Gender and Armed Conflict: A Case of Democratic Republic of Congo.

Jacob W. Buganga
Peace and Conflict Programme
P.O. Box 7062,
Makerere University
Kampala-Uganda
Tel. +256752542504/+256774336277/+256392614655
Dishma Inc.: dishma.imhs@gmail.com
Youth Hub Africa: jacobw@youthhubafrica.org
Makerere University: jwaiswa@arts.mak.ac.ug
Skype ID: jacob.waiswa
Facebook ID: waiswajacobo
Twitter ID: waiswajacobo

United Nations Security Council resolution 1325 recognizes that women and girls are most affected by armed conflict. This paper explores nature of conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the objectives of identifying gender vulnerabilities during armed conflict, effects of war on women verses men, and establishes recommendations for peace.
Men tend to be more aggressive than women on issues to do with manifestation of power, and make war decisions that turn out to be disastrous to women and children. For men, not until they suffer from combat burn-out would they rethink war or condemn it. Men were raping fellow men as a war humiliating weapon. This, though, was an isolated case compared to reports about women raped during armed conflict. Women often give in to their captors and offer them sex for pleasure and celebration of victory, or unconditionally become their ‘wives.’ Women lose their husbands through war and are forced to marry and bare children elsewhere. It is a traditional nature of men to be brave turns them into defensive posts for families. Incase on an attack on the family, they will fight to see it safe. However, when they fail, they are killed –leaving behind a fatherless and husbandless house. Indeed women suffer most in armed conflict and must be integrated in plans to wedge war or end it.