Grassroot activism and its role in providing feminist perspectives to disarmament
Channel: SOAS University of London
Date: 2021-04-05

This is the recording of the fourth webinar of SCRAP Weapons’ webinar series on ‘Feminist Leadership in Disarmament’.

This webinar focuses on “Grassroot activism and its role in providing feminist perspectives to disarmament.”

This webinar gives the microphone to feminist activists and politicians who are/were members and combatants in armed groups in Sudan, South Sudan and Nicaragua as well as gives the perspective of civil society in the MENA region through a regional expert. It amplifies personal stories and experiences of female comrades to challenge perceptions about the changing roles of women during the different stages of warfare and hopes to initiate an inclusive debate on where women position themselves within the current narrative on disarmament and their efforts to ensure sustainable peace and humanitarian disarmament.

Each of the speakers delivers a presentation, before questions from the audience are answered.

Our Panellists are:

Gioconda Belli is a Nicaraguan poet, writer and political activist. She was an active participant in the Sandinista struggle against the Somoza dictatorship.

Nagat Abakar is a leading figure in the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army , an armed group, led by Minni Minawi. She is a founding member in Women for Peace and Security which has members from conflict areas in Sudan. She has taken part in negotiation delegations.

Sarah Nyanath is a South Sudanese politician and women’s rights activist. Born in the Itang Refugee camp in Ethiopia in 1970, she joined the armed group, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army, in 1988 as a nurse and served in the Bright-Start Campaign and was a leader for female soldiers in the SPLM/A.

Shirine Jurdi is the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) MENA regional Liaison Officer and she also volunteers as executive member of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom( WILPF) Lebanon Section.

The webinar is moderated by Vanessa Yasmin Hanson and Reem Abbas.