ABSTRACT
In October 2000 the Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1325 (SCR 1325), a landmark step in raising awareness of the impact of armed conflict on women and girls and in acknowledging the vital role of women’s agency in conflict resolution and peacebuilding.1 For the first time in the history of the UN, the Security Council formally decided on a gender issue, setting a new threshold of action for the Security Council, the UN system, and for all member states (Olsson & Tryggestad 2001). This watershed political framework demands that the Council engage in gender mainstreaming in all its work. This requires all actors involved in peacekeeping, peacebuilding, and post-conflict reconstruction to: 1) adopt gender perspectives in all levels of decision-making and to establish the equal participation of men and women in the maintenance and promotion of peace and security and; 2) take into account the special needs of women and girls during repatriation and resettlement, rehabilitation, reintegration, and postconflict reconstruction.
