The Time was Ripe: Women’s Movements’ Break-throughs in the Colombian Peace Agreement

Sammanfattning: In 2016 a historic peace agreement between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC) was signed, putting an end to a conflict that lasted over 50 years. This agreement was the world’s very first gender-inclusive peace accord, meaning that they included women in the peace process and recognized how they are particularly subjected to war and conflict. This thesis aims to analyze how structures of gender inequality can be addressed in times of war, and why this peace deal managed to be so successful, at that particular place and time. Previous research within this field shows that women’s participation in peace talks leads to more durable peace that addresses structural inequalities. Hence, this paper aims to answer the research question: Which main factors enabled the historical gender-inclusive peace agreement in Colombia in 2016? Four different theoretical frameworks are used to examine this: Johan Galtung’s theory of positive peace, Raywen Connell’s theory of Hegemonic masculinity, Cynthia Enloe’s theory of postcolonial feminism, and I. William Zartman’s theory of ripeness. Secondary research has been conducted in the form of qualitative content analysis, as well as primary research in the form of two expert interviews. The major findings from the study show that the strength of civil society organizations acted as a main contributor to enabling this inclusive peace deal. Women’s ability to mobilize and share their experiences from the war was made possible through guidance and openness from women’s rights organizations, various international actors as well as the Colombian government and FARC. The other main circumstance for enabling this peace agreement was that the time was ripe, especially due to new leadership, third-party intervention, and international trends. Consequently, the peace agreement was an important step in addressing structural inequalities in Colombia, which constitutes a leading example for the rest of the world.