Women in the Time of Conflict: the case of Nagaland

As one of the most conflict-prone regions of the world, South Asia has witnessed three inter-state wars, two partitions, intermittent low intensity conflicts, and a powder keg of intra state class, caste, communal, ethnic and nationality conflicts.1 The United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs records over 150 armed conflicts in developing countries since 1945. Increasingly, the impact of these conflicts is borne by civilian populations, especially women and girls because of their status in society and their sex. Available data reveals that women constitute a major portion of the reported 85 per cent civilian victims of present-day conflicts, and almost 80 per cent of all refugees and internally displaced people.2 In situations of armed conflict, or what has come to be called 'low intensity warfare', it is the vulnerability of women that is multiplied hundredfold—each day becomes a struggle for survival against tremendous odds.