WOMEN AND COMPREHENSIVE PEACE AGREEMENT: THE CASE OF SOUTHERN SUDAN, 2005-2012. BY Name: Peter K. Kor REG. NO: C50/63797/2010 PRESENTED TO: DR. HERBERT A. MISIGO A Research Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Degree of Masters in Armed Conflict and Peace Studies, Department of History and Archaeology of the University of Nairobi OCTOBER 2013 DECLARATION This is my original work and has not been presented for the award of degree in any other University. PETER K. KOR ____________________ Date _____________ This project has been submitted for examination with my approval as a University supervisor DR. HERBERT MISIGO AMATSIMBI ____________________ Date _____________ ii DEDICATION I dedicate this work to the women of Southern Sudan who bore the brunt of the cruelty of war but still stood on as mothers, wives, fighters and peace makers. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, I would like to thank the Department of History and Archaeology of the University of Nairobi for giving me a chance to study and bring out the face of the Southern Sudan women. The members of staff gave me support and treated me as their son. They nurtured and guided me to this level. I also want to thank my supervisor at the department, Dr. Herbart Misigo Amatsimbi, for valuable comments and, not least, for making I believe that this study was possible to carry out. My sincere gratitude goes to him for giving me more assistance than I could ever have asked for. Without him, this study would have been substantially harder to conduct. I am, furthermore, immensely grateful for all the assistance provided by those I interviewed during the study. It was their hospitality and effort that made this study possible. Last, but not least, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the people who took the time to meet with me during my research, although this for some entailed troublesome journeys. For their time and invaluable contribution, I am the most grateful. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration ...................................................................................................................................... ii Dedication ...................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgement ......................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ v Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... vii Acronyms ..................................................................................................................................... viii Definition of Terms........................................................................................................................ xi CHAPTER ONE:INTRODUCTION OF THE STUDY ........................................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Statement of Research Problem ................................................................................................ 7 1.3 Objectives of the Study ............................................................................................................. 8 1.4 Scope and Limitation of the Study............................................................................................ 8 1.5 Justification of the study ........................................................................................................... 9 1.6 Literature Review...................................................................................................................... 9 1.7 Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................................... 15 1.8 Research Hypothesis ............................................................................................................... 17 1.9 Research Methodology ........................................................................................................... 18 CHAPTER TWO: HISTORY OF CONFLICT IN SUDAN .................................................. 19 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 19 2.2 The Sudan Conflict ................................................................................................................. 19 2.3 Historical role of Sudan Women in Armed Conflict .............................................................. 27 2.4 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 29 CHAPTER THREE:FAILURE OF THE 1972 ADDISS ABABA PEACE AGREEMENT 30 3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 30 3.2 The Addis Ababa Peace Agreement ....................................................................................... 31 3.3 Effects of the Addis Ababa Agreement .................................................................................. 32 3.4 Failure of the Addis Ababa Agreement .................................................................................. 35 3.5 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 41 v CHAPTER FOUR:ROLE OF WOMEN IN COMPREHENSIVE PEACE AGREEMENT ....................................................................................................................................................... 43 4.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 43 4.2 Obstacles to Women’s Participation in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement ...................... 43 4.3 Women and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, 2005 ...................................................... 45 4.6 Women Involvement in Comprehensive Peace Agreement ................................................... 53 4.7 Women Experiences after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement .......................................... 58 4.8 Lessons Learned from the Experience of Seclusion of Women ............................................. 61 4.9 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 62 CHAPTER FIVE:SOUTH SUDAN WOMEN IN POST INDEPENDENCE ERA.............. 64 5.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 64 5.2 The Situation after Independence ........................................................................................... 64 5.3 South Sudan Women in Post Independence Era ..................................................................... 71 5.4 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 73 CHAPTER SIX ........................................................................................................................... 75 CONCLUSIONS ......................................................................................................................... 75 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 80 vi ABSTRACT This study investigated the contribution of Southern Sudan women in peace making, peace building and conflict negotiations in the Comprehensive Peace agreement that was signed in 2005 in Kenya by showing the realities of women experiences in the protracted war. It highlighted the truth on perception of women as inferior members of the society in a patriarchy structure of decision making. The study highlighted women’s sufferings during wars and the unfair treatment upon return to peace. Women have highly distinct experiences of conflict which tend to leave them marginalized in peace negotiations and significantly disadvantaged with the onset of peace. The study indicated realities in Sudan where women acted as the unifying actors in the country that has suffered long years of war. The main objective of the study was to investigate the role of Southern Sudan women in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), by examining their participation in the peace process and highlight the part they played in conflict management, prevention and peaceful settlement. The research confined itself to the period of 2005-2012. The research analyzed the trend of civil wars of 2005-2012. The period provided the basis of real issues affecting women in war such as hunger, marginalization, cultural indifferences, religious intolerance and economic disparities. While the majority of studies have focused on the suffering of women in armed conflict, this study focused on investigating the plight of the Sudanese women in the quest for independence and status, and further links women’s efforts in the realization of their potential as important stakeholders in the peace process. The study began with a literature survey which indicated the gap in knowledge about Southern