Unveiling Women as Pillars of Peace Peace Building in ...

community has been crucial, as has been its support in bearing most of the cost of this work. The
people’s efforts at self-help have turned the community around. Also significant are the
comprehensive mechanisms and structures in place, from the district down to the local level, for
dealing with tensions and managing conflict. Perhaps the most significant development of out
Wajir is the ability of women to become catalysts of peace in the most unexpected circumstances.
They have arisen, taken a lead and engineered community participation, challenging all presumed
assumptions about societies that are patrilineal and gerontocratic in structure. This is a story about
successful peace efforts in the most unusual structural and environmental conditions. The story of
Wajir resonates well to the ears of peace-loving people and deserves to be told, repeatedly.
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