Women Organising for Change in Syria and Bosnia

The dominant narrative of war excludes women; or more precisely it presents them only as helpless victims and passive spectators of their own destiny decided for them by the men with the guns. That narrative is further played out in the post war structures of the affected society and despite all the rhetoric around the Security Council resolutions on women, peace and security, the patriarchal institutional barriers remain intact. The tasks ahead of us are how to recognize real and true experiences of women and organize for effective change of war-affected societies? Only those who have lived through war and post-war transition(s) have the real knowledge and first hand experience, and it was for that reason that WILPF International initiated a project in 2013 called “Women Organizing for Change in Syria and Bosnia” with the aim of facilitating the exchange of ideas and experiences between women who have gone through and are going through war.