Use of Community Radio to encourage women's involvement in peace building and conflict resolution:

Transcription

1 Use of Community Radio to encourage women's involvement in peace building and conflict resolution: Sharon Bhagwan Rolls, Coordinator, femlinkpacific: Media Initiatives for Women, Operators of Fiji s mobile women s community radio initiative, femtalk 89.2FM Women speaking to women for Peace Introduction: Women make up half the world s inhabitants. In the aftermath of war, they often make up the majority of a country s population due to the death or disappearance of male combatants. Women are victims, survivors and even wagers of war. They are likely to have been specifically targeted by combatants despite their civilian status. More often than is widely known, they are combatants alongside men. But even counting the fighters among them, women are likely to have shouldered a burden greater than their role in instigating, waging or perpetuating war. Their labour, strength and determination are needed both to hold their families and communities together while the battle is raging and throughout the long, slow process of rebuilding the peace. Women are thus major stakeholders in the resolution of conflict and the course that is set for future development. Yet experience has shown that when women are not present to raise the concerns and issues that most affect them, which are often issues central to society as a whole, these tend to be overlooked in final agreements. It is women s right as citizens and as human beings to participate alongside men, to contribute to national solutions and to shape the destiny of their country. Furthermore, there is an international mandate that recognizes that right and demands it be respected. 1 Despite the advancements in the global women s equality agenda, in practice, women remain sidelined from the decision making processes from the international level to regional peace and security structures, and even within our own national development frameworks as well as at local or community level. Much of this marginalization is exacerbated by the patriarchy of traditional decision making structures. In December 2003 during a training workshop on Conflict Prevention and Early Warning organized by the Fiji Women Peace and Security Coordinating Committee (Fiji) the immediate past Chairman of the Great Council of Chiefs Fiji (Bose Levu Vakaturaga) admitted that in Fiji, issues concerning women have not been a priority for those in positions of influence, not only in institutions of the state, but more importantly traditional and faith based institutions. At a regional level, even though the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, the inter governmental agency responsible for peace, security and defense, adopted the Biketawa Declaration in October 2000 as a workable framework for diplomatic intervention, it has remained blind to the tremendous yet under-documented contributions of women in non-formal interventions in the Pacific region, in particularly in our arc of instability the Melanesian sub region (Fiji, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea/Bougainville) 1 UNFEM peace processes publication (draft) 1

2 If our national governments, our regional leaders, themselves are not formally recognising the contribution women can make to sustainable peace, indeed they must be featured at the top of the list of challenges and obstacles to women in decision making. Building on Women and Peace Initiatives: The history of the women s peace movement in the Fiji Islands dates back to the foundation laid by the Young Women s Christian Association (YWCA). At a time when there were mainly faith based women s groups, the YWCA lead role in the late sixties and early seventies anti nuclear movement together with faith based organizations and networks, in particular Christian churches and the Pacific Theological College. Young women activists and the student Christian movement which were formed at the then newly established University of the South Pacific were further nurtured in their activism and became the channel through which future peace activism took place. These early interventions also gave rise to the establishment of the Nuclear Free Pacific Movement. 2 Fiji in its thirty year history of independence has twice experienced the illegal overthrow of a democratically elected government May 14, 1987 and May 19, During both events, women and civil society groups mobilized to call for the release of the political hostages, a return to parliamentary democracy, upholding the principles of good governance, democracy and the rule of law within the context of our multicultural society. In 1987, many of the early activists staged protests and other actions in response to the overthrow of an elected government. Notable women s activists during this period included Amelia Rokotuivuna, Ema Druavesi, Claire Slatter, Atu Emberson Bain, as well as others who were closely associated with the Fiji Labour Party. Many of these women were pursued by the military and some were detained as a result of their activism. The Fiji YWCA also attempted to address the military takeover with limited assistance from regional and international networks, and several members were also detained en route to the YWCA World Council meeting in Phoenix, Arizona in The 1987 coup set in place a chain of events which would also influence the way women engaged in activism and peace building in However, it should be noted that much of the activism has remained confined to the main capital city, Suva. In 2000, women were instrumental in maintaining a degree of calm and infusing hope to the people during those tense weeks. As Secretary of The National Council of Women Fiji (having just been elected a month prior in 2000) we issued our first media statement denouncing the coup the day immediately following the overthrow, Saturday May 20 th and then mobilized the network of women s groups in Suva to gather for a Peace and Prayer Vigil the following day. From Sunday May 21 to July 24, a multiethnic group of women held a daily vigil throughout the 56-day hostage crisis. True, we were not without our own tensions 2 femlinkpacific YWCA HER story interviews with Ruth Lechte, Suliana Siwatibau and Susan Parkinson 2

3 and fears, though this was insignificant compared with the strength generated by the women s coming together daily. The Mothers in White who gathered to pray for the hostages and the women who wrote letters of support multiplied hope upon hope. Coordinating the peace vigil put me in touch with media organizations, local and international. I was not surprised that while the local dailies carried our media releases, it was the international media that was drawn to look behind the scenes of the peace vigil. In doing so, they found a window to women-in-community perspective of the crisis. On the other hand, many of the local media practitioners saw in the vigil access to the hostages who, as they were released, joined the women in solidarity. It became clear that there was a need for women s own community-media initiatives that would tell our stories. As we are all aware, a conflict does not end just because the overt violence has ended, or because of national elections. Certainly at one level it can be said that Fiji has returned to parliamentary democracy, but whilst the country awaits the outcomes of the legal process including inquiries into the events of May 2000, one critical challenge facing our country right is clearly how to implement a national reconciliation programme which will not be a band aid the hurt and suffering caused by both these political upheavals. There is also cause for concern of the rise in Christian fundamentalism from certain church groups, which further alienates non- Christian groups, especially as we continue to experience the outright disrespect towards other faiths by the desecration, in particular of Hindu temples. It must be noted that the politics of race in Fiji context of our experiences is a reality for women and also influences women s responses to our national crises. In 1987 the racial attacks and threats were obvious and outright, especially in the streets of the capital city, in 2000 the violence was more overt in nature and included raids on Indo-Fijian communities and homes. And so it goes without saying that each political conflict has had an impact on our multiracial society, as well as the multiracial networks of women s groups. Much needs to be done to ensure the wounds of these conflicts are healed to strengthen the women s movement progress ahead, together. What is required is a safe platform through which they can not only share their hurt, but also address the remaining tensions in our society. How do we also ensure respect for the rule of law and how do we account for the possibility of the resurgence of violence, as many of the deep seated ethnic concerns, especially by the indigenous community, the corruption and other underlying causes of the coups, remain invisible at national level, although deeply rooted in our own country s history. What are the International Commitments to the Women s Participation in Peace Processes: Beijing Platform for Action (1995): Highlights 12 global commitments including addressing issues of women in (Section E) Women in Armed Conflict, (Section G) Women in Power and Decision Making and (Section J) Women and the Media Revised Pacific Platform for Action (2004) highlights 8 critical emerging issues for the Pacific region: Poverty Eradication, Globalization and Trade Liberalisation, HIV/AIDS, Labour Migration, Peace and Security, Tradition and 3

4 Religion, Media, Information, Communication and Technology and the Millennium Development Goals The Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality ( ) has four priority areas Democracy, Peace and Conflict; Human Rights and the Law; Poverty Eradication and Economic Empowerment and Gender and HIV/AIDS United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Also known as the women s convention, promotes gender equality through 16 specific articles The Millennium Development Goals are commitments at the highest level which identify Gender equality as a critical global target United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, titled Women, Peace and Security: On October 31, 2000 the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution on Women, Peace and Security. How Can Community Radio Make a Difference? A scan undertaken by UNIFEM of peace processes in Latin America, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East identified six main factors that are necessary to ensure gender equality throughout the peace process 3 (1) Women s involvement in peace negotiations should reflect the diversity of active women and women s groups. (2) Women are more likely to make an impact in the negotiations when they have developed a common agenda and have identified strategic entry points through which that agenda can be introduced. (3) Facilitators/mediators can play a critical role in peace negotiations by ensuring that issues directly related to the needs and concerns of women and girls are included and that women will be empowered in all stages of the negotiation process. (4) Women and their organizations need continued support and strengthening of their capacity to enhance their effective participation in peace negotiations and build skills that will last beyond the talks. (5) After a peace agreement has been signed, women must be part of monitoring mechanisms and transitional bodies that foster implementation of the peace agreement. The tenets upon which the peace agreement is built must inform constitutional, electoral and legislative reform. (6) Women s political and economic empowerment in the post-conflict period is vital to successful development and sustainable peace. In Fiji, as in many other countries, our story remains the same. Despite all our contributions, our national governments, our regional leaders continue to disregard the right for women to be at the peace table. I believe UNSCR 1325 has the potential to change the paradigm for women that peace and security issues are the sole and extremely patriarchal domain of male leaders and defence and security professionals also. But first we must all be well informed about UNSCR 1325 and other international commitments. Community media forms, offer the opportunity to address this information gap. Despite the efforts to date, more women need to know about the policy commitments (and promises) - more men and institutional partners need to know about and integrate 1325 into peace missions the more all relevant players 3 UNIFEM March

5 are informed of the relevant commitments to women, peace and security, the greater the chance to get involved! However, we should not just limit ourselves to only strengthen women s capacity to speak out on their own issues but to ensure that these voices are transformed into policy language to influence key policy makers and national leaders. At the same time it is important to create a women s peace network that will be a safe process through which can contribute to the prevention of further conflict. Community radio therefore offers a locally-driven, locally-owned and inclusive process where women can assert their right to participate in the decisions being taken about their future, and which will result in the signing and implementation of a gender-sensitive peace agreement, and during the transitional period, during which time institutions, structures and relationships within society can be transformed and the root causes of conflict can be addressed. In March this year at a roundtable meeting to review the draft UNIFEM publication: SECURING THE PEACE Guiding the International Community towards Women s Effective Participation throughout Peace Processes it was agreed that community based media forms have the potential to bringing women to the peace table because documentation and communication strategies not only document what women have contributed already but also have the ability to share information especially community networks especially once the peace process has started. It is further noted that after a peace agreement has been signed, women must be part of implementing and monitoring the peace agreement and therefore it is essential to keep information and communication channels open. Community radio has the potential to continue to conduct outreach to women and women s group to disseminate the accords, particularly in local languages and through multi-media presentations so that illiteracy is not a barrier and by doing so provide a safe network so that women representatives in all mechanisms can not only monitor implementation of the peace agreement, including early warning for a resurgence of conflict, but also communicate these to relevant authorities. There is therefore a greater need to provide the necessary technical and financial support for ongoing Women s Documentation and Community Media Initiatives. There is a need for governments and even civil society partners to recognise and enhance the role of women s community and independent media as an enabling tool for the further implementation of policy commitments and a process that involves the women themselves in documenting their peace efforts, and their experiences during a conflict. A key example of the importance of women s documentation, media and information initiatives can be cited through the work of ISIS-Women s International Cross Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE), something which femlinkpacific hopes to emulate in our own context. According to the Executive Director of Isis-WICCE Ruth Ojiambo Ochieng, documentation is not something that you can get by walking in and then walking out of a community: You have to understand the community and involve the women of that community to document their own experiences. We encourage them by getting them to understand the importance of speaking out, and also saying that it is a history we don t want to repeat. It has taken several years to work with 5

6 and train the women, but as Ochieng has learnt, once the women have the confidence in you, that confidence makes them draw themselves to you. Community radio, and other community media forms must therefore be brought into the formal peace process as a key source of information and communication which can assist to: - Improve availability of data and analysis on the root causes of conflicts, the impact on women and their role in conflict prevention, resolution and post conflict peace building - Strengthen the capacity of women and women s groups to play a role in conflict prevention, resolution and post conflict peace building at the national and regional level. - Promote a gender perspective in conflict resolution and peace building initiatives of governments, regional organizations and mainstream agencies. - Promote peace, tolerance and reconciliation linking with economic security issues through advocacy in the community and with the general public Conclusion: Women s initiatives in planting or giving birth to a peace process should not be ignored, because they mark a new era in the process of reconstruction. We will continue to offer ways to combine traditional and modern authority to find our place in a world organized and managed by men motivated by our desire to achieve a balance in the political economy to ensure sustainable peace, (even if for no other reason but to ensure peace for our children). Therefore, because of its applicability to the practicalities of women s lives community radio can not only equip women with appropriate training and equipment to develop communication strategies which can convey the importance of their participation in the peace process as well as ensure gender-sensitive documentation of human rights abuses are addressed but also provide the necessary vibrant yet safe information and communication networks which are respected by local communities and which also serve as early warning detectors of any sign of re-emergence of conflict While, we cannot work in isolation of the mainstream media, the reality is that conflict remains commercially viable for the mainstream media and therefore, we, as women s media practitioners working for peace, need to take control of or define our own processes of media production, in particular, which are inclusive and 6

7 therefore an enabling process for women to share in the decision making of our country, in particular to curtail further violence. Achieving these aspirations together is what will make UNSCR 325 and other relevant conventions and gender equality promises, truly operational. Vinaka-Shukriya, Peace Sharon Bhagwan Rolls Coordinator femlinkpacific: Media Initiatives for Women 7