1.31. Security and Rule of Law. The Rule of Law is understood as the opposite of Arbitrary Rule. It is the primacy of Law. It is not necessarily synonymous to Democratic Rule. Hence, the need to promote the Rule of Law, even under a democratic regime. The Rule of Law is a situation in which the government authorities are subjected to law just as the citizens, with the obligation to follow inherent due processes through the jurisdictional control mechanisms. The Rule of Law is a protection system which shields the citizen against arbitrary rule and makes him feel secure. Therein lies the primacy of the law which contributes to the overall security of persons and the State. 1.32. Security and Gender. Sometimes, it may appear difficult to understand what is exactly meant by the terms« sex» and« gender» and how to differentiate one from the other, since they are closely related. In fact, the word« sex» particularly refers to the biological and physiological characteristics which differentiate men from women. As for« gender» it refers to socially determined roles, behaviours, activities and attributes which are considered as specific to men and women respectively. In other words,« men” and« women» are two categories of sex, whereas the terms« males» and« females» correspond to two categories of« gender». The sex-related aspects are not quite different from one human society to another. But the gender­related aspects vary sometimes, even substantially. Therefore, gender is about the relations between men and women within a particular society. Within the framework of governance, these relations should be the fairest possible, which constitutes an essential indicator of peace and security. In public security policies, taking the gender issue into consideration requires the following actions, amongst others: · A better participation in the planning process of security issues; · Promoting the culture of peace and human rights education to change mentalities and behaviours; 22