ROLE OF WOMEN AS COMMUNITY MEDIATORS IN URBAN PUNJAB: A QUALITATIVE EXPLORATION OF GRASSROOT LEVEL CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND PEACEBUILDING

Abstract

Women’s participation in conflict resolution and peacebuilding has received increasing scholarly attention; however, their contributions at the community level often remained informal and underrecognized in academic research. This research aims to explore the role of women as grassroots level mediators in conflict resolution and peacebuilding in urban areas of Punjab, Pakistan. An exploratory cross sectional research design was adopted, and data/information were collected through Focus Group Interviews (FGIs) conducted in urban areas of the Punjab (Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Multan|) with women actively involved in community-level mediation practices for conflict resolution. The findings indicated that women play a significant role in resolving conflicts through dialogue facilitation, early intervention, and trust-based leadership within their communities. Women mediators were found to address a range of disputes, including family disagreements, neighbourhood tensions, minority harassment cases, and identity-based conflicts related to caste, religion, and political affiliation. It was revealed that their mediation practices primarily involved organizing informal discussions between conflicting parties to promote communication and reach mutually acceptable solutions. This study also highlighted women’s preventive role in addressing tensions at an early stage, thereby reducing the likelihood of escalation into violence. Furthermore, the findings suggested that women’s effectiveness as mediators is closely linked to the social trust and recognition they have developed within their communities. Despite their contributions to maintaining social harmony, women’s roles in conflict resolution remained largely informal and underrepresented within institutional peacebuilding frameworks.