Gendered insecurities and gender-responsive security sector reform in the Indo-Pacific
Gendered insecurities and gender-responsive security sector reform in the
Indo-Pacific
WRITTEN BY DR PHYU PHYU OO
20 June 2023
Globally, women, girls, and people of diverse gender identities are disproportionately affected by various forms of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). This crisis includes man-made conflicts, natural disasters, and pandemics. In some instances, a combination of these events can worsen the number and severity of human rights violations and exacerbate people’s pre-existing gender-based vulnerabilities.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, sexual and gender-based violence in the Indo-Pacific was at its peak. The strict lockdowns in different countries and the general restriction of movement have had a prolonged impact on survivors. In some locations, the impact of the pandemic was compounded by man-made crises or natural disasters that amplified the vulnerability of women and girls to sexual and gender-based violence.
For instance, the February 2021 military coup in Myanmar targeted women peacebuilders and human rights defenders through multiple forms of gender-based harm. In the Pacific Islands, women trying to participate in the political sphere faced constant threats of gender-based discrimination and violence. What is often overlooked is that sexual and gender-based violence is not merely an unfortunate consequence of war or crises, but rather reflects deeper structural issues within state and societal institutions.
The state as a threat and a protector
Research has demonstrated that social, cultural, and structural gender inequalities are interconnected with the prevalence of violence against women during times of conflict. The persistent gender-based discrimination faced by LGBTQI+ individuals in countries like Bangladesh, Brunei, and Indonesia, the perpetration of sexual violence against women, girls, and minority ethnic populations by security forces in the Philippines and Myanmar, and incidents of sexual humiliation, exploitation, and abuse in China clearly denote these states’ tolerance for gender-based discrimination and harm.
Gender-responsive security sector reform shows promise in recognising the security threats to women and marginalised individuals, and working towards ending such violence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Case in point, most of these states fail to investigate or prosecute SGBV acts or to develop adequate and effective legal and social protection support systems. Such failures are heightened when countries are at war or are suffering from the effects of crises, exposing gendered threats to a greater extent and amplifying violent experiences against women and marginalised groups. Indeed, these patterns of SGBV incidents and the failure of states to effectively protect their own populations during both times of war and peace represent a continuum of violence. It also serves as a clear indication of the pervasive and deeply rooted gender inequalities that exist within state structure and society.
There is an urgent need to change harmful societal gender norms that enable various forms of SGBV — in times of peace and war — to enhance state-level accountability in most Indo-Pacific countries. Recent international commitments have recognised conflict-related SGBV within a wider spectrum of gender inequality and structural state failure. The crucial question for Indo-Pacific countries is how international actors can intervene and resolve the tension between the role of states in tolerating and exacerbating widespread gender-based violence and state-based solutions.
The need for gender-responsive security sector reform
Since national security actors remain one of the key stakeholders responsible for protecting their populations, the effectiveness of conflict-related SGBV responses lies in how they recognise and define the issue as a human security problem. Gender-responsive security sector reform (SSR) is widely acknowledged as a proposed solution for preventing SGBV and responding to the security needs of women, men, and people of diverse gender identities.
In particular, professionalising militarised institutions, which involves strengthening military codes of conduct and providing gender-sensitive training to the national judiciary and security forces (including the police and the military), is one of the key mechanisms of gender-responsive SSR. This mechanism can promote professionalism and accountability within domestic security, defence, and judicial institutions for preventing and responding to SGBV in conflicts.
However, gender-responsive SSR approaches that embody gender and human security concepts derived from Western democratic norms and principles seem rather ambitious for Indo-Pacific countries. Recent case studies conducted in Southeast Asia have shown that despite efforts to reform security institutions, the influence and power of military forces remain significant in domestic politics, highlighting the challenges in achieving meaningful and sustainable changes in the security sector.
Primarily, the resistance of national actors to effectively implement SSR, the lack of understanding of local needs by international actors, short-term and unsustainable donor funding, and most importantly, the lack of effort in promoting gender-responsive SSR, present a contrasting reality. These factors are often compounded by unstable political contexts. For instance, countries with political instability and intense conflicts, such as Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar, and countries transitioning to post-conflict state-building such as the Solomon Islands, further limit the capability of such states to contribute to successful SSR outcomes.
These limitations exist at both national and international levels, and are amplified by the influential role of the military in domestic politics and entrenched societal gender norms. This suggests that a comprehensive analysis of individual contexts and tailored strategies are essential to effectively tackle the underlying factors that perpetuate SGBV incidents in Indo-Pacific countries. Furthermore, setting realistic SSR strategies for enhancing the accountability of the state in establishing or strengthening legal and social support systems is fundamental to eliminating SGBV.
International efforts in advancing gender-responsive SSR
Although it is undeniable that international assistance is crucial for building SSR processes in most Indo-Pacific countries, it is equally important to critically evaluate the extent to which international support can achieve meaningful and positive outcomes for the security needs of women, girls, and marginalised individuals in their respective contexts.
For instance, despite years of support from the Australian Defence Force, Myanmar’s military has not curtailed its human rights violations — especially not the sexual and gender-based violence that Tatmadaw members have committed during the recent political crisis. It is a timely reminder that the Australian government’s recent announcement to support the Pacific Islands in strengthening their security structure must ensure gender-sensitive and gender-responsive practices that recognise and address the security needs of women and marginalised individuals in the region.
Gender-responsive SSR shows promise in recognising the security threats to women and marginalised individuals, and working towards ending such violence in the Indo-Pacific region. International interventions aimed at supporting domestic security sector reform within the region must place gender at the heart of the process, ensuring that it is more gender inclusive and tailored to the specific security needs of both men and women. Failing to promote gender sensitivity and responsiveness in SSR may undermine the effectiveness of these interventions in addressing broader concepts of human security. Consequently, this could limit the success of SSR in preventing SGBV in conflicts.
DISCLAIMER: All views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent that of the 9DASHLINE.com platform.
Author biography
Dr Phyu Phyu Oo is a Program Manager for Papua New Guinea at the International Women's Development Agency (IWDA) in Australia. Her research primarily focuses on pressing issues of sexual violence in conflict settings and the role of states in preventing and responding to the issues. She has over ten years of working experience with the United Nations (UN) and international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) in addressing critical issues related to SGBV, women's empowerment, and public health. Image credit: Flickr/UN Women Asia and the Pacific.