The Reintegration of Women and Children Disengaging from Armed Groups During Conflict: Evidence from Somalia

Abstract

The public acceptance of former enemy collaborators by local communities is crucial for preventing violent extremism. Few studies experimentally examine the public acceptance of armed group defectors, particularly from a gendered perspective in active conflict zones. We take on this task by centering the diversity of the defector population to draw focus to how gendered experiences of entry to and exit from armed groups affect opportunities for peacebuilding. We argue the gender and age of armed group defectors are important determinants of public acceptance. We test our expectations with a vignette experiment on 880 respondents in 81 communities across seven cities in South Central Somalia. We find respondents are more willing to accept female and child defectors, particularly those who were wedded to al-Shabaab fighters. The results emphasize the gendered dynamics at play in reintegration and reconciliation processes, particularly in conservative Muslim societies, and suggest the identities of former enemy collaborators are key to understanding public attitudes toward reintegration and peacebuilding in conflict-affected societies