Day 3: Spotlight on Gender Violence and Militarisation NEW RESOURCE RELEASE

 Militarisation is one of our recurring campaign themes. We have done a blog symposium and several workshops on gender and militarisation. This year, we took note of how much content is now circulated and consumed on WhatsApp and developed a series of six (very) short video presentations that can be easily shared. 

1. The Gendered Impact of Conflict 

2. Small Arms and Gender Violence

3. Militarisation and Gender Violence

4. Gender Violence, Transitional Justice and Peace

5. Global Norms and Gender Violence

6. Sexism and Militarism

We hope you like them and find them useful! Happy sharing! 

They are also available as a playlist on our YouTube Peace Education Channel.

Day 11: Swords and Ploughshares

“…they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

Bible, Isaiah 2:4

Every campaign has had at least one activity or event that has taken cognizance of conflict and militarisation related issues. This year, on December 5, 2018, we offered a one-day workshop on peace, disarmament and gender equality. 

We opened with an ice-breaker round and quickly got to work. 

The day was divided into three parts. In the first, we reviewed key concepts: peace, conflict, gender and militarisation. 

Participants were first invited to draw a mural of 'peace.' This was the result. (Thank you, N.Shekar, for the gift of the white boards!)

The second session was an exploration of traditional security topics such as arms races, nuclear politics, small arms and disarmament from a gender perspective. We opened with Dr. Seuss' 'Butter Battle Book', always a good introduction to ideas like deterrence and the security dilemma. Sudaroli Ramasamy introduced participants to small arms and light weapons, and the gender impact of their proliferation and trade. 

The last session was designed to be an active review of the ideas learned through the day. Partiicpants were assigned the task of choosing one issue that brought together four out of the following five: peace, conflict, arms, security, gender violence. They would then design a public education campaign around this. The message they chose was this: Gender violence reduces security so that peace feels like conflict. The negotiation and crafting of this message took up the allocated time, but enthused, most participants have pledged to return in January to carry out this campaign. Let's see! 

A good time was had by all, and going by their feedback, everyone learned something--including the facilitator! 

16 Days 16 Tweets: Day 8, Militarisation and VAW

Prajnya Initiatives ‏@prajnya2 Dec UN Special Rep on Sexual Violence in Conflict writes: http://bit.ly/1ip6OmC  SV as a tool of war: http://bit.ly/1ip6Qe6  #nosgbv

The UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative. http://bit.ly/VaGpqT UK FM: http://bit.ly/1ip6WT7 #nosgbv

The definitive 2000 report by Elisabeth Rehn and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on Women, War and Peace: http://bit.ly/1ip74C7 #nosgbv

UNSCR 1325, etc. prioritise women’s participation, protection from violence, end to impunity for peace: http://bit.ly/1ip7tEo #nosgbv

@TheSVRI resources on sexual violence in conflict. http://bit.ly/1ip7ND4 . @ICRC’s FAQ: http://bit.ly/1ip7Kr8 #nosgbv

Men and boys are victims of sexual violence in conflict too. http://bit.ly/1ip8vjM #nosgbv

Naming & shaming those using sexual violence in conflict: http://huff.to/wyk5oT 2013 list: http://bit.ly/1ip8BYF , page 4 onwards. #nosgbv

International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia first called rape torture: http://bit.ly/majvza Watch http://bit.ly/1ip8RXO #nosgbv

USIP study on wartime sexual violence: http://bit.ly/1ip9119 “Neither ubiquitous nor inevitable.” #nosgbv

On “Comfort Women:” NGOs held Women's International War Crimes Tribunal on Japan's Military Sexual Slavery. http://bit.ly/1ip9gcB #nosgbv

Ch 16 of the Eminent Persons’ report on the Rwandan genocide describes the horrors of sexual violence: http://bit.ly/1ipa1m0 #nosgbv

Bangladesh, Nepal, Cambodia & Timor-Leste women @ Asia-Pac Reg'l Women’s Hearing on GBV in Conflict. http://bit.ly/1ipacOe #nosgbv

More women live in militarised situations than conflict. Feminists on militarization: http://bit.ly/1ipamFn  http://bit.ly/1ipaowR #nosgbv

Cynthia Enloe on militarization, feminism and the international politics of banana boats. http://bit.ly/1ipawN3 #nosgbv

Militarized masculinities: A conversation with Terrell Carver. http://bit.ly/1ipaB3f #nosgbv

And finally, have you seen our 2012 theme series on militarization and gender? http://bit.ly/YH7iLl #nosgbv