(Pxfuel)
By Ilaria Mariotti
In the terrorism and violent extremism debate, women are often described as victims, wives, or mothers of terrorists. The understanding of women as agents of terror dates back in decades and shows that women can participate in extremist and violent movements as actors. Their roles and grade of involvement, in particular, may vary from propagandists to recruiters, from logistic operators to fighters and suicide bombers. According to Aleksandra Dier, gender coordinator of the United Nations Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), these roles are not mutually exclusive. Women may play different, intersected roles, and show different levels of regret when they leave terrorist groups.
In order to effectively contrast and combat violent extremism and terrorism, a gendered analysis of the main drivers of female radicalization is necessary. Although there are political, social and economic factors that equally push men and women to join violent movements and terrorist groups, there are also factors that apply specifically to women.
The analysis of the main factors leading women to join these organizations may be functional to the elaboration of counterterrorism narratives and strategies; indeed, any attempt to prevent or counter female radicalization needs to take into account gender misconceptions, in order to be effective. UN Women and the Radicalization Awareness Network (RAN) listed the main factors leading to the radicalization of women:
- gender inequality and discrimination, leading women to search for a way to assert their independence and strength, or making them more vulnerable and more likely to be recruited;
- a search for opportunities to actively participate in more social and political structures;
- sexual and gender-based violence, leading them to seek escape;
- a lack of education, making them feel more isolated, alienated, and therefore more vulnerable to recruitment;
- a desire for a companion or a romantic relationship;
- revenge for the death or arrest of a relative;
- their marital status; being single, divorced, or widowed prevents women from having some forms of protection or social standing; in some cases, this leads them to engage in terrorism;
- a lack of religious freedom;
- racism;
- the belief of being discriminated against as a result of the Western culture and policies.
In particular, the experience of rape may prove fundamental for the decision of becoming suicide bombers, especially in societies where honor is fundamental for women’s lives. As suggested by a study by the European Parliamentary Research Service, women may bring shame to their families just for being victims of sexual violence and rape and becoming suicide bombers may help them remove the shame and make them martyrs. For instance, in the specific case of Tamil women, being victims of rape makes them ‘damaged goods’ and socially prohibits them from marriage and childbearing. By considering the sacrifice of female bombers as an extension of motherhood, families often encouraged raped women to join the Liberation Tigers for Tamil Eelam (LTTE), become suicide bombers and redeem themselves.
Moreover, women may decide to join terrorist groups because of a desire to be what is perceived to be a wider community. In this case, religious motivations often play an important role. As suggested by the RAN, ISIS has presented itself as the State where women can profess their faith without constraints. By taking advantage of these motivations, terrorist groups can develop different strategies to recruit women into their organizations. As pointed out by Leanne Erdberg, director of countering violent extremism at the United States Institute of Peace, violent extremism promises to fill gaps in women’s lives by offering women roles that were originally male-dominated and exploiting idealism and hope; terrorist groups promise they can provide for their necessities and aspirations. This, together with a strong sense of solidarity and of sisterhood, may constitute a solid basis for female radicalization.
The international community should therefore adopt preventive actions, targeting the main drivers that lead women and girls to radicalization by facilitating local and grassroots initiatives, encouraging women’s participation in the prevention of violent radicalization, and addressing specific vulnerabilities that can make women and girls more likely to be recruited. With regards to local initiatives, the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF), established in 2014 by the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF), has provided many grassroots organizations addressing the local drivers of violent extremism worldwide with small grants. As highlighted by Swisspeace, engaging communities is fundamental for preventing and countering radicalization; local, community-level initiatives represent an important tool that, by adopting a bottom-up approach, contribute to make women feel respected and empowered, and therefore less prone to radicalization.
Finally, the RAN has suggested that in the deradicalization process, the approach should be tailor-made and take into account the different needs and backgrounds of the women and girls that decide to join violent movements. Family support and psychological and religious counseling may play a fundamental role in contrasting the phenomenon.
