Gender-Based Violence in ‘Post-Conflict’ Northern Ireland: An Epidemic

Vicka Heidt graduated from the College of Arts and Sciences in 2024 with degrees in Government and Justice and Peace Studies. She is now reading for an MPhil in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge, on a Gates Cambridge Scholarship.

98 percent of women in Northern Ireland have experienced gender-based violence in their lifetime. This 2023 statistic is reinforced by a larger trend of violence against women in Northern Ireland; domestic violence has doubled in the region since 2004, and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) was called to a domestic violence incident every 16 minutes in 2023. 

Despite these high levels of violence against women, Northern Ireland is traditionally recognized as a “post-conflict” state. The passage of the Belfast / Good Friday Agreement (B/GFA) in 1998 formally ended the ethno-national conflict that spanned over three decades. Yet, neither the start nor the end of the Troubles correlated with the end of all gender-based violence in the state. When nearly half of the population has experienced a life-altering event of violence, how can a society be classified as “post-conflict?” 

Following the Troubles, gender-based violence in Northern Ireland rapidly increased. Sexual violence offenses continue to reach new highs with each passing year. The inflated levels of gender-based violence following the GFA sparked the question, “Post-conflict for whom?” as Monica McWilliams, the co-founder of the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, so poignantly asked in a forum at Georgetown University.

The situation in Northern Ireland is indicative of global trends and a link between gender-based violence and the ending of armed actions. Conflict most negatively affects the most vulnerable groups in society; when state-society relations weaken, as is likely from war or other violent tensions, the outcome is particularly felt by citizens who already have limited access to state institutions and benefits. It is widely acknowledged that women and girls fall into this category and are disproportionately affected by conflicted settings—before, during, and after the official markers of war. Years of index reports and research have further indicated that a rise in gender-based harm is critically linked to armed violence. 

In spite of the increase in gender-based violence in Northern Ireland, there are minimal policies to support the safety of women. Policies on domestic violence have “responded weakly” to the prevalence of violence. While the Northern Ireland Office offered a 5-year plan to address domestic violence in 2005, it was not replaced due to the inactivity of the Northern Irish power-sharing structure and the interim devolved Assembly. In 2015, reports were released which exposed that a working group on domestic violence only met five times altogether and entirely stopped meeting after November of 2012. The idleness to respond to domestic violence has pervaded several administrations and years. 

The need for women’s protection and advancement in post-conflict settings is stipulated in United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), but it is also an important goal of its own accord. Scholars generally accept that states with higher levels of gender equality are relatively more internally peaceful and peaceful with other states. International institutions like the United Nations and global scholars also recognize that gender equality is the number one predictor of a state’s peacefulness, more so than its economic strength or level of democracy. Practitioners in the Women, Peace, and Security realm have further evidenced the notion that gender equality is associated with more peaceful and stable states. 

Despite the international recognition of the connection between gender equality and peace, women’s wellbeing has not been effectively brought to the forefront of political conversations or action in Northern Ireland. After a two-year suspension of the Northern Irish government, the re-establishment of the power-sharing government with First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly has provided a sliver of hope for political action and change. Women’s inclusion in government leadership does not immediately translate to gender equality initiatives, but the First Ministers have advocated its priority. 

On March 14th, 2024, Georgetown University welcomed the First Ministers for a discussion on their plans for the future of Northern Ireland. As a member of the audience, I listened in as the two ministers went back and forth about a number of issues—from the economy to education—yet no one mentioned the crisis of gender-based violence. 

Raising my hand, I brought up the statistics mentioned in previous paragraphs and finally asked, “Is developing a comprehensive gender-based violence framework on your collective radar?” Minister O’Neill immediately conveyed their shared, strong support for a gender-based violence plan and noted that Northern Ireland is facing an “epidemic” of violence against women and girls. Their “Domestic and Sexual Abuse Strategy Framework” was finally unveiled in late September of 2024.

The Domestic and Sexual Abuse Strategy, launched in collaboration with justice and health ministers, proposes “a whole society approach” to gender-based violence care and prevention. The seven-year strategy has five key pillars: partnership, prevention, children and young people, support and provision, and justice. It has been granted 1.62 million pounds of funding, which will go to providing free legal advice to child victims of sex offenses, launching a grant scheme for community organizations, and supporting victims of domestic abuse, alongside other initiatives. 

While this plan is a landmark initiative, its impact remains unclear. The Domestic and Sexual Abuse Strategy is an important move to prevent, recognize, and respond to gender-based harm and domestic violence; still, it is critical that accountability mechanisms are put in place to ensure these plans transition into positive action. Hopefully, Northern Ireland’s new “whole society approach” to tackling this epidemic will provide a portion of that accountability and contribute to sustainable change. 

Please feel free to read more about my research about gender equality in Northern Ireland by checking out my journal piece in Dartmouth’s World Outlook here.

This is an image from the Global Irish Studies event, “A Conversation with First Minister and Deputy First Minister” on March 14, 2024. I am pictured asking the First Minister and Deputy First Minister a question about gender-based violence.