Place: 4274 Chamberlin (Refreshments will be served)
Speaker: Aili Mari Tripp, UW Departments of Political Science and Women's Studies
Abstract: The presentation will look at why almost all post-conflict countries in Africa have double the rates of legislative representation of women compared with countries that have not undergone conflict. Moreover, these countries tend to have been more open to passing legislation and making constitutional changes relating to women's rights. In my talk, I explain why Rwanda has the highest rates of legislative representation of women in the world (49% of all seats are held by women) and why Liberia has the first elected woman president in Africa. The talk examines how and why the end of major civil conflicts, especially since the 1990s from South Africa to Namibia, Mozambique, Rwanda, Burundi, Liberia and Sierra Leone, opened up new opportunities for women activists. I discuss the broader international context of these changes, changing gender relations during civil war, and the role of women1s movements. The talk is based on both comparative research across Africa as well as fieldwork in Uganda, Liberia and Angola.