ABSTRACT
This marked the beginning of UNAMSIL’s extensive engagement in the country, where it undertook a range of peacebuilding activities in the social, economic and political spheres until its eventual drawdown on 31 December 2005. UNAMSIL’s original mandate from 1999 was adopted prior to UNSCR 1325 and, as such, gender issues were not initially accorded priority by the UN peacekeeping mission, which was at the time the largest in the world. However, the case of Sierra Leone is particularly interesting for examining the impact of UNSCR 1325, since the peacebuilding process in the country has evolved largely
at the same time as the international community has articulated its commitments in relation to women, peace and security issues. At the same time, women’s organisations in Sierra Leone were active in civil society efforts to build peace at the community level, but were largely excluded from the ‘formal’ UN-led peacebuilding process. For these reasons, it is a useful case in which to explore the assumption that gender became an increasingly important priority within peacekeeping missions following the adoption of the resolution.
