CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020
| Author | Szedlacsek, Eszter |
|---|---|
| Title | Gendered (in)security: a critical analysis of the local turn through small arms control, gender and power in Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Summary | The role of gender and power dynamics in post-conflict environments is more relevant than ever, at the 20th anniversary of UNSCR 1325. The thesis examines the role of gender in post-conflict environments through internationally and locally constructed policies, specifically through analyzing the recently developed small arms control initiative, fostered by the EU. Through a case study of small arms control in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the paper aims to explore how various international and local actors’ power is interlinked with gender and in what way this affects the overcoming of strongly patriarchal conceptualizations of (in)security. The thesis argues the small arms control initiative successfully brings in perspectives on women’s participation in security and small arms control, however it is limited to the category of ‘women-a nd-girls’ ;, in a patriarchally organized, gendered institutional structure. Though the inclusion of women into security structures is indeed a meaningful goal, it does not question the gendered processes of marginalization and violence through small arms and thus, does not prevent the reproduction of such processes filled with insecurity. Gendered insecurity could only be tackled with initiatives focusing on post-colonial power dynamics in the so-labelled ‘local turn’, in security institutions and in the interplay between various involved international and local actors. The findings have extremely relevant implications for the EU’s foreign and security policy not only in Bosnia, but in post-conflict environments in general, where gender aspects of insecurity and violence are present. |
| Supervisor | Violetta Zentai; Susan Forde |
| Department | Public Policy MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2020/szedlacsek_eszter.pdf |
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