USA Malaya Colas Philippines VAWW NET International (Violence Against Women in War
Network) Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML),
Source : Appeal diffused by the Women Living under Muslim laws network.
The signatures were collected to be brought to the hague Conference.
Contact : Women living under muslim laws. BP 23, 34790 Grabels. E-mail :
[email protected]
91
Prepare peace
Marlène
TUINIGA
FPH (Fondation
Charles Léopold
Mayer pour le
progrès de
l'homme)
1999/08
World
Africa
Violence
Peace strategy
Beyond the mythology that shows women to be by nature opposed to
violence, it appears that it is often them who are at the forefront of peace
movements. With the values that they put forward in these
circumstances, they are often bringer, at a well larger level than just
armed conflicts, of an opportunity for renewal in social life.
Will women – or better still, will Woman be, thanks to her nature, more
receptive to peace than men and Man? Nothing is less sure. One simply has
to mention a few of the "great" figures of history, such as Joan of Arc, Golda
Meir or Margaret Thatcher – not forgetting the women who knitted while
enjoying the spectacle of the guillotine fall – for this to demolish the
"universal" myth of innate female kindness; likewise today. On the subject of
the Rwandan genocide of 1994, a recent UNICEF brochure mentioned, "It is
no secret that some of the extremists were also women, who murdered their
neighbors, colleagues, friends and even parents". However, the brochure also
recalls that it was the combined efforts of the country's thirty two women's
organizations, grouped in the "Pro-Woman/Twese Hamwe" movement, that
led to national reconstruction several months later.
A fact little noticed by the dominant media, but which is glaringly obvious
for the readers of the specialized press of NGOs and people in the field, is
that in all too many regions where conflicts are raging today, women check
their tears and join together to build anew and restore peace.
Why women in particular? In all likelihood because of the traditional
separation of roles between the sexes. As a woman doctor from Sarajevo said
to a journalist "Men can die. At least they have this choice. When life has no
price, dying is a luxury. As for women, they have to survive, if only for their
children". Throughout history, women have always been the victims and even
specific targets of war. Throughout history, they have also cried, consoled,
fed, dressed wounds and sheltered.
Nonetheless, something new is happening. The appearance in ravaged towns
of the famous "women in black" is proof of it. Women are refusing to accept
their role as victims and consolers, saying "no" to those who make them and
their children suffer. For example, in Colombia, they refuse to make love
with men who bear arms. They say no to violence of any kind, violence that
can be attributed to men in 90% of cases, at least for cases of physical
violence.
But who were the precursors of this resistance? It was those admirable
Argentinean women, the mothers and grandmothers of the victioms of the
military dictatorship, who set up the May Square movement. These
"madwomen", donning white scarves, demanded that those who murdered,
tortured and kidnapped their children and grandchildren be tried and
condemned. They were able to turn their individual pain into a collective
struggle. Unfortunately, this struggle has not yet ended, but it has inspired
women and mothers around the world to act against war, the Mafia, and
drugs. In short, against organized crime.
This phenomenon is present in Latin America and Asia, but especially in
Africa. It is hardly a surprise that the continent where women's initiatives for
92
peace are now most numerous is that most ravaged by conflicts and violence
and where women are the most often obliged to play the traditional role of
wife and mother. Last May, a UNESCO conference was held in Zanzibar
(Tanzania) on the subject "Women organized for peace and non-violence in
Africa". It brought to light the recent mushrooming of women's committees,
movements, and NGO campaigns for peace in nearly every African country.
Some of these initiatives occurred after conflicts and consisted of healing,
sheltering, reconciling, and rebuilding, but increasingly often – and
sometimes within the same movements – they sought to act before the
outbreak of violence. This was done by introducing the idea of a culture of
peace in education, making use of traditional practices - singing, music,
stories – to defuse smoldering conflicts, or by simply inviting the antagonists
to sit down and talk. Another method, recently used in Mali, was to organize
a boycott of arms imports.
Thus, instead of being a choice victim of conflicts, women are starting to
resist. Increasing numbers of women are becoming what are known as
"agents of change". These agents of change rarely have the opportunity, due
to their exclusion from power, to intervene during conflicts, but they are
more and more present both before and after, often calling into question the
legitimacy and efficiency of the conflicts in the first place, and demonstrating
that conflict can be dealt with in other new and non-violent ways. It is
precisely because they are obliged to stand back and remain detached that
they can see things in perspective.
However, neither action, nor consideration are limited to the so-called
"public" area of armed conflict. "War", one could hear in Zanzibar, "is being
waged everywhere, in families, at work and in schools". By transforming
their suffering into combat, the Argentinean mothers have erased the
traditional line drawn between the private and public. The final document of
the recent Alliance for a Responsible and United World "Women and Peace"
meeting at Amsterdam, declared, "Peace is not simply a cease-fire, it can
only be built on respect for the Other and on equality". Concretely, this also
means fighting, for example, against conjugal violence and against
prostitution, for the human rights of women, etc.
One question remains. When, in a future perhaps closer then we think, these
women succeed in satisfying their claims on the levers of power, will they be
able to reject the different forms of nationalism, competition and personal
enrichment? In other words, will they be able to keep their own values and
resist the temptation to act like men?
Source : Original text.
93
Index
Fiche 1 Fiche 2 Fiche 3 Fiche 4 Fiche 5 Fiche 6 Fiche 7 Fiche 8 Fiche 9 Fiche 10 Fiche 11 Fiche 12 Fiche 13 Fiche 14 Fiche 15 Fiche 16 Fiche 17 Fiche 18 Fiche 19 Fiche 20 Fiche 21 Fiche 22 Fiche 23 Fiche 24 Fiche 25 Fiche 26 Fiche 27 -
Presentation
Detailed contents
Main keywords
Women and peace : what could be the contribution of th Yin Yang...
Women and peace : report on the preparatory workshop
When women invent non-violent ways to deal with conflicts
A wide definition of war
Italian women against the mafia
Columbian feminists and the combat against violence
Mothers of the world unite to defend justice
The mothers of the Plaza de mayo in Argentina
The association of mothers of Spanish conscientious objectors and...
In Russia, the committee of soldier's mothers has become a link in civil...
The Corsican women's "Manifesto for life"
The Women in black : "We are still in the streets of Belgrade"
Women in Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Creative and non-violent peace strategies
Building peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan
Experience of a conflict situation in Burundi
Art and culture as peacebuilders
Israeli-Palestinian peace also requires deconstructing the myth...
Drawing in Gaza
The Arab women's peace ship
The indian women of Guatemala organize the struggle
The fabric of Rwandan organizations after the civil war of april 1994
The Zagreb center for women war victims
Women's courts in Asia
Developing non-violent campaigns
No to ethnic cleansing, no to bombing
Prepare peace
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Fondation Charles Léopold Mayer / Alliance
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/fr/deed.fr