{"id":383158,"date":"2021-11-10T23:20:12","date_gmt":"2021-11-10T23:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/castancentre.com\/?p=5472"},"modified":"2021-11-10T23:20:12","modified_gmt":"2021-11-10T23:20:12","slug":"the-foreign-policy-response-to-the-situation-for-women-in-afghanistan-from-optics-to-effective-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2021\/11\/10\/the-foreign-policy-response-to-the-situation-for-women-in-afghanistan-from-optics-to-effective-change\/","title":{"rendered":"The Foreign Policy Response to the Situation for Women in Afghanistan: From Optics to Effective Change?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Sarah Hellyer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women\u2019s Rights as Rhetoric<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Concerns for the rights of Afghan women and girls were used to leverage support for the war in Afghanistan from start to finish. In her famous radio address at the beginning of the war, Laura Bush urged Western governments and the international community to amplify and protect the voice of Afghan women<\/a>. Throughout the duration of the war, this sentiment was captured in the development of foreign policies which were notionally designed to facilitate women\u2019s empowerment and prevent further curtailment of their rights<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet much of the political support and resourcing behind these nominal policies began to dwindle as the war continued, resulting in a failure to secure meaningful change for Afghan women following the withdrawal of US and allied forces<\/a>. Now, Afghan women and girls wait to see whether the international community is serious about promoting and securing their rights, or if concerns for their wellbeing were simply optics all along. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The frustration that Afghan women feel towards the ineffective, optics-driven policy response of the international community is summarised in the following quote from an Afghan human rights defender who spoke recently at a seminar on women and peace negotiations organised by the Castan Centre and Monash Centre for Gender Peace and Security:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c…the other side of the story is the unfair position of the international community. While in statements and press releases and their tweets they talk about women\u2019s rights, they think that women\u2019s rights is a priority for them, that women are half of the society in Afghanistan; in reality they have not done much in terms of protection of especially women human rights defenders in Afghanistan.\u201d <\/em>\u00a0<\/p>[Speaker\u2019s identity withheld for security reasons]<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Feminist Foreign Policy – A New Framework for Securing Women\u2019s Rights?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In contrast to foreign policies which address the rights of women and gender equality as an isolated policy concern, such as those relied on by the US and other western countries throughout the war in Afghanistan, Feminist Foreign Policy<\/a> takes a structural approach to securing the rights of women. Feminist foreign policy draws on critical feminist and race scholarship to create a policy framework that addresses and interrogates the global systems of patriarchal power which facilitate the military-industrial complex and perpetuate harms against women. It is also a framework which steps away from traditional forms of foreign policy which focus on military force and coercion, opting instead for policies which holistically address the human needs of the most vulnerable. Under a feminist foreign policy, the needs of women are central to all policy considerations and their engagement is required in all aspects of political and policy decision making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feminist Foreign Policy is achieving groundswell amongst certain governments, as indicated by the establishment of a Global Partner Network for Feminist Foreign Policy which was formalised at the <\/a>Generation Equality Forum in Paris<\/a> in June this year.  While gender equality and the rights of women are playing an increasingly significant role within international foreign policy, only 8 countries<\/a>, including Sweden and Canada have formally adopted a feminist foreign policy. Notably, Australia, the UK and the US are yet to implement a formal Feminist Foreign Policy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Importantly, research has shown that when women are placed at the centre of foreign policy concerns, meaningful outcomes can be achieved which go beyond optics or gestures. In particular, the Council on Foreign Relations reports that peace agreements which engage civil society and women\u2019s organisations are 64% less likely to fail.[1]<\/sup><\/a> Further, studies indicate that when women participate in peace processes, the agreement reached is likely to be better implemented and more durable.[2]<\/sup><\/a> Moreover, it has also been found that societies with higher levels of gender equality are less prone to conflict both between and within states.[3]<\/sup><\/a> Addressing the need for women engagement in peace talks in the Afghan context, a joint brief<\/a> from UN Women and the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission notes that: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c….in a context where conflict recidivism remains high around the world, the inclusion of women in peace processes, and ceasefires negotiations in particular, may result in the long-term sustainability of the agreement\u2014and of peace itself<\/em>.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Yet despite the evidence that women\u2019s engagement in peace talks leads to better foreign policy outcomes, there were only four women in the Afghan government\u2019s 21-person negotiation team at the Doha negotiations, and no women delegates<\/a> representing the Taliban.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following quote from an Afghan human rights defender at the Women and Peace seminar highlights the need for women to be meaningfully engaged in foreign policy as opposed to symbolic inclusion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think what the major problem is, is giving a symbolic role to Afghan women. Even if it\u2019s a ministerial position, whether it\u2019s an ambassador position, whether you are holding a senior position, whether you are in the negotiation team \u2026 women are mostly given symbolic roles. It\u2019s more about numbers, not about meaningful participation of women, it\u2019s not about women making decisions, it\u2019s not about women influencing the decisions.\u201d <\/em><\/p>[Speaker\u2019s identity withheld for security reasons]<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, this Afghan commentator at the same seminar addresses a key concern of feminist foreign policy, namely that peace-negotiation frameworks should holistically incorporate women instead of being limited to the realm of military and combat, which is primarily the ambit of men:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe belief in Afghanistan is that men fought, so they have to also bring peace. Because men have been leading the war in Afghanistan, they believe that they \u2026 have the responsibility to discuss peace in Afghanistan. I have witnessed different forums where, you know, men have said \u2018why should we bring in women? What woman has to do [here]? We know the war, so we will know the peace also.\u201d <\/em>\u00a0<\/p>[Speaker\u2019s identity withheld for security reasons]<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Feminist Foreign Policy in the Wake of the Withdrawal<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Canada and Sweden are two countries that fought in Afghanistan whilst having a feminist foreign policy framework in place. Sweden was the first country to introduce a feminist foreign policy back in 2014. Ann Bernes, Director and Special Advisor on Women, Peace and Security at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has said<\/a> that Sweden\u2019s feminist foreign policy is about moving gender equality from being an issue that competes amongst other priorities to being \u201cthe absolute core and DNA of\u2026 everything we do.\u201d  The rights and resources of women in Afghanistan has been a key focus of Swedish feminist foreign policy<\/a>,<\/a> with Afghanistan being the largest recipient<\/a> country of Swedish development assistance since 2013.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada\u2019s Feminist International Assistance Policy, which was introduced in 2017, takes a holistic approach to the aims of feminist foreign policy, addressing not just issues of equality and rights recognition but also women\u2019s engagement with and disruption of existing power structures. An example of a project instituted under Canada\u2019s Feminist International Assistance Policy<\/a> in Afghanistan was the Amplify Change: Supporting Women\u2019s Rights<\/em> project aimed at promoting women\u2019s and girls\u2019 rights by increasing awareness of existing rights under the law and by enhancing women\u2019s and girls\u2019 access to services and support.\u201d                                              <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet while both Canada and Sweden have established feminist foreign policy programming efforts during the occupation of Afghanistan, there has been little indication <\/a>from either country about how these efforts will continue following the withdrawal of allied forces that has occurred this year. In a statement following their withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Swedish government has said:<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnder the development assistance strategy, Sweden was due to contribute almost SEK 3.3 billion between 2021 and 2024. Following the Taliban takeover, Sweden will have to redirect parts of this assistance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This raises the question of how countries such as Sweden and Canada will continue to proceed with their feminist foreign policy approach following withdrawal. It also raises questions as to whether the current iterations of these country\u2019s feminist policies can effectively address the needs of Afghan women. Importantly, a growing number<\/a> of feminist foreign policy advocates argue that any form of military intervention is incommensurate with the goal of furthering women\u2019s rights, given the violent patriarchal structures which are imbedded within the military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where to from here?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For many advocates, the withdrawal of troops provides an opportunity for the US and allied countries to instigate a total paradigm shift <\/a>within their foreign policies that facilitates a non-military solution to the situation in Afghanistan through a commitment to peace building. For Lara Kiswani, the executive director of the Arab Resource & Organizing Centre <\/a>(a member of Grassroots Global Justice Alliance<\/a>), this involves adopting the principles of \u2018feminist democracy\u2019 whereby intersectionality and self-determination are pioneered, and economic and political power is redistributed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In any case, the international community waits to see whether the withdrawal of the US and its NATO allies truly signifies the end of (albeit perfunctory) efforts to empower women in Afghanistan, or whether this juncture presents an opportunity to revise current foreign policies and adopt a substantive feminist framework.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

References<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

[1]<\/sup><\/a> Desir\u00e9e Nilsson (2012) Anchoring the Peace: Civil Society Actors in Peace Accords and Durable  Peace, International Interactions, 38:2, 243-266, DOI: 10.1080\/03050629.2012.659139<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2]<\/sup><\/a> Jana Krause, Werner Krause & Piia Br\u00e4nfors (2018) Women\u2019s Participation in Peace Negotiations and the Durability of Peace, International Interactions, 44:6, 985-1016, DOI: 10.1080\/03050629.2018.1492386<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[3]<\/sup><\/a> Hudson, Valerie M., Mary Caprioli, Bonnie Ballif-Spanvill, Rose McDermott, and Chad F. Emmett. \u201cThe Heart of the Matter: The Security of Women and the Security of States.\u201d Quarterly Journal: International Security<\/em>, vol. 33. no. 3. (Winter 2008\/09): 7-45.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Sarah Hellyer is completing a double degree in a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and a Bachelor of Arts at Monash University.\u00a0 She is currently undertaking the Monash\u00a0Afghanistan\u00a0Support Clinic set up by the Monash Faculty of Law’s Clinical Education Program to support the Ham diley Campaign. The Campaign is an initiative started byPhD students Azadah Raz Mohammad (Melbourne University) and Karin Frod\u00e9 (Monash University, Castan Centre Affiliate) and CEO of the Capital Punishment Justice Project, Simone Abel, that seeks to support\u00a0Afghans\u00a0at risk by providing research and advocacy support, as well as by leveraging trusted contacts to make referrals for evacuation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

To receive notifications of new posts, click \u201csign me up\u201d at the bottom
To join the Castan Centre mailing list, click here<\/a>.<\/strong>
To follow the Castan Centre on Twitter, click here<\/a>.
To follow the Castan Centre on Facebook, click here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n

This post was originally published on Castan Centre for Human Rights Law<\/a>. <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Sarah Hellyer Women\u2019s Rights as Rhetoric Concerns for the rights of Afghan women and girls were used to leverage support for the war in Afghanistan from start to finish. In her famous radio address at the beginning of the war, Laura Bush urged Western governments and the international community to amplify and protect the [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":496,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38213,38214,38215,33161,186,1269],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383158"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/496"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=383158"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383158\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":714682,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383158\/revisions\/714682"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=383158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=383158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=383158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}