SETTING THE SCENE FOR PREVENTING VIOLENT EXTREMISM IN SOUTH EAST AND SOUTH ASIA

A WAY FORWARD FOR WOMEN’S ENGAGEMENT IN INDONESIA AND BANGLADESH

Terrorism and violent extremism as well as efforts to counter their threat, are still widely considered to be male domains. This is despite evidence which shows women and girls are directly and indirectly engaged in, and/ or harmed by acts of terrorism and violent extremism and targeted for recruitment by terrorist and violent extremist groups; as well as being key stakeholders in efforts to prevent and counter their threat. These gaps in women’s engagement in preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) and counter-terrorism (CT) highlight opportunities for gender-sensitive policies, legal commitments and programmes to enhance their effectiveness.

To explore the synergies between P/CVE and CT opportunities for women’s engagement in South East and South Asia, this paper uses the case studies of Indonesia and Bangladesh to provide a snapshot of how women can be supported to play a stronger role in P/CVE and CT, including through bringing together the P/CVE agenda with the Women, Peace and Security agenda (WPS) in the Asia Pacific region. The paper was produced by Monash University for UN Women as part of the Empowered Women, Peaceful Communities programme.