Liberal Peacebuilding and Gender: Cases of Cyprus, Bosnia and Northern Ireland

Yıl 2023, Cilt: 47 Sayı: 6, 1646 - 1674, 15.12.2023

Özker Kocadal

Öz

The main purpose of this article is to highlight the importance of gender perspective in peacebuilding processes. With the UNSC Resolution 1325 on 'Women, Peace and Security', gender perspective has been accepted as an essential part of peacebuilding. However, in practice, we cannot talk about gender-sensitive peacebuilding. The liberal peacebuilding approach adopted by the UN and other major international actors in their interventions in post-conflict societies has fundamental problems such as its top-down working structure, lack of legitimacy and sustainability, and these problems hinder the implementation of the gender perspective. In this article, the ongoing liberal peacebuilding processes in Cyprus, Bosnia and Northern Ireland are analyzed through a gender perspective. In the presented study, the main problems of peacebuilding and gender relationship, such as the patriarchal political structure prevailing in all three examples, are pointed out. The analysis indicates that women's civil society in Cyprus and Bosnia is weak and ineffective, and peacebuilding in those places have no broad social base. In Northern Ireland, women have developed networks of solidarity starting from the most violent years of the conflict and influenced the peace agreement. Also, peacebuilding in Northern Ireland has a broad social base. While peacebuilding processes in Cyprus and Bosnia are struggling with legitimacy and sustainability issues under the domination of international actors, there is a legitimate and sustainable peacebuilding process in Northern Ireland driven by local dynamics. The article concludes that the top-down 'liberal' peacebuilding approach of international actors should be replaced with ‘the local turn’ which emphasizes a bottom-up peacebuilding approach that prioritizes local actors (such as women's organizations) and daily needs (such as livelihood concerns).

Anahtar Kelimeler

Liberal Peacebuilding, Gender, Post-conflict Societies, Cyprus- Bosnia- Northern Ireland.

Liberal Barış İnşası ve Toplumsal Cinsiyet: Kıbrıs, Bosna ve Kuzey İrlanda Örnekleri

Öz

Bu makale barış inşası ve toplumsal cinsiyet kavramı arasındaki ilişkiyi incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Barış inşası, 1990’ların başından itibaren uluslararası toplumun, özellikle Birleşmiş Milletler (BM) örgütünün, odaklandığı başlıca alanlardan biridir. Barış inşası, çatışma sonrası toplumları dönüştürerek kalıcı barışın tesis edildiği, düşmanlıkların dostluk ve birlikte yaşama normlarına evrimleştiği bir siyasi, toplumsal ve ekonomik düzen kurmayı hedefleyen süreç ve faaliyetler bütünüdür. Dolayısıyla toplumsal cinsiyet eşitliğinin sağlanmasının barış inşası için önemi yadsınamaz. Ancak yakın zamana kadar, barış inşası süreçlerinde toplumsal cinsiyet genellikle göz ardı edilmiştir. Bu makalede önce barış inşası ve toplumsal cinsiyet kavramları tartışılmakta ve iki kavram arasındaki temel ilişki kurulmaktadır. Makalede sırasıyla Kıbrıs, Kuzey İrlanda ve Bosna örneklerinde barış anlaşması için yürütülen barış inşası süreç ve faaliyetleri toplumsal cinsiyet eşitliği kavramı üzerinden analiz edilmiştir. İncelenen üç örnekte de silahlı çatışma sonrası toplumların ortak sorunu olan toplumsal cinsiyet eşitsizlikleri tespit edilmiştir. Silahlı çatışma süreci boyunca her üç toplumda da ‘ataerkil’ siyasi yapılar etkindir. Vaka analizleri, kadınların geçmişe kıyasla son yıllarda bu toplumlarda barışı tesis etme faaliyet ve süreçlerinde daha aktif olduklarını göstermektedir. Barış anlaşması sonrasında, Kuzey İrlanda’da kadınların siyasi sürece katılımı ciddi oranda yükselmiş ve buna bağlı olarak siyasi düzeydeki barış inşası rolleri artmıştır. Kıbrıs ve Bosna’da ise siyaset hala erkek egemen yapılardır ve kadınların barış inşasına katılımı sivil toplum örgütleri üzerindendir. Özetle, uluslararası barış inşası aktörleri ve yerel kadın örgütleri her üç toplumda da toplumsal cinsiyet eşitliğini hedefleyen barış inşası politika ve yaklaşımlarıyla ancak sınırlı bir başarı elde etmişlerdir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Toplumsal Cinsiyet, Çatışma Sonrası Toplumlar, Kıbrıs- Bosna- Kuzey İrlanda., Liberal Barış İnşası

Kaynakça

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