Women and Peace Negotiations in Cyprus

Abstract

The integration of a gender agenda in the peace negotiations in Cyprus has been elusive over the five decades. However, it is only since the late 2000s that civil society and international observers have problematized this lack and attempted to address it through various initiatives. These have included local and international efforts to mobilize Cypriot women across the divide around an agenda based on UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security, which led to the formation of the Gender Advisory Team in 2009. They have also included research efforts by local and international organizations and think tanks to document the extent to women’s inclusion in the peace process on the island. These efforts eventually led to the setup of the Technical Committee on Gender Equality which is attached to the peace negotiations since 2015, but the impact of which has remained marginal. One of the key problems frustrating the integration of a gender agenda in the peace negotiations remains the fact that despite great advances in both societies north and south of the dividing line in many areas of gender equality, the hard politics relating to the Cyprus conflict and its resolution remain contentious and politically perilous to oppose while also being discursively disconnected from perceptions of “gender” and feminist concerns.