Logics of Gender, Peace, and Security: Theorizing Gender and Protection at the Intersections of State and Civil Society

Abstract

This article traces the discursive construction of women as “civil society actors”; a discourse common to the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Doctrine and the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda. I argue that the discursive construction of women as civil society actors relies on and (re)produces gendered constructions. By tracing the discourses and logics across the R2P Doctrine and WPS Agenda, I demonstrate that both normative frameworks rely on gendered logics of agency. This poses significant dilemmas concerning the implementation of the R2P Doctrine and WPS Agenda. Namely, the gendered and therefore unequal expectations of women’s civil society organizations (CSOs) to prevent, detect, and respond to violence. This paper contributes to broader concerns regarding the closer alignment of R2P and WPS, with a focus at where these two frameworks overlap in relation to mass atrocity detection, prevention, and response. The argument this article develops demonstrates that the spaces within and between the WPS Agenda and R2P Doctrine, the agency of women’s CSOs is constrained, instrumentalized, and co-opted by the state and market. This presents concerns for the implementation of the aims (shared or otherwise) of R2P and WPS. Finally, this article raises urgent questions concerning the relationship between states and women’s CSOs, the funding and independence of CSOs and the expectations placed on CSOs to contribute to international peace and security.