Abstract
This article addresses gender-responsive governance reforms in post-conflict Kosovo from two perspectives: (1) the perspective of human rights as fundamental for state-building, and (2) the resolutions of the UN Security Council regarding Women, Peace, and Security (WPS), notably the initial UNSCR 1325. Special focus is laid on women's agency in governance matters—at the level of the state and at the level of civil society. A gender approach to three dimensions of governance—political-administrative governance, security governance, and socioeconomic governance—shows successes and problems in this post-conflict society. Special attention is given to the strategies of the women's movement in reaching gender-responsive governance. Some initiatives for new masculinities address the necessity of norm change in gender governance. The analysis of the literature and documents, supplemented by interviews, reveals the transformative potential of gender governance that solidly roots in women's rights and combines a multi-actor approach at grassroots, and at national and international levels with strong alliances and very concrete actions.
Highlights
The challenging task of rebuilding the state starts functioning when war and armed conflict have ended, when armed groups have been dismantled, and when violence and destruction have stopped
Before I discuss below important elements of gender governance in Kosovo, I delineate two, in my opinion, basic ingredients of gender governance in post-conflict societies, CEDAW, and United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325
Some specific paragraphs of UNSCR 1325 relate to our discussion of governance: UNSCR 1325 reaffirms the need to implement fully international humanitarian and human rights law that protects the rights of women and girls during and after conflicts; it (u)rges Member States to ensure increased representation of women at all decision-making levels in national, regional, and international institutions and mechanisms for the prevention, management, and resolution of conflict; and it (c)alls on all actors involved, when negotiating and implementing peace agreements, to adopt a gender perspective, 3CEDAW, Available online at: https://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/ cedaw.htm, p. 1
Summary
The challenging task of rebuilding the state starts functioning when war and armed conflict have ended, when armed groups have been dismantled, and when violence and destruction have stopped. “The new Agenda recognizes the need to build peaceful, just and inclusive societies that provide equal access to justice and that are based on respect for human rights (including the right to development), on effective rule of law and good governance at all levels and on transparent, effective and accountable institutions. Gender-responsive governance reforms, focus on women’s needs, livelihoods, rights, and participation as entry points and parameters for the political-administrative, security, and socioeconomic governance components discussed above (UNW, 2015b). Big varieties of women NGOs in post-conflict societies can be observed; they engage for social, educational, economic, and political issues They provide health, including reproductive health care, for women and for victims of rape and domestic violence, and income-generation for women including war widows. Before I discuss below important elements of gender governance in Kosovo, I delineate two, in my opinion, basic ingredients of gender governance in post-conflict societies, CEDAW, and UNSCR 1325
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