Inside Geneva: where are women's voices in peace talks?

Inside Geneva

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In Ukraine, and in the Middle East, men say they are negotiating peace. But are they?

“Ending war is necessary to peace without a doubt, but ending war does not mean peace. So, whenever these men use the word ‘peace’ in order to say ‘ceasefire’ and ‘stop the guns’, this is not peace,” says Deborah Schibler from PeaceWomen across the Globe (PWAG).

“What the US is doing right now is an extractivist assertion of power, arguably even a second imperial ambition that we are seeing now alongside Russia. Democracy, peace and gender equality mutually reinforce each other,” adds Leandra Bias from the Universtiy of Bern.

So, where are the women in these “peace” negotiations? Our guests tell Inside Geneva that they should be everywhere... not nowhere.

“Women, women’s perspectives, gender perspectives and human security perspectives have to be in every process and every structure of armed forces,” says Mahide Aslan, head of women and diversity at Swiss Armed Forces.

“There are so many women who are really keen to get involved in these formal peace negotiations and who are ready for it, but it is made very difficult for them,” says Larissa Lee, from PWAG.

How can women’s voices be heard in peace talks? Join host Imogen Foulkes on our Inside Geneva podcast.

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• Email us at [email protected]
• Twitter: @ImogenFoulkes and @swissinfo_en

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For more stories on the international Geneva please visit www.swissinfo.ch/
Host: Imogen Foulkes
Production assitant: Claire-Marie Germain
Distribution: Sara Pasino
Marketing: Xin Zhang

Chapters

1. Introduction to Women, Peace and Security (00:00:00)

2. Women's Crucial Roles in Peacebuilding (00:04:00)

3. The Absence of Women in Current Peace Talks (00:08:37)

4. Why Peace Is More Than Stopping Guns (00:15:12)

5. Patriarchy and Nation Building (00:19:29)

6. Bridging Military-Civilian Divide (00:27:54)

7. Positive Examples of Women in Peace Processes (00:31:00)