Women in peace politics

Women’s engagements with peace started centuries ago, perhaps simultaneously with their engagements in war. We hear of Lysistrata in Aristophanes’ famous Greek drama. The known history of women’s activism in peace movements is a more recent phenomenon. From the early 20th century, the cause of women and the cause of peace were seen as inseparable. Jane Addams helped convene a group of women at Hague to deliberate on how to create institutions that would serve as an alternative to war. The volume reflects multiplicity of women’s role in peace politics in South Asia. The inevitable question that arises is whether women have added a new dimension to peace making in South Asia. Experiences from Northeast India and Sri Lanka portray that such a claim might be sustained. Women’s efforts in peace making show that to sustain a successful movement for peace, women practice coalition building.