Panel discussion: Women, Citizenship, and Conflict

This is one of three Online Panel Discussions responding to Kabosh's new work, The Shedding of Skin, by Vittoria Cafolla, which explores violence against women in conflict.

WOMEN, CONFLICT AND CITIZENSHIP

“Women's experiences of gendered violence during periods of conflict and in the aftermath, are not limited to rape by enemy forces. Endemic gendered and sexualized violence prevalent before, during and after conflict are equally important in exploring women's experiences as citizens in conflict and post-conflict societies” (Aisling Swaine, 2015) .

Aisling Swaine points to the complex and long-term impact of war and conflict on the lives of women and children and those who are seen as vulnerable. These narratives are often obscured by the media focus on public violence, acts of war and terrorism, and peace negotiations involving the key military and political players. Shame, and uncertainty about being believed, or a sense that violence is normal, can silence those whose suffering is private, or perceived to be a civilian matter. Yet living in a war zone inevitably has an impact on interpersonal relationships, domestic life, and the moral choices forced upon a population.

The Shedding of Skin was written based on is part of ongoing research that gathers and responds to untold stories of conflict, away from the front lines, often in private spaces. By gathering, exploring, and discussing this material the project aims to promote a broader knowledge of the impact of conflict and its aftermath on the lives of ordinary people.

Speakers:

Dr. Tine Davids, is assistant professor at the department of Cultural Anthropology and Development Studies. She teaches and conducts research on gender, politics, globalization, gender mainstreaming, feminist ethnography, (return) migration and gender-based violence, and has published internationally in these research areas. She specializes in these issues mainly in Latin America, in particular Mexico and Central America.

Dr Maria Estrada Fuentes (Royal Holloway University of London) is a Lecturer in Latin American Performance Cultures at Royal Holloway, University of London. Her research interests include arts-based conflict transformation, gender and complex victimhood, politics and performance. She is co-investigator in the international research project Towards a Moral Grammar of Transitional Justice: Secondary Care Practices to Support Conflict Transformation in Colombia (2018-2020), a public–private partnership between the University of Warwick (UK), Los Andes University and the Reincorporation and Normalization Agency (Colombia).

Dr Lisa Fitzpatrick (University of Ulster) Lisa Fitzpatrick is a Senior Lecturer in Drama at Ulster University in Derry / L’Derry. Her research is concerned with the representation of violence on stage, and with post-conflict theatre in Northern Ireland. She is delighted to be involved in this project with Kabosh Theatre Company.