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"The oppressed suffer from the duality which has
established itself in their innermost being. They discover
that without freedom they cannot exist authentically.
Although they desire an authentic existence, they fear it.
They are at one and the same time themselves and the
oppressor whose consciousness they have internalized The
conflict lies in the choice between being wholly themselves
or being divided; between ejecting the oppressor within or
not ejecting them; between human solidarity or alienation;
between following prescriptions or having choices; between
being spectators or actors; between acting or having the
illusion of acting through the action of the oppressors;
between speaking out or being silent, castrated in their
power to create and re-create, in their power to transform
the world. This is the tragic dilemma of the oppressed which
their education must take into account." - Paulo Freire
- Pedagogy of the Oppressed
Reflection on the Journey as a Gender Biased Peace Educator
There is a time when one has to make a fundamental choice
concerning where one stands on issue especially as it
involves gender. My journey into the gendered world happened
by accident like most exciting stories in life. In a world
where planning and order seem to be the hallmark of how
things should be, flexibility can be a virtue.
I was in South Africa in 2001 for the African Youth for a
Culture of Peace Training workshop in Cape Town, after which
I proceeded on holiday for the desired rest and to recharge
my battery. I was invited to participate and assist in the
facilitation of a Gender Advocacy Program (GAP) by some
mutual friends. I gladly accepted it was my first visit to
South Africa and the opportunity to see George Town was
tempting. GAP was to build an inclusive and empowered South
Africa.
The Gender Advocacy Program (GAP)
strive “towards a society in which South African's
particularly those that are marginalized can participate in
policies and decision making at all levels of South African
life for the achievement of gender equality. The Women and
Governance Programme has been operational since 1998.
Through the Women and Governance project, GAP's advocacy
call for the increase of women's representation in
governance structures. The project's goal is to contribute
to a society where women are equally represented in all
structures of governance and women are skilled and empowered
to avail themselves for the leadership positions”. The
vision was inclusivity and empowerment which resonates with
some of my core values.
At the workshop I got my first shock, I was the only male in
the room and was also the youngest. It was a beautiful
workshop of immersion into the world of these women who
every day of their lives play various roles which the
society do not recognize. As the only male in the room, I
was the representatives of all other men and made to
appreciate our position and prejudices. It was an eye-opener
and an initiation into gender issues. Since then my
impression and thinking have changed, due to personal and
professional contacts. In 2015 I was contracted by Search
for Common Ground as a Youth and Women Advocacy Consultant;
interestingly it was called women not gender. In that role,
I was working in 13 communities in the Niger Delta
supporting and empowering women to change their communities.
It was an illuminating experience working with these two
groups that are marginalized in our communities; striving to
enable them to be the change and transform their
communities. Studying the various approaches carefully to
peace education, they made an impressive impact on me; I
appreciated much the critical approach which resonates with
my thinking concerning social issues. Our works in schools
are similar to the integrative approach with a lot to learn.
Dr. Betty Reardon comprehensive approach argument with its
relationship to changing social values and world view to
have a reduction in violence is compelling, but in the midst
of all these approaches, one has to make a decision on which
is the most compelling. I, therefore, read the work of
Reardon again- the
Gender Perspective on Peace Education
– and I was convinced that is the place to be. It struck a
chord within, and for me, it is the most compelling approach
to peace education. It does not make sense to exclude a
significant population of citizens on account of how the
look by men who feel they know it all.
Women have a lot to play in the quest for peace in society,
especially in marginalized communities. I recall discussing
with Leymah Gbowee, my alma mater colleague at Eastern
Mennonite University who later won a Nobel Peace Laureate.
We happen to be in the same department studying conflict
transformation at that time; she recalled how she mobilized
the women of Liberia to question the senseless and killing
of the Liberia civil war.
Her intervention contributed to the signing of the peace
accord in Accra Ghana and the ending of that war. If she and
other women had not intervened, the war could have lasted
longer with its casualties being mostly women and children.
It is a classic case of the contribution of women to
peacebuilding in Africa. In our communities, lots of such
stories are told, but the constant is that the women
intervened against all the odds to make it happen. Let’s
imagine what could happen or could have happened if women
are allowed to come to the table? Our world could be a
better place.
It is imperative that I define where I am coming from and
the baggage I carry. In a world that is continually
changing, our conception of reality shapes the way we view
the world and interacts with it. The beginning is an
understanding of who we are and our place in the scheme of
things. In the words of Socrates centuries ago “know thy
self.” The use of this concept implies the importance of
understanding ourselves as human and our behavior. I am a
male African that have lived most of my life in Africa
working in diverse settings in the continent. Most African
society is structural in roles that allocate the task to
women and men. These roles are different from society to
society; some are empowering, but most are not. The classic
tale is that the male is favored more than the female.
I carry this baggage and reading the work of Reardon and
Snauwaert (2014) the perspective that resonates with me most
was this statement that the “fundamental purpose of
integrating gender into peace knowledge is to inspire such
action and to illuminate the requisite peace learning that
could enable us to transcend patriarchy and its multiple
forms of violence, opening the space in which to construct a
nonviolent gender-equal society”.
In the society where I come from
patriarchy is the norm,
education has not changed the situation, a critical mass of
empowered people have not started questioning the status
quo. Peace cannot be achieved in isolation; everybody should
be involved. Reflecting on the definition of patriarchy, am
convinced that there is a need to dismantle the structures
of oppression inherent in the system.
I have a
preferred option for the oppressed. Patriarchy oppresses and
dehumanizes, Reardon
and Snauwaert (2014) define it as a “social, political, and
economic system of control and domination structured
regarding a hierarchy of human relationships and value that
is based on socially constructed gender differentiation. As
such, it bestows unequal power and value onto males who
exhibit its most important values and traits, excluding and
oppressing those who do not”.
The power
patriarchy bestows on the custodians is unfair and
unhealthy, it has led to the exclusion in this situation not
just women but every other person who does not belong to the
patriarchy group. It is in this respect that youth are
included, I worked in Holland in 2003 coordinating the
biggest network of young peacebuilders then in Africa
comprising more than 200 organizations.
One of the factors
the kept popping out as I visit this country working with
these youths is the question of exclusion. This inclusion of
youth is also in line with the work our center has been
doing in the past ten years. These are the reasons that
convinced me that the gender perspective to peacebuilding is
the most compelling approach.
Reference:
Reardon, B. A., & Snauwaert, D. T. (2014). Betty
A. Reardon: A pioneer in education for peace and human
rights. London: Springer.
Reardon, Betty A., and Snauwaert, Dale T. (editors), (2014a)
Betty A. Reardon: Key texts in gender and peace,
SpringerBriefs on Pioneers in Science and Practice No. 27
(Cham – Heidelberg – New York – Dordrecht – London:
Springer-Verlag, 2014).
Ed. Note:With over 12 years’ experience in peacebuilding,
civic education, human rights, development and environmental
management, Colins was the pioneer Partners for Peace
Project Manager. He has also worked as the African Desk
Coordinator of the African Network of Young Peacebuilders at
the UNOY secretariat in the Netherlands, where he
coordinated various peace building activities in Africa.
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