Girl Soldiers: Human Security and Gendered Insecurity

Abstract

The aim of this article is to make a preliminary attempt to explore the extent to which the subject of girl soldiers might fit into discussions of security. The empirical study of girl soldiers falls within the larger issue of child soldiers, which has received wide exposure in recent years, though there have been few attempts to conceptualize or attach theory to it. This is even more so in regard to girl soldiers, who until recently were barely acknowledged or noticed, though they arecurrently estimated to comprise somewhere between one-tenth and one-third of all child soldiers. Gender and security literature has also tended to overlook girl soldiers, and there are limitations on applying gender theory to the plight of recruited girls. Although the subjectof girl soldiers is difficult to locate within traditional state-military security or social security discussions, it appears to fall squarelywithin the human security approach. In spite of the weaknesses ofthe human security concept, its strengths create a security space in which the gendered insecurities of girl soldiers can be recognized and addressed.

Wartime Sexual Violence: Assessing a Human Security Response to War-Affected Girls in Sierra Leone

“…Some have argued that the emerging human security agenda may provide a useful forum from which broader issues of gendered insecurity may be understood (Fox, 2004). The following section explores the human security approach and its capacity to respond to the plight of victims of wartime sexual violence.…”

Horror and Hope: (re)presenting militarised children in global North–South relations

“…18 Second, the one-dimensional view of child soldiers encourages a neglect of militarised children who are neither male nor African. 19 Third, the stereotypical image neglects the diversity of militarism's impact on children in the global South, and indeed throughout the world. 20 In short, this problematic stereotype fails to engage the breadth of what it means to militarise children.…”

Girl Soldiers and Human Rights: Lessons from Angola, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Northern Uganda

“…53 For girls in fighting forces, the chronic quest for safety and security, regardless of the nature of their roles, is particularly challenging due to the vulnerability exacerbated by their gender, age and physical disadvantage. 54 This section explores girls' experiences of victimisation and insecurity within the armed groups.…”