Women in international law


is essential for understanding and protecting human rights, particularly in conflict situations and post-conflict reconstruction. Women continue to be disproportionately affected by these conflicts and are consistently overlooked in peace negotiations, despite their work on the ground in post-conflict reconstruction, aid and ceasefire negotiations. While women were technically included in the Geneva II peace talks regarding Syria, they were not present during formal negotiations. While women's formal participation in peace negotiations in Myanmar remain low, they still have an important role at the community level and have emerged as ‘front-line responders’ to the Rohingya situation.

International law mechanisms

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 18 December 1979, following thirty years’ work undertaken by the UN Commission on the Status of Women to promote women's rights. CEDAW has often been described as an ‘international bill of rights’ for women, affirming that human rights includes gender equality. The rights covered in CEDAW include many aspects of women's lives, including women's political participation, education, health, employment, marriage and legal equality. Highlighting the human rights concerns of women, it acknowledges that discrimination against women continues, violating principles of equality and human dignity. In enhancing understanding of human rights, CEDAW recognises the effect of culture and tradition in restrictions on women, calling for a change in understandings of traditional roles of men and women to achieve full gender equality.
A relatively recent development in international law directly addressing women in conflict has been the adoption of Resolution 1325 by the UN Security Council on 31 October 2000, affirming the important role women can and do play in the conflict prevention and resolution, peace processes and post-conflict reconstruction. In doing so, the UN Security Council recognized the "changing nature of warfare, in which civilians are increasingly targeted." It is unique in that it is the first time the UN Security Council "addressed the disproportionate and unique impact of armed conflict on women." UNSCR 1325 urges all actors to increase the participation of women in these processes and to take "special measures to protect women and girls from gender-based violence" in conflict situations, such as rape and sexual abuse. Research undertaken since the adoption of UNSCR 1325 has recognised the importance of the involvement of women in peace and security, and is now consolidated under the "Women, Peace and Security Agenda." Additionally, evidence collected by UN Women has shown how conflict prevention correlates with gender equality; unfortunately, there are still inadequate actions for women's inclusion and protection in conflict and post-conflict situations. 2016 saw a 20% reduction in peace agreements containing gender-specific provisions, dropping from 70% to 50%.

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Violence against women

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been described as the "rape capital of the world," with commentators going so far as to describe it as a "war against women." Women and girls have disproportionately suffered from the DRC conflicts, subjected to crimes such as rape, forced prostitution and forced marriage. The UN Special Rapporteur on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Margot Wallstrom, has raised international awareness of the widespread sexual violence and impunity in the DRC, stating that rape is not cultural, but a crime. Up to six million have been killed in the wars lasting nearly two decades, conflicts with both economic and political effects. Fighting has been sparked by the DRC's mineral wealth, with both sides using the country's instability to "plunder natural resources." Crimes against civilians, particularly against women and girls, have been met with impunity as violent conflicts intensify. These acts include gang rape, public rape, instrumental rape and female genital mutilation.
Estimates vary and are compromised by lack of reporting, however by 2011 it was estimated that over 200,000 rapes had been committed over a ten-year period. The UN Population Fund concluded that over 8,000 acts of sexual violence occurred in 2009 and 2010 in the DRC. By 2011, it was estimated that 1 152 women were raped every day, calculated at 48 women per hour. In 2014, reported cases of rape in the DRC were increasing. While gender-based and sexual violence has become endemic in the DRC, it is particularly so in the East, with this violence persisting due to high insecurity. Another reason is the high level of impunity met with acts of sexual assault, as the judicial system is under-resourced and the social status of women in the DRC remains low, to the point that women who are raped are considered worthless. Additionally, displacement, insecurity and continuing conflict only exacerbate violence against women and girls, even by other members of the community as well as armed groups.
Since 2006, developments have been made at the national and international levels to directly address violence against women and girls in the DRC. In 2006, the Congolese government adopted a new law providing a legal framework criminalising acts of sexual mutilation, sexual slavery, sexual relations with underage children, and the use of instruments in sexual violence. This has been designed to combat informal settlements between perpetrators and the families of victims, such as forced marriages between the victim and her rapist. The UN has since adopted the Comprehensive Strategy on Combating Sexual Violence in the DRC, focusing on combating impunity; preventing violence; reformation of the security sector; and assistance for survivors. Additionally, the UN Security Council has since adopted Resolutions 1856, 1888 and 1960 to condemn sexual violence in conflict situations, building on Resolution 1325 in its advocacy of women's involvement in peace process and post-conflict reconstruction.
The sexual violence is more than individual attacks; it is used to destroy communities and families, who would be forced off their land. Women who are raped have no value in Congolese society and are ostracized from their families and communities, as well as dealing with after-effects such as mental and physical health issues and pregnancies. In 2017, the international campaign "16 Days of Activism" to end violence against women and girls, saw governments, activists, men, women and civil society collectively promote human rights. On November 25, 2017, UN agencies, media, civil society, government officials and students gathered in Kinshasa to launch the 2017 campaign theme "Leave No One Behind: End Violence Against Women and Girls." This included school competitions in which students answered questions about the texts and laws designed to protect women and girls from gender-based violence.

Syria: Women's involvement in the peace talks

The Syrian civil war has made Syrian women and girls particularly vulnerable to sexual and gender-based violence, marginalisation and poverty. Up to 500 000 deaths have occurred from the crisis, causing unprecedented refugee levels. While both women and men are subjected to gender-based violence, women and girls are disproportionately targeted. Pre-existing gender inequalities put women and girls at greater risk of violence, trafficking, forced marriage and exploitation. Women continue to be under-represented in the Syrian peace negotiations and few women were able to participate in the Geneva II peace talks, although not formally. In 2012, UN Women reviewed 31 peace processes, in which only 4% of peace agreements contained female signatories. A study undertaken by the Council on Foreign Relations in 2018 found that between 1990 and 2017, only 19% of peace agreements contained references to women.
However, women are leading actors at the local level, addressing the consequences of civil war by assisting internally displaced peoples and survivors of sexual violence, engaging in ‘cross-community dialogue’ and working in factories at their own personal risk. They have led non-violent protests to release detainees, continue to work in field hospitals and schools, distribute aid and supplies, and "document human rights violations." Despite this, there is no mechanism to ‘carry those experiences across into the formal peace negotiations’.
Syrian women have begun to remedy this themselves. On 6 January 2014, the Syrian Women's Charter was created in Damascus, advocating an end to violence and highlighting the need for Syrian unity to create a "future Syrian state that will honour its citizens their basic human rights." They have made "practical proposals for what civil society participation could look like" and have worked together despite political affiliations and personal differences. Additionally, the Syrian Women's Political Movement has been created and aims towards a 30% quota to ensure women's participation in conflict resolution processes. The "It Takes a Woman" campaign was launched by UN Women in 2017 to raise awareness of Syrian women activists involved in both formal and informal peace processes, highlighting public debate over women's right to participate in the ongoing peace processes.

Myanmar: Rohingya women respond to the ongoing crisis

In western Myanmar, the Rohingya population continues to suffer from mass killings, village destruction and gang rapes perpetrated by Myanmar's security forces The attacks began Myanmar's Rakhine State in August 2017, leading to ongoing violence. Since then, approximately 650 000 people have crossed into neighbouring Bangladesh, with tens of thousands displaced within the Rakhine state. Women and girls have been disproportionately affected, subjects to mutilation, gang rape, forcible detention and burned to death. Exact statistics are unknown, due to difficulties in documentation as well as the social stigma surrounding acts of sexual violence. As in other countries, "sexual violence has been used as a weapon against the Rohingya." In the camp in Bangladesh's Cox Bazar, up to 600 000 refugees live in crowded conditions, with girls as young as 11 forced to marry by their families in the hope of acquiring more food.
The representation of women in Myanmar's peace talks remains low. In the April 2016 peace talks, women accounted for 13% of the 700 delegates, increasing to 17% in May 2017. Only 4% of the 48-member peace committee were women. Despite their underrepresentation in formal peace processes, Myanmar's women have been "driving forces for peace around the world." In the conflict zone, women are "emerging as front-line responders', taking care of other women in roles ranging from midwives to caseworkers. While their participation in public life is restricted, women have been the ‘entry point for reaching the whole community with messages about services, safety and human rights." In October 2017, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Committee on the Rights of the Child called on Myanmar to stop the violence in the Rakhine State and to investigate cases of violence against women and children.