Nationalism in Relation to Feminist ideology

       

Natinalism and Femenism

         Nationalism in Relation to Feminist ideology

Upreti (2006) has theorized that Nationalism has been conceptualized as a state of manifestation of certain ideological goals, which people wish to realize through unified efforts, which is strongly rooted in the attitudes of people. It can be argued that nationalism is an ideological instrument adhered by a group for the attainment of their political goals. Therefore, how the nationalistic aspirations of a group are used would depend on the objectives behind those aspirations (Upreti, 2006).

According to Jayewardene and de Alwis (1996), many nationalist movements have used women as cultural representatives. As many feminists have pointed out, women were constructed as ‘Mothers of the Nation’ and their biological role as reproducers of the nation was highlighted to sustain structural disparities. It is for this reason that gender and feminism become central to understanding religious nationalism, especially in Muslim countries.

Nationalism emerged in Pakistan as soon as it appeared as an independent country at the partition of India in 1947. As this making of the country was based on the plea that Muslims constituted a distinct Islamic ideology-based identity, so even before the country was formed it had a strong element of Islamic Nationalism because religion was the basis of a separate country for the Muslims of the subcontinent. Hence religion has always been the basis of Nationalism debates in Pakistanis. Simultaneously, the Pakistani ruling elite had constantly promoted religious and masculine (non-egalitarian) bases of nationalism due to the decline of democratic institutions, the rise of military dictatorship, failed development, and the rise of Islamic fundamentalism (Khan, 2002). After 1975, more than ever before, the Pakistani rulers began to promote Islamization and fundamentalism for their own political interests. It further narrowed down the religious contents of Pakistani nationalism (Upreti, 2006; Khan, 2002).

According to Cynthia Enola (1990), male theorists rarely felt moved to explore how nationalism is associated with gender power. In her book, Bananas, Beaches, and Bases, she argues that women are not given importance and are downgraded to minor roles in nationalist movements. They are represented either as signs of nationhood, to be defended and elevated, or as the spoils of conflicts, and to be disgraced in the name of honor. In both cases, the real conquerors are men who are defending their homeland, and thus their women’s honor. Enola argued that the connection between nationalism and elevated masculinity could only be understood through a feminist lens. Scholars like Renan (1996) have argued that overemphasizing the essence of a nation lies in creating shared aims among members of the declared national community and forgetting their dissimilarities.

 Others such as Luxemburg (1976) criticized how the concept of ‘the nation’ as a homogenous social entity. He called it a ‘‘misty veil’’ to hide the hostile interests of its privileged members to an extent that nationalism creates unequal circumstances. In the case of conservative nations, the less privileged could be women and especially women who would disagree with traditional norms. Such uneven benefits to some people living in the country promote narrow and non-egalitarian nationalist assertions that benefit only men of the nation (Hobsbawm, 1990).

Scholars argue that it has been actively curbing gender equality voices and hence feminism. Muslim societies are also often associated with collectivistic and conservative cultures. Such cultural association of Pakistani society may lead to further conservative values and traditional self-categorization of Muslim identity as an honor code.

Feminism, Nationalism, and Islam

This topic critically centers on debates relating to females’ participation in political domains, family reforms, and the variant prescriptions of Islam across countries and cultures. The question of feminism - women’s roles and rights - is mostly a tussle between two levels in the Islamic world, firstly against the society’s forces of conservatism and secondly the outcomes it will have on the country’s political structure. The clash between rising conservatism and gender equality has become a growing concern among feminist groups living as minority Muslim groups even outside of predominantly non-Muslim countries.

According to Hussain (2007), In India, greater control has been imposed on women by fundamentalists in the name of the religion. Regardless of religion, generally, national identity debates revolve around the politics of controlling women. Within the fundamentalist’s claim regarding their public search for Islamic identity, their practices affect women’s access to public spheres, legislative systems, and family codes. The Muslim world has undergone a noteworthy revolution regarding feminist movements during the Twentieth century. There has been a modernization of laws concerning education, politics, and business but still, the status of women has not been brought forward and religion is raised whenever it is a matter of women’s rights. There is a serious concern in handling the political and religious manipulation of women’s identity and autonomy by the right-wing political groups leading to discrimination against women (Hussain, 2007 p.69).

Throughout history, leaders have appropriated women for nation-building purposes. Discourses of Islamization, along with Islamic fundamentalism very often intercede the discourses of nationhood and gender in Pakistan, and the intersection of the three effects on Pakistani women (Cook, 2001). Zia’s regime of “Islamisation” was initiated by right-wing religious organizations such as the Jama’at-I-Islami. They claimed that “modern” was a Western imperialist tool that should be averted with gender segregation in a proper Islamic society in which “Islamisation policies reinforced the ideal of women’s segregation in the home.” (Cook, 2001. p.33.). Authors such as Afia Zia (2018) have argued that despite the end of General Zia’s Era, Islamist terrorism in Pakistan is still there and its impacts and intensity are not gone. In some areas, the impacts are more pronounced than others i.e. in Baluchistan. Furthermore, the radical Islamist groups still have a stronghold and are flourishing under the Pakistani state’s acquiescence.

Research has shown that religious fundamentalism has played a crucial role in promoting xenophobia and traditional gender roles and conservative social values (Bermanis, Canettinism & Pedahzur, 2004). Right-wing extremism is seen as a secular phenomenon and religious fundamentalism is thought to have religious roots, however, these two phenomena are found to overlap extensively in traditional societies. For instance, right-wing extremist parties in Israel have reinforced the segregation between Jew and Arabs, excluding the Arabs, so much so that they have used references from Bible and other religious authorities to validate their ideology. With regard to gender roles and traditional values, conservative attitudes are evident among these parties as women are seen as destined for motherhood. Hence, the ideology of right-wing extremists cannot be seen in isolation from religious fundamentalism.

According to Mohanty (2009), religious nationalism and fundamentalism have spawned a militant brand of Islam in Pakistan in recent years. The politicization of Islam has produced fundamentalism that stands in contradiction to the religious liberties and political freedoms of the rest of the world. Religious loyalties are very much melded in the concept of nationalist fundamentalism. By preaching puritan Islam, disciplinarians run the risk of pushing Muslim youths to the thin line that divides fundamentalism and terrorism.

According to comprehensive research conducted by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP, 2014), surveys and focus groups, and interviews over the years with youths indicate that Pakistani Youths’ radicalization is the product of an exclusively Islamic identity that defines their nationalism too. Groups that thrive on an exclusive Islamic identity exploit this identity. Youth is vulnerable to becoming connected with more radical organizations and concepts.

Keywords;   Feminism, Nationalism,  Islam, and Feminism