Paper short abstract:

This paper discusses challenges and lessons facing Women in Civil society, Peacebuilding, Development and Politics in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The author considers the role of civil society organisations in empowering women social and political life participation to make a change.

Paper long abstract:

This paper discusses challenges and lessons facing Women in Civil society, Peacebuilding, Development and Politics in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (Opt). The author considers the role of civil society organisations in empowering women social and political life participation to make a change in the society. The study of the challenges facing women in civil society, peacebuilding, development and politics, including political participation empowerment under the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian division, is one aim of this paper. More importantly, it also discusses if women empowerment activity of civil society organisations is a form of 'participatory democracy' in the absence of regular elections and paralyzed political system under occupation.

The author uses a number of tools to enrich his paper including participatory observation, and reviewing secondary resources to examine civil society organisations contribution to women's empowerment in politics in spite of range of challenges and shifting political landscape due to violence, occupation and social conservatism. To inform this analysis, he also uses his my own research and professional experiences in working for NGOs, as well as interviews with a number people working for NGOs in the Opt.