Peace is more than the absence of conflict. Peace is about justice,
equality and the choice to forgo violence, the choice to break a cycle
which could trap us all forever. Violence is by no means limited to
the physicaldamage inflicted by man on man and all too often by man
against woman, violence is also in the deep corruption that deprives
human beings of equal respect, fair treatment and access to water, to
food, to education, to work. It is relatively easy to confront violent
behavior (whilst potentially dangerous) but how do we tackle the
unseen culture of structural violence^?
Change starts within; when we take responsibility for deciding who we
want to be and what consequences we want to produce in the world. If
we accept the limitations we are confronted with, if we choose to
believe that men can only dominate rather than assuming partnership on
an equal footing with women, that women should only stay in the home,
as machines for reproduction and service, then the violence that
results will continue to poison our societies. True development
depends on the full and active participation of all, the shared
responsibility. The late President of South Sudan, Dr John Garang, in
his speech upon the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement,
called Girls in South Sudan and in the world ‘the marginalized of the
marginalized’; those most excluded from participating, from
contributing, to achieving their full potential.
Women are half or more of the population of the world. Without the
sacrifices of women we as men would not be here, the sacrifice of our
Mothers, sisters, wives, cousins, friends. The people who fetch water
for, cook meals for and raise men, and yet their time in education is
cut short by bias towards boys, early pregnancy and the time
constraints of domestic servitude. In addition women suffer physical
abuse, sexual harassment and rape, the trauma of which can ruin lives
and prevent them claiming their deserved roles at the heart of
development. Fear can stop them from trying for me. Fear of
humiliation. Fear of ignorance.
Fear of violence. And yet there are women in Kenya,Uganda and the
Congo and beyond who defy these circumstances to better themselves and
make substantial contributions to society; as students, as educators,
as businesswomen, as politicians. They choose to strive for the best
regardless of the status quo. Dr. Margaret Itu of the Government of
South Sudan chose the occasion of International Women’s Day to urge
young Southern Sudanese women to educate themselves for medical
careersl to not drop out of school, to persevere in order to make a
contribution to their society by learning how to save lives. This
woman is a role model; a humanitarian, a leader, and she is far from
alone.
Men too can make choices. Violence is a choice that some men make, not
a fact of nature, not the will of god, a choice that some men make,
and there is no excuse for it. Unfortunately privilege over women is
something all men are born with and not enough chose to challenge or
change. When we choose to disrespect the work women do in the home and
fail to ascribe it its true value, when we choose not to help share
the load of that work as if we are superior. When we ignore and mock
women’s educational aspirations or legal rights+ or see women as only
there to serve our sexual needs, rather than as full and equal humans
and full and equal citizens, we are perpetuating a cycle of deeper
violence against women, against our society, against our own future.
I believe this cycle of violence, both direct and cultural, is
motivated by fear; fear of the unknown,
fear of change, fear of powerlessness. We are all afraid, but together
we are infinitely more powerful than when we, as individuals, use
violence to preserve our own personal status or fight for what we
believe is ours, and then to defend it against those we are afraid
will undermine us. As long as violence is the language in our hearts,
we will always be afraid.
Privilege is no more a fact of nature than violence, nor the will of
god. It is the product and evidence of a deeper culture of violence
towards women that we, women but especially men, share a
responsibility for changing. The beautiful thing is that we can all
start that change within us, this day, this very moment. Just as Peace
is far more than the absence of physical violence, Equality and
Justice for women are not to be found in the presence of laws and
policies alone.
We can choose to see women for the equal human beings they are, change
our attitudes, change our behaviors, and then challenge others whom we
hear and see casually dismissing women, to support our brothers to see
the error of their ways and help our sisters create a clear pathway to
fulfillment, the opportunity to demonstrate the worth we already know
they have, so we can rise together for the world can watch.
