In Nepali politics men occupy dominant space and assume important political roles. For women, maternal needs seem to be a huge barrier to their greater participation in political activities; it is far easier for a father of a small child to participate in politics rather mother in the same situation. And, arguably, men have the disposition to cope more easily with political complexities. But it does not necessarily mean they are less capable of performing political activities. Social construction is what prevents them from their greater political role. Feminism attempts to blur the tradition gender boundaries.
The biological differences between men and women should not be used as a basis for analyzing women’s roles, both at workplace and at home. Women work equal hours to men but are paid less. According to Michel Foucault, ‘power produces the subject’. It seems that power controls women everywhere through prohibition, control, limitation as well as ‘protection’. During political feminist movement, when the women’s private issues came entered the public sphere, feminist activists tried to subvert the position of women dictated on the basis of biological difference and power play. ‘Personal is political’ was a slogan derived from the political feminist movement which took away the private/public binary.
However, the big question is: Are there some commonalities between all women? This question has been unanswered for a long time. But it isn’t hard to see that if all women are put under a single category, they would be further marginalized. If the women are categorized, no woman can be represented individually, which is essential as women, like men, have different identities based on their diverse geographical, educational, economic, social, cultural and religious backgrounds.
Feminism has done its bit to further the cause of women. However, doing justice to all Nepali women is still a huge challenge. They need both cultural as well as economic justice through redistributing of the economic resources and recognition of their social roles. These hurdles can be overcome by bringing women issues in politics, and through a discursive practice aimed at addressing women’s problems and bringing these issues into the political sphere.
Nepali women neither have employment rights nor pregnancy rights. Thus, before redistributing resources, potential role of Nepali women in the society should be recognized, through robust property and citizenship rights, for instance. Traditionally, women were expected to stay at home, take care of their children, and to be loyal and caring to their husbands. Women were not expected to enter the public sphere where men enjoyed their “men’s right”. The binary dichotomy of public/private sphere was created to exclude women and to restrict their participation in the political space.
It isn’t hard to see that if all women are put under a single category, they would be further marginalized.
Similarly, reproductive health rights and employment rights for women are of equal importance. As women are biologically different form men, such biological difference can create problems at workplaces. Women’s complex biology as well as socio-economic factors can affect their reproductive health. The state should draft special rights to protect their right to reproductive healthy. Women, it is becoming more and more clear, may not be able to exercise their rights without reproductive and sexual health rights and equal employment opportunities.
Another aspect is women’s access (and affordability) to medicines and contraceptives. All women do not have equal access to contraceptive measures for various socio-economic reasons. Likewise, most working women are deprived of prenatal medical examination leaves. Because of inadequate leaves for regular check-ups many women are dying during pregnancy and child birth. It should be their right to ask for prenatal medical examination leaves.
During pregnancy, women are not treated well at working places and not cared for at home. Because of women’s complex biology, naturally, they need more off-days than men. They should thus have the right over reproduction, contraceptive, abortion and birth control. Some jobs might also affect women employee’s pregnancy (that may result in miscarriage), so employers should adopt the necessary safety measures. Women are still struggling for these rights, which came to light during the second wave of feminist movement which started in the 1960s.
In our context, it is important to make equal employment provision a law in order to ensure women’s freedoms and to boost their self-esteem. The ‘gendered pay’ should also be ended, and the remuneration at all levels made equal. A female peon should be paid the same amount as her male counterpart in the same organization.
In addition, we do not have enough literatures on women issues. Feminist thinker Jean Elshtain says “politics is in part an elaborate defense against the tug of the private, against the lure of the familial, against evocations of the female power”. The available literature on feminism as well as politics suggests that the society is arranged a way that keeps women in political periphery. In order to dismantle such ‘political periphery’ and construct a ‘new center,’ women issues should be incorporated in all academic disciplines.
The writer is a student at Nepā School of Social Sciences
pranjali.sapkota@gmail.com
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