Abstract
Studies on women in nationalist guerrilla movements, such as in Sri Lanka and Angola, find that women's militancy has not lead to changes in traditional patriarchal structures. Contradicting much of the current literature, today Kurdish women have gained substantial equality in the PKK, and the Party's ideology actively promotes a subversion of traditional gender structures. Using existing interviews with militants and academic literature, I will give a nuanced view of the progressive transition of the PKK's political ideology on women. During the early 1990s, the PKK's emancipatory stance and reinterpretation of Kurdish myths were employed pragmatically to increase women's participation. However, patriarchal structures remained unchanged and female militants were merely handed over from a patriarchal family to a patriarchal party. Despite this, the autonomous Women's Army (YJAK) became a “safe space” from which self-organized and armed women actively influenced the PKK's ideology and practice. Legitimized by the PKK's own emancipatory propaganda, the YJAK pushed the party towards a more radical feminist agenda by loyally aligning themselves to the “father figure” Öcalan during setbacks in the late 1990s. The current prominence of the PKK's feminist agenda suggests female militants can undermine and challenge patriarchal structures from within the structure of a nationalist movement.
Highlights
Studies on women in nationalist guerrilla movements, such as in Sri Lanka and Angola, find that women’s militancy has not lead to changes in traditional patriarchal structures
Democratic confederalism is the ideology applied in Northern Syria, or Rojava, by the Kurdish PYD and its affiliated parties
Whereas in the 1990s, women had to struggle for equality within the Politik der Arbeiterpartei Kurdistans (PKK), ‘any position and decision within any organ of the movement can only be decided on with women’s power, presence and participation.’[3] the movement takes active steps to promote feminism in Kurdish towns and cities through grassroots women’s organizations and women’s academies, which spread ‘alternative history of women, gender roles, the ideology of women’s freedom, the role of women in democratic autonomy, and why women must be leaders in the struggle.’[4]
Summary
The power and influence of male guerrilla fighters began to be challenged by the Women’s Army, an autonomous, all-female, PKK-sub group founded in 1997 These developments resulted from female militants’ fight against patriarchy both in Kurdish society and in the movement. Women have used their ‘own state of being-pulled-down to pull down the whole society.’[20] Öcalan’s interest in honor was less concerned with women’s condition as with its influence on Kurdish society He wrote that it was producing ‘very serious consequences,’ because ‘The homeland is under occupation, it is raped thousands of times, but nothing is done in return; there is not the slightest feeling of namus.’[21] Çağlayan argues the PKK consciously framed its discourse in terms of power and sexuality in order to redefine the meaning of namus. The party used emancipation discourse as a means of reinventing patriarchy, and Öcalan himself became ‘the tribal leader’ for all Kurds.[41]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Zanj: The Journal of Critical Global South Studies
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
