Article 10: Right to Peace 58. Throughout the reconstruction process, in the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, women have played a key role in promoting peace, unity and reconciliation. They have headed key institutions intended to handle post-genocide justice and reconciliation processes, acted as judges and witnesses in the Gacaca transitional jurisdictions and spearheaded the reconciliation process from the grassroots for instance the first two Executive Secretaries of the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission were women and the Executive Secretary of the Gacaca jurisdictions throughout their existence was also a woman, at the time when the Chief Justice was also a woman. 59. Women continue to play an important role in the community mediation and conflict resolution structures, Abunzi, based on Rwandan traditional conflict resolution practices. This system of participatory community level conflict resolution has considerably contributed to cohesion in the communities and significantly reduced the number of cases reaching magistrates’ courts. By law, at least 30% of the 12 elected mediators must be women43. Women’s participation in this system has greatly enhanced their outstanding standing in society and broken the traditional perception that justice can only be carried out by men. 60. At international level, Rwandan women have actively participated in peace building initiatives in the region, such as the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region. The Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) considers the prevention and mitigation of sexual violence against women and girls a key imperative across all its deployments. The RDF Gender Desk devises training programs to raise awareness of sexual and gender based violence, and these have been fully incorporated into the core curriculum of Rwanda’s military academies and training institutions. This is considered integral to the preparation of all RDF battalions bound for peacekeeping missions abroad. Moreover, Rwanda is among the leading contributors of female police and army officers that have equally played a significant role in UN peacekeeping missions, as peacekeepers and as police and military 43 Adapted from Abunzi Capacity Assessment Report. USAID.2012. Kigali, Rwanda Page 84 of 105