Gender Gap between the Treatment of Men and Women in a Society
Introduction One of things that contribute to positive international relations is peace. However, over the last centuries, peace has not yet been achieved on the global arena. There are many nations that have found themselves in intra- and interstate conflicts because of high levels of violence. This is what has motivated many academicians to gain the interest of identifying what causes insecurity in the world.
Hudson Valerie in her book “Sex and World Peace” (2012) argued that the gap between men and women was the factor that had resulted to insecurity and increased violence in the world (3). She claims that although other factors such as religious differences may result to insecurity in the world, the gap between men and women remains to be the main cause of the insecurity. Justification of the Belief in the Close Connection between the Treatment of Women and International Security Many scholars in the past have associated international security with the differences between the Islam and Christianity. This is, however, only another way that is used to increase the gap between women and men. Women have been weakened by these religions as they are less involved in the decision making and other pertinent affairs that relate to their religions. Therefore, even if Islam and Christianity are key contributors to insecurity in the world, the role that women have been given is the main source of the conflicts.
Religions only act to increase the gap between men and women (Diamond, 22). For instance, we have the Bible as a holy book, but it talks of men even to mean both men and women. This is something that women have reacted to in the past claiming that it only praises men. We also have other religions that allow polygamous families. These conventions tend to give men more power over women; thus also becoming a source of conflict. It is also notable that all the human interactions in the society will involve women despite the level of importance.
If women cannot be treated on the same grounds as men, then it means the result in conflicts. There are some scholars who claim that women are only mistreated at the family level. However, this is not the case because when it comes to national and international leadership we see that many of the highest leadership seats are claimed by men (Pugh and Sidhu, 35). This extends mistreatment of women from the family to the international level; thus becoming a source of conflicts. In countries where sustaining peace has been a problem, we have seen women playing crucial roles to bring peace back.
Even in the contemporary world many women groups aimed at enhancing peace and awakening women. The more women are enlightened about their rights and privileges, the more they bring conflicts that, when solved, enhance peace in the world. In many countries, it is also possible to see that women are less involved in the decision making. In addition, most of the toppositions have been taken by males (Hudson, 34). This has made women be perceived as the weak and with less say in the society.
This justifies that the gap between men and women exists and is evident at all levels. Does the Way Women are Treated Provide a Way to International Peace? There are different factors that have hindered international peace. However, many of these factors will rotate on the gap between men and women. The world is made of men and women who are all considered as human beings. When it comes to human rights, these postulates do not talk of women and men differently (Frances, 29).
The road to international peace is, therefore, dependent on the way women are treated. However, we will also have to consider how men are viewed because women will not be empowered to the extent that they start provoking men.Many academicians may argue that if the gap between men and women becomes negligible, peace in the world will be enhanced. However, there are critiques on the same. On many occasions, the society has seen women taking advantage of the fact that they are being empowered to mistreat men and engage in criminal activities. There is no doubt that women are also involved in illegal actions such as suicide bombings that have interrupted the world peace (Frances, 37).
Therefore, even if the reduction of the gap between men and women in the society is enhanced, there will be a need to consider other factors in order to have global peace. In some families, communities have heard of husbands being mistreated by their wives. This means that as women are talked about as crucial players in bringing peace, we have also to consider that men are different (Pugh, Charles and Sidhu, 39). World has to understand the different people in the society. There are many factors that hinder international peace.
In many developing nations, there is post-election violence. This is usually attributed to by factors such as tribalism, religious differences, and ethnicity among other reasons. It is on rare cases where people have heard gender issues resulting to post-election violence. Therefore, the issue of gender disparities seems to be more valued in developed nations (Pugh and Sidhu, 43). Thereafter, if we talk of developing nations as the most insecure nations, then the way women are treated will not be the main cause of insecurity and violence.
This means that insecurity and violence in the world is not entirely dependent on the way women are treated. Should International Peacekeeping Efforts Focus on the Gap between Men and Women? If peace in the world has to be achieved, then the best way to work it out is to have men and women equal on the global stage. This is, however, broad to consider since if people complain that other factors such as religion make the gap wider, and then society has to solve them first. Women have to be respected and treated equally in the society. They also have to bee involved in the decision making and the fight against domestic violence (Pugh and Sidhu, 49). This does not, however, mean that global peace will be wholly achieved by reducing the gap between men and women.
We have seen different communities turning against one another probably because of land issues and cattle raids. The move towards international peace has, therefore, to be a strategic one. Women have to be highly considered in this; however, there are other factors that cannot be put on hold. History has always repeated itself. Two centuries back the issue of gender disparities was still highly discussed, and it is the same case today. Therefore, if the gap between men and women is totally reduced, this will mark the end of history.
Nevertheless, does it mean that the end of this history will result in long lasting peace in the world? There are other factors that hinder national/international peace that will rise strongly (Huntington, 46). Therefore, even if the efforts to enhance world peace will focus on the gap between men and women, there is a need to consider other factors that also hinder international peace. However, the gender issue plays a key role in provoking conflicts, especially in the developed nations. As many nations will continue to become westernized, women will start fighting for their rights leading to more conflicts and violence (Frances, 27). Therefore, the issue has to be resolved to ensure that all women are empowered regardless of their country of origin at the international level. No one can stand to say that women are the best in decision making and solving conflicts.
Therefore, if errors have been made by men in leadership, then raising women in power will not mean that such mistakes will be rare. There are some utterances by leaders that have resulted to chaos. When it comes to politics, leaders make decisions without being selective of men and women. Consequently, even if the leader is a female, decisions that are misunderstood will still be made (Diamond, 34). Therefore, we have no right to claim that the disparity between men and women is what solely causes insecurity and violence in the world. The efforts to enhance peace in the world should consider, therefore, significant aspects such as distribution of natural resources, different ethnic groups and such before narrowing to women.
Conclusion The disparity between men and women has played a key role in causing insecurity and violence at the global level. There is justification showing that women are less involved in the decision making at different levels than men. They are also victims of violence, and this has made them come together to fight for their rights. Since we talk of human rights without referring specifically to men or women, then both should be treated equally at the world stage. In order to have peace in the world, we have to bring all the factors that hinder international peace on the table, since fighting the gap between men and women will not reach peace on its own.
