Searching for transitional justice through peacekeeping. A gendered analysis

Abstract

Throughout history societies have attempted to achieve peace in one of two ways, through militaristic strength and repression, or through the process of mediation and negotiation. Increasingly, the focus has been on mediation and negotiation, and as a result also the transition process away from conflict. Until recently, the focus was on the public aspects of systematic violence and suffering, but what this approach was lacking was a gendered perspective. This article evaluates the historic development of women’s roles within the UN peacekeeping framework to achieve transitional justice, from the International Women’s Year in 1975 to the introduction of gender mainstreaming as a policy objective in 2000. It demonstrates that despite best efforts, the fixation of achieving gender justice by concentrating on male perpetrators and female victims fails to take into account the gendered impact of their proposed processes and mechanisms and the limiting conditions it itself imposes for women’s participation. Ultimately this paper is a reminder that upon the approach of the 40-year anniversary since 1975, we reflect upon that which has been achieved but also the ways in which women’s quest for justice and empowerment can still be improved.