Gender, Citizenship, and the Future of the Northern Ireland Peace Process

Abstract

Gender, Citizenship, and the Future of the Northern Ireland Peace Process Margaret Ward (bio) It has been seven years since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement and eleven years since the first IRA cease-fire, yet political stability in Northern Ireland remains elusive. This article considers developments over the past decade from a gender perspective, in order to argue that the lack of gender parity that exists throughout Northern Irish society is a key factor in hindering the development of a new, shared future. International commitments to the promotion of women's equality and the work of academics and activists in peace and conflict studies provide empirical and theoretical evidence for including a gendered perspective in negotiating and implementing peace agreements. There has been increasing international recognition that a "gender-blind" approach to conflict resolution and reconstruction has been a critical element in the global failure to achieve a sustainable peace. Concerted pressure, particularly from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working in conflict zones, has resulted in the adoption of a crucial measure, the promotion of which has done much to improve the visibility of women in war-torn societies.1 On 31 October 2000, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 1325 on "Women, Peace and Security," calling for the full integration of women in all efforts regarding conflict resolution and [End Page 262] postconflict implementation. This landmark resolution is helping to achieve greater gender parity in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan, but it is one that the British and Irish governments have ignored in their efforts to resolve the Northern Ireland conflict. Achievement of Resolution 1325 requires a "critical mass" of women at all levels of society, and recognition that formal peace processes are not the only arena. Women's involvement in informal processes of peace-building includes "constructing the conditions of society to foster peace through development and aid, human rights education, reconciliation and the restoration of community life."2 However, unless high-level representation is achieved, the good practice that exists at community level cannot be disseminated or developed into policy initiatives. Equally, because it is at peace accords where the foundations for a future society are often set, it is at this level where gender issues should be addressed and where a gender perspective on peace should be incorporated.3 The opportunities opened up by UN Resolution 1325 have enabled women to demonstrate what their priorities for peace and for the construction of citizenship would be. Research from Scandinavia reveals that it is mostly female politicians who place women's issues on the formal political agenda.4 Christine Chinkin has given examples from Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Afghanistan, and East Timor. In every situation women have argued that NGOs—and women's groups specifically—have the right to participate in the work of reconstruction and that human rights relating to women, including health, education, political rights, and equality, should be recognized. Significantly, as Chinkin points out, despite such extensive grass roots activity, a huge gap remains between these community-based processes and the formal, official negotiation processes of peace settlements that Resolution 1325 has not been able to bridge. The reality is that a peace process is a "top-down process," whereby local [End Page 263] communities— especially women—are typically excluded and women, despite their activity in informal peace processes, remain largely absent from the formal negotiations.5 This was not the case in Northern Ireland during the period in which the Good Friday Agreement was negotiated. Then, women were unusually visible in the political sphere. On the British Government side, day-to-day oversight of the negotiations was in the hands of Dr. Mo Mowlam, in her role as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. As Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Liz O'Donnell formed part of the Irish Government delegation, while the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition made a major contribution to the agreement. What was achieved for women in the agreement will be discussed subsequently, as the legacy of the agreement is evaluated. What is significant, in terms of female political participation, is the fact that, although numbers elected to the Assembly have...