The UN Security Council and the Political Economy of the WPS Resolutions

Abstract

As of June 2017, there were eight United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs) on “women and peace and security”—UNSCRs 1325, 1820, 1888, 1889, 1960, 2106, 2122, and 2242. These UNSCRs recognize the gendered nature of armed conflicts and peace processes. They propose institutional provisions geared mainly toward protecting women and girls during armed conflicts and promoting their participation in conflict resolution and prevention. In addition, in March 2016, the Security Council adopted UNSCR 2272, which recommends concrete steps to combat sexual exploitation and abuse in United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations, an issue that is of significant concern for women, peace, and security (WPS) advocates. The volume of resolutions and policy literature on WPS would suggest that UNSCR 1325 and the follow-up UNSCRs have become central to the mandate of the Security Council. Yet there is a paucity of financial resources to pay for implementation of the resolutions; this has been described as “perhaps the most serious and persistent obstacle … over the past 15 years” (UN Women 2015, 372).

¿Qué son y dónde se sitúan los Estudios Feministas de Seguridad?

“…Desde esa conversación inicial, creo que los EFS se han beneficiado sustancialmente del trabajo reciente que regresa a la integración del trabajo de seguridad y economía política que precedió al establecimiento del término EFS (p. ej., Martín de Almagro y Ryan, 2020; Lai, 2020;Tanyag, 2020;Basu, 2017). Aunque quiero y me gustaría mantener, una serie de desarrollos de la producción académica de los EFS, creo que revivir el sentido de interdependencia entre la economía política y la seguridad que existía en los primeros estudios feministas de RRII ha abierto un mundo completamente nuevo de trabajo teórico y explicativo para los EFS, y su potencial sólo ha comenzado a explorarse.…”

Feminist institutionalism

“…Scholars of Feminist International Relations have only recently begun to apply FI approaches to examine how international and regional security institutions such as the UN, NATO, the European Union and African Union are gendered and produce gendered effects for social actors that interact inside and outside of them (Holmes et al 2019). Here, emphasis is placed on how effectively international institutions are implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (Women, Peace and Security) and its related resolutions, though it is recognised that there are many other policy areas that demand attention (See Basu 2010;Wright 2016;Hurley 2018;Bastick and Duncanson 2018;Kronsell 2015;Guerrina et al 2016).…”

Three Dimensions of Gender Mainstreaming in Economic Peacebuilding: Insights from Indonesia and Nigeria

“…Indeed, feminist activists and scholars have long sought to shape development practices, raising awareness of the complex web of gender relations in everyday lives and of the pivotal roles that women play in securing livelihoods. They have advocated for integrating gender into the design, implementation and monitoring of development programmes, in particular in post-conflict settings (Baliamoune-Lutz and McGillivray, 2009;Basu, 2017;Cornwall, Harrison and Whitehead, 2006;Greenberg and Zuckerman, 2009;Marteu, 2011;Reysoo and Verschuur, 2017;Verschuur, 2017).…”

“…To bolster their arguments, scholars have shown how deeply embedded norms of marriage, inheritance, land ownership and the different economic roles of men and women can foster or prolong conflict and further gender inequalities (Baliamoune-Lutz and McGillivray, 2009;Bowen, Hudson and Nielsen, 2015;Caprioli, 2005;Chinkin and Charlesworth, 2006;Forsberg and Olsson, 2016;Hudson and Matfess, 2017). In addition, they have pointed to the role of neo-liberal capitalism in putting pressure on land and resources, with the effect of rendering already vulnerable populations poorer and further at risk of violent conflict (Basu, 2017;Ramnarain, 2013;Reysoo and Verschuur, 2017;unrisd, 2005). Anti-mining campaigns in Indonesia, the issue of Fulani herders deprived of grazing lands due to increased land appropriations in Nigeria (Rigual, Udasmoro and Achakpa, forthcoming), or mineral extraction for technology industries in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Cohn, 2012, 27) are only some examples of the impact that globalised capitalism is having on livelihoods and violent conflict.…”

“…Anti-mining campaigns in Indonesia, the issue of Fulani herders deprived of grazing lands due to increased land appropriations in Nigeria (Rigual, Udasmoro and Achakpa, forthcoming), or mineral extraction for technology industries in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Cohn, 2012, 27) are only some examples of the impact that globalised capitalism is having on livelihoods and violent conflict. Feminist scholars are wary of these dynamics, and fear that a focus on gender and security might preclude an analysis of the deep-seated economic power relations at the root of many contemporary conflicts (Basu, 2017).…”