Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR)

Women, War, Peace and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR)

 

New: United Nations Integrated DDR Standards - Women Gender and DDR Module

 

Introduction

Maintaining sustainable peace is often contingent on the successful Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) of former combatants. Collecting weapons, disbanding armed groups and offering services that help fighters find alternative livelihoods can help consolidate peace in formerly violent societies. Women and men have different access to services provided in post-conflict situations. The “invisibility” of many female ex-combatants and females associated with armed forces and groups and the presumption that women performing roles that support male combatants are not entitled to benefits renders many women unable to access services and benefit packages that they should receive upon demobilization.

As holders of knowledge in their communities, as members of the communities that receive demobilized combatants and as former combatants themselves, women possess particular insights and skills that are relevant to DDR, as well as needing particular provisions, services and outputs from DDR. Women are often engaged in grassroots disarmament before official DDR processes begin. Women’s organizations and other civil society organizations often do the work of providing alternatives to combatants and catalyzing new, more peaceful, codes of conduct in society.

DDR programmes often focus on economic and social reintegration and deal inadequately with the psychosocial needs of ex-combatants. Trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder combined with a crisis in expressing masculinity except through violent behaviour may become pervasive in conflict settings. This translates into an increased risk of gender-based violence for many women in post-conflict situations. Furthermore, communities often stigmatize female ex-combatants both for being part of the destruction inflicted upon them and for stepping out of traditional gender roles by taking up arms. Women combatants who have been raped, forcibly impregnated or infected with HIV/AIDS, face heightened discrimination upon their reintegration to home or receiving communities.

Women and girls play multiple roles in armed groups that are not always recognized, from cooks and porters to guards and fighters. The Center for Rights and Democracy found that in Sierra Leone, the 'wives' of rebel RUF commanders were themselves given responsibility as commanders of small boys units. In the Lord's Resistance Army operating in Northern Uganda, 72% of girls reported receiving weapons and military training. Such is the importance of their services to supporting and servicing fighting forces, that girls are often the last to be released, if at all. For example, in May 2001, as a sign of their willingness to 'talk peace', the RUF released over 1000 boys, but only 15 girls. However, of the total number of child soldiers (which constituted nearly half of the RUF fighting forces), one third were girls.

Key Terms

Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) are activities designed to facilitate disbanding military fighters and easing their transition back into society. They are often given priority at the cessation of hostilities, as it is important to help former combatants settle into peacetime occupations. These activities can involve the turning in of weapons and weapons caches, the physical relocation of ex-combatants (often first in camps and then to other locations), distribution of benefits packages for ex-combatants (this can include clothing, minimal amounts of food and cash settlements), and development of credit, training or other programmes to assist the reintegration of combatants into their communities. more...

Disarmament is the collection of small arms and light and heavy weapons within a conflict zone.

Demobilization refers to the process by which parties to a conflict begin to disband their military structures and combatants begin the transformation into civilian life.

Reintegration refers to the process which allows ex-combatants and their families to adapt, economically and socially, to productive civilian life.  more...


Definitions of Female DDR Beneficiaries:

"Female combatants" refers to women and girls who participated in armed conflicts as active combatants using arms.

"Female supporters/Females Associated with Armed Forces and Groups" (FAAFG) are women and girls who participated in armed conflicts in supportive roles, coercedly or voluntarily.

Female dependants are women and girls who are a part of an ex-combatants' household are primarily socially and financially dependent on ex-combatants although they may also have retained other community ties. (e.g. wives/war wives, children, mothers/parents, female siblings, female members of the extended family).

Note: Some women and girls might fall into more than one category due to their multiple, fluid and complex roles during conflicts.

  • Female Eligibility Criteria for DDR Programmes more...
  • Why are female supporters/FAAFG eligible for demobilization? more…

International Organizations

  • Namibia Platform for Action to Mainstream Gender in Multidimensional Peace Operations: more...
  • Security Council resolution 1325: encourages “all those involved in the planning for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration to consider the different needs of female and male ex-combatants and to take into account the needs of their dependents.” more…
  • The Second Biennial Meeting of States (SBMS) on Small Arms and the Programme of Action was held in New York from 11 to 15 July 2005.
  • The Small Arms and Demobilization Unit (SADU) of UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR) is the main body within UNDP dealing with DDR related activities. The SADU has projects in over sixty countries. more...

UNIFEM Action and Analysis

UNIFEM has played a major role in promoting the DDR processes in Central and West Africa, East Asia, Eastern Europe and the South Pacific. Efforts include:

  • Carrying out a desk study to review UN DDR initiatives from a gender perspective. Through the study, UNIFEM created two in-depth case studies and a Standard Operating Procedure on DDR: Getting it Right, Doing it Right;
  • Providing capacity building for civil society in countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Albania;
  • Organizing workshops to develop national strategies for ensuring women's participation in all stages of the DDR process;
  • Ensuring that the needs of female ex-combatants and their dependents are not overlooked;
  • Encouraging women to become active agents driving the decision-making process both within their families and their communities;
  • Building partnerships and facilitating workshops with other organizations involved in DDR processes, including the World Bank Multi-Country Demobilization and Reintegration Program (MDRP). more… A 2005 report from a UNIFEM/MDRP workshop can be downloaded in French and in English.
  • Changing attitudes toward arms-keeping as part of national and regional cultures.

Tools & Checklists

UN Documents

  • Department for Disarmament Affairs: Gender Perspectives on DDR Briefing Note more...

  • Department for Disarmament Affairs: Gender Perspectives on Disarmament and Development Briefing Note. more...

  • Department for Disarmament Affairs: Women’s Advocacy for Peace and Disarmament Briefing Note. more...

  • UNDP Bureau For Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR): Small Arms and Demobilization. more...

  • UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO): DDR Point of Contact page. more...

  • Department for Disarmament Affairs: Gender Perspectives on Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration more...

  • Department for Disarmament Affairs:  Peace and Security through Disarmament

  • Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA): December 2005 report, “Conflict in Africa and the Role of Disarmament, Demobilization and Reconstruction in Post-Conflict Reconstruction.” more...

Independent Experts' Assessment & Recommendations

The Independent Experts' Assessment on Women, War, Peace and DDR and the accompanying recommendations can be accessed in this archive: DDR Archive.