Syrian women and Syrian civil society have played a critical role in the peaceful movement in Syria since 2011 and in advocating for achieving a peace agreement through the political process. UNSCR 1325 (2000) (the first landmark Security Council resolution on women, peace and security WPS) has helped in pressing the importance of women’s inclusion ever since the women organizations and CSOs have based their argument on this resolution and on SCR 2254. Many groups have been established such as coalitions, networks, and platforms to advance the political process. There have been many local interventions, dialogue forums and initiatives which focused on contributing to the content and the process. For example, a group of CSOs met through Space for Collaboration and produced the document on the detainees and the document on the political process. In addition, there have been studies and policy papers describing the unique and disproportionate impact of war on women and girls, and the need to change the image of women in conflict from victims to active participants. Below we discuss the participation of women and civil society in the political process through the following four mechanisms: the Constitutional Committee, Women Advisory Board, Civil Society Support Room, and briefing the security council. We hope that in the future we can introduce other mechanisms and initiatives that help Syrian women and civil society to contribute directly and indirectly in the peace and political process in Syria.
