Below are some reflections concerning the common priorities faced by women from different countries, who live in the same region and whose countries are experiencing abnormal situations.
On an initiative of the Institute for Democracy in Eastern Europe (IDEE), a program was launched last year to establish a group of 24 women leaders in the South Caucasus. The main aims of this program were to establish a network of women (working in different countries but in similar circumstances), to build trust among them, to teach them leadership skills as well as to establish strategic goals and a program to jointly achieve them. The program was named “Working Together – Networking Women from the Caucasus,” which well-illustrated composition of the network and its working style. IDEE persuaded the Bureau of Cultural and Educational Affairs of the US State Department to finance the program and fantastic trainers from around the world to participate in training the network.
Training was conducted not only during the seminars, where women had the possibility to meet as well as to learn what an NGO is, how to plan strategically, how to advocate for the rights of women and how to build coalitions, but also between seminars, when the local organizers (The Society for Defense of Women’s Rights in Azerbaijan – Ms. Novella Jafarova, International Pen Center in Armenia – Ms. Anna Hakobyan and the Association of IDP Women in Georgia – Ms. Julia Kharashvili) continued training the network leaders in their own countries and shared their knowledge with other organizations and groups.
During the program, various initiatives were bandied about, but the most attractive initiative became devoting efforts towards reconciliation within the framework of the entire South Caucasus. The women brought together in these seminars initially came to discuss their own specific problems, but found that many of the problems specific to women (i.e., poverty, increasing violence in general as well as specifically against women, children’s education, unemployment etc.) are closely related to the overall situation in the region.
The South Caucasus is a “hot” region. Conflicts which died down several years ago, have a tendency to break out from time to time. Cease fires exist, but in most countries there is a “no peace, no war” situation, which makes the entire region very unstable. This leaves the question of military solutions open. Psychologically, the population is tired of the long-term suffering and the unclear prospects for future. Therefore, broad-based educational activity is important, not only in regard to alternative ways of resolving disputes, but also in regard to reconciliation and overcoming the associated trauma.
The societies in which we live are highly traumatized and alternatives, which in fact exist, are frequently difficult to perceive. The possibility of congregating in the friendly environment of the seminars helped the women to establish emotional relationships and to reflect together over common traumatic experiences.
This provided us with the opportunity to reach common conclusions, one of which was that we all live together in a geographic space called the Caucasus and that we should jointly establish a system which will create a safe environment for women and for members of their families.
By reconciliation we mean the process of rebuilding relationships among divided societies which have been disrupted by war and conflict. In regard to conflicts in the Caucasus, there are several unresolved situations which continue to take their toll on internal development. Unfortunately, there is no positive development. We think that it is necessary to bring new actors and new models into the process, to look at the situation in a new way. Talks concerning reconciliation, instead of talks concerning conflict resolution, can create a new agenda which will be more acceptable for the divided communities, as reconciliation is based more on a grassroots approach and can be reached without political compromises.
Women and children are ideally suited for the role of “bridge builders.” They fit well into the new approach of reconciliation, as they are not engaged in politics and they are the carriers of the ideas of non violence. It is currently very fashionable to talk about the “women’s way” in peace talks as well as to conduct separate women’s negotiations. In reality, in our countries, women still do not have real access to the decision-making process, especially in regard to real peace talks. However, we think that women can play an important role in rebuilding confidence and in finding common priorities which can help unite women in regions of conflict in order to achieve a stable peace and change the public climate from below (beginning with families, then communities and finally lobbying decision makers and politicians).
Many of the women in the South Caucasian network already have some experience in peace building, including participation in dialogues on the community level, implementation of joint projects (such as peace camps), joint publications and monitoring the security situation. These are only the first steps towards reconciliation.
In order to move ahead, it is first necessary
to create a safe place for peace talks, where women from different zones
of conflict can participate with equal status and where they can honestly
talk about their social, economic and civil problems. Reconciliation among
women can begin by mutually solving specific problems, forgiveness by each
side, giving to others and the recognition of one’s own part in the common
problem. Reconciliation can begin with a common desire to see our children
healthy and wealthy, without weapons in their hands. Reconciliation can
begin with planning for a common future and increasing the participation
of women in setting strategies and models of reconciliation. From a very
practical point of view, women are more interested in stability in their
region, as their prosperity and wealth are based on safety for their family
members, especially children. The similar tragic events which the women
in the region have experienced is the basis for the common desire concerning
the necessity to change national policies making them more humanistic and
truly peace oriented. Women already have leading roles in the family, the
community and in the third sector. We need to take the next step – to come
together and build a single community which will protect our common house
from new fires.