Doris Buss, associate professor in the Department of Law and Legal Studies, and Blair Rutherford, chair of the Institute of African Studies at Carleton, are part of a team hosting a research meeting on armed conflict and sexual violence on the African continent. The meeting, called Economies of Sexual Violence and Conflict, takes place in Bujumbura, Burundi, on Feb. 22 and 23, 2013.
Sexual violence during war has attracted increased media, research and political interest in the last few years. International organizations and agencies have responded by undertaking significant programming to address the consequences of conflict sexual violence. This bilingual event aims to enhance research collaboration on conflict sexual violence between African researchers and activists. The goal is the creation of a research network of Africans and Canadians working on this theme.
The workshop will also attempt to address how income generation in these countries is enmeshed in patterns of gendered violence. There are several types of economies that may contribute to gendered insecurities for women and men in post-conflict societies, but these have not yet been thoroughly studied.
“The need for a workshop like this in Africa came out of an earlier event hosted at Carleton University in 2010,” said Buss. “The Carleton event identified a need for collaboration between researchers and civil society organizations (CSOs) that combined “on the ground” research and data with studies of the broader social and political contexts.”
With over 40 participants, the workshop will include academics and CSOs from a variety of countries including Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote D’Ivoire, South Africa, Mali, Sudan, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Panel topics include Women, Violence and Political Transition; Research Ethics and Challenges, and Women and Violence in Borderlands and Shadow Economies.
The results of the workshop will be discussed at a roundtable at Carleton in May 2013.
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For more information:
Chris Cline
Media Relations Co-ordinator
Carleton University
613-520-2600, ext. 1391
christopher_cline@carleton.ca