| dc.description.abstract | While we know that women often participate in armed groups as combatants, they are routinely left out of Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) processes. Women’s groups in various peace processes worldwide have worked extensively in advocating for the inclusion of women and gendered perspectives in post-conflict processes. However, female ex-combatants still find themselves inadequately considered during these processes. Why is that? By studying how civil society organizations (women’s groups) advocate for the concerns of female ex-combatants, this study gains an understanding of the exclusionary and inclusionary dynamics by asking How did Philippine women’s groups address the inclusion of female ex-combatants (fighting for the MILF) in talks on DDR in the Bangsamoro Peace Process? I answer this question by focusing on the case of the Bangsamoro Islamic Women Auxiliary Brigade (BIWAB) in the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). I build on and expand a conceptual framework put forward by Henshaw (2020), positioned within the field of feminist security studies. I apply a theory-developing approach and analyze the degree to which roots of exclusion (agency, hierarchy, universalism, and patriarchy) manifest within women’s groups, contributing to a nuance of Henshaw’s conceptual framework. I conduct a qualitative case study. Data comes from reviewing primary and secondary sources, interviews conducted online and during fieldwork in Manila with individuals involved in the peace process and participant observations. This thesis contributes to the literature on DDR, peace negotiations, feminist security studies, and peacebuilding in civil society through three main findings. First, the different roots of exclusion were observed in the Bangsamoro peace process, which arguably caused exclusionary dynamics. Second, these exclusionary dynamics were additionally amplified through the (subconscious) manifestation of notions of victimization and homogenization within women’s groups. Third, I show that this manifestation of roots of exclusion unintentionally limits women’s groups’ advocacy work, which is furthermore reinforced by the adherence to the Women, Peace, and Security agenda, an international normative framework inaugurated by the UN Security Council. This agenda aims at including gender issues and concerns in post-conflict processes but has been criticized for its narrow focus on women's agency and intersecting identities during wartime – which arguably affects how female combatants’ needs and experiences are advocated for. The thesis problematizes the exclusionary dynamics within peace processes that are important to consider if the goal of emancipation and empowerment of all women in post-conflict environments is to be achieved. | eng |