Short description
What happens to women in the aftermath of war and internal conflict? This book asserts that the post-war period is too late for women to transform patriarchal gender relations; the foundations for change must be built during conflict. The Contributors analyze what women endure and what they construct during and after conflict, what obstacles they encounter in their search for autonomy and what bonds of solidarity they create in building peace.
Long description
What happens to women in the aftermath of war? This book asserts that for women there is no aftermath - a truce does not end gender violence. It asks how transitions from war to peace and from authoritarian to democratic regimes can become opportunities for real social transformation. It presents an honest accounting of what women lose and gain in wartime and how they organize, and analyzes why they fail to consolidate their gains. It reflects on how war changes identities, on the myths that men and women invent about each other in wartime, and on the problems of reconciliation and women's solidarity. It focuses on shifts in gender relations during post-conflict reconstruction and transformation. The contributors consider the relation of the state to society in the aftermath, searching for a vision of the transformed society. The second part documents the varied nature of war and post-war situations.