Promoting IDPs' and Women's Voices in Post-Conflict Georgia

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international organizations working with IDPs). 422 This assessment to some extent reflects the reallimitations the MRA bears in interfacing with IDPs and gathering their feedback. However, staffmembers from the Office of the Public Defender also reported that the MRA has told them that it hasthe best understanding of IDP needs and interests because its staff members interact with IDPs everyday. 423 If this is the case, it indicates a flawed perception of participation on behalf of the MRA.Interviewees who have worked closely with the MRA have observed that the Ministry has sought tocircumvent even international involvement in decision-making in order to move quickly onimplementing programs for IDPs – and that the results have suffered for lack of consultation. One INGOrepresentative says that the MRA employs a “theater of engagement” – a show of cooperation toassuage internationals – to continue to execute its own decisions behind the scenes. 424 However,Caroline Stampfer notes that in the past few years the MRA has become more capable and somewhatmore willing to involve IDPs in decision-making, a sentiment echoed by a representative of an INGO aswell. 425 This greater capacity has in turn encouraged international actors to strengthen their cooperationwith the agency. These efforts promote inclusivity as they often work to promote IDPs’ involvement inthese processes. 426Fully acknowledging that the MRA faces enormous challenges regarding resources, capacity andsupport, the need for creative thinking about how it can better serve IDPs’ needs and interests remains.Increasing opportunities for IDPs to impact MRA activities and use the MRA as a channel to policymakingat the national level is a vital component in this.Local GovernmentWe have limited information on political will and capacity to involve IDPs in policymaking at the level oflocal governments, but the available data suggests that building relationships between IDP advocatesmay be a fruitful and feasible way to improve IDPs’ ability to have a voice in local initiatives. One smallIDP NGO successfully worked with a local government to establish a kindergarten for the resettled IDPcommunity in Potskho-Etseri. They found that the key to impacting decision-making lay in persistentcommunication and relationship-building with local officials. 427 A representative from this NGO notedthat the local government may have seen the IDP-led initiative as a way to bring international donormoney into the community, suggesting that international interest in supporting IDP participation mayact as a carrot promoting inclusivity at both local and national levels. 428 Newer civil society and422 Office of the Public Defender, Personal Interview.423 Office of the Public Defender, Personal Interview.424 INGO representative, Personal Interview.425 Caroline Stampfer, Personal Interview; INGO representative, Personal Interview. See also Brookings Institute, “FromResponsibility to Response,” 203-4.426 Brookings Institute, “From Responsibility to Response,” 205.427 IDP NGO representative, Personal Interview.428 Ibid.81
international initiatives seeking to increase cooperation between IDPs and local governments couldallow for greater IDP agency in local decision-making. However, a systematic analysis of such effortsremains to be done.Interest in Greater Gender Balance in Political RepresentationJust as IDPs’ needs and participation do not occupy a central priority in current political discourse, nordoes women’s greater inclusion in governance. Marina Tabukashvili of the Taso Foundation, whichworks on women’s political empowerment, noted that, “There is not much attention [paid to women’spolitical participation] from the top. It is not considered an important issue.” 429 For one thing, genderedeffects of policy do not seem to be ordinarily considered during the policymaking process. This isperhaps changing as the Gender Equality Council in the Georgian Parliament pushes for a gendered lensto influence policymaking and more political parties develop women’s wings and organizations. TamarTavartkiladze of UN Women, for example, notes the vocal support that the chairman of Parliament,David Bakradze, gave to the inclusion of women in peace processes through the National Action Plan on1325, saying that his endorsement of the plan was “very powerful.” 430 There is also evidence thatpolitical parties are increasingly willing to view women as leaders, as some have established women’swings and other party structures promoting women’s involvement and leadership. Still, a senior fellowat the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies says that “there is a not a great socialawareness among the general public of the meaning and importance of including more women” inpolitics. He added that “given the absence of strong pressure,” a lack of a corresponding politicalappetite for working to include more women in policymaking also exists. 431 This analyst notes that giventhese circumstances, it is likely that financial incentives for political parties to include more women arelikely to be the most important motivating force encouraging political parties to promote women’sleadership. 432 For the time being, however, it can be said that in general women IDPs face a kind ofdouble exclusion in having their voices and gender-specific needs considered in policymaking.IDPs as a Constituency – Does the “IDP Vote” Matter?While politicians clearly seek to court the “IDP vote” – IDPs wryly report receiving a chain of politicalparty representatives at their collective centers and settlements around election time – it is debatablewhether or not IDPs currently represent a constituency that carries significant weight with politicians.Many political actors seem to feel that they do not need to make IDP issues a priority in their platforms.IDPs’ lack of political clout results from a variety of factors. IDPs have a reputation for being bothpolitically apathetic (as discussed previously) and firmly aligned with the ruling party. For many years,insofar as the limited data on IDP voting habits suggests, a solid majority of IDPs voted in favor of the429 Marina Tabukashvili, Personal Interview.430 Tamar Tavartkiladze, Personal Interview.431 Senior Fellow, Personal Interview.432 Ibid.82
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Promoting IDPs’ and Women’s Voi
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CONTENTSAcronyms and Abbreviations
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARYInternally displac
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THE WOMEN’S POLITICAL RESOURCE CE
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fair reporting on politically sensi
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people-to-people diplomacy efforts
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and the Guiding Principles, in Febr
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an effort to address these stereoty
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The identities, perceptions, and re
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even IDPs themselves. The HRBA seek
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Karaleti settlement, and Potskho-Et
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displacement differently, with men
Page 26 and 27:
on an equal footing with men in for
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The Ministry for Internally Displac
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Defender’s Office) and leave no r
Page 32 and 33: prominent national level IDP NGO wo
Page 34 and 35: in the past but none have yet to be
Page 36 and 37: Grassroots Peacebuilding EffortsCiv
Page 38 and 39: esettlement and local integration h
Page 40 and 41: ability to contribute to the new Ac
Page 42 and 43: Women convened a working group to a
Page 44 and 45: were involved, in addition to “wo
Page 46 and 47: towards addressing this population
Page 48 and 49: waves. 224 A Conciliation Resources
Page 50 and 51: governing shelter requirements. 238
Page 52 and 53: esults of eviction on those who did
Page 54 and 55: FINDINGSSIPA team member Drilon Gas
Page 56 and 57: unique opportunities exist for them
Page 58 and 59: an important opportunity for women
Page 60 and 61: early morning…when I was going to
Page 62 and 63: our office to investigate these iss
Page 64 and 65: on this? It’s impossible.” 322
Page 66 and 67: high levels of unemployment and pov
Page 68 and 69: groups do not differentiate between
Page 70 and 71: funding and influence to implement
Page 72 and 73: een in operation for two years or l
Page 74 and 75: organization, and highlighted that
Page 76 and 77: The Education System’s Influence
Page 78 and 79: system has an important role to pla
Page 80 and 81: Political FactorsMany elements of t
Page 84 and 85: uling party. 433 There were some si
Page 86 and 87: especially highly-influential broad
Page 88 and 89: ationale behind the government’s
Page 90 and 91: international working for a major d
Page 92 and 93: Also, according to a World Bank rep
Page 94 and 95: willing to challenge authorities th
Page 96 and 97: The lack of narrative connecting po
Page 98 and 99: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE GEORGIAN GO
Page 100 and 101: the government also needs to commit
Page 102 and 103: ‣ Continue to support and expand
Page 104 and 105: ‣ Address male IDP needs (Immedia
Page 106 and 107: The campaign should have a face, su
Page 108 and 109: APPENDIX BList of IntervieweesLocal
Page 110 and 111: Kristy KellyLincoln MitchellLawrenc
Page 112 and 113: Article 10 - Non-discrimination in
Page 114 and 115: Principle 18.1 - Adequate standard
Page 116 and 117: Esaiashvili, Mariam (Official, Mini
Page 118 and 119: Lanskoy, Miriam and Giorgi Areshidz
Page 120: Transparency International Georgia.
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Promoting IDPs' and Women's Voices in Post-Conflict Georgia

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