Gendered nationalism in contemporary Kyrgyzstan : perspectives from women’s rights activism / Mayely Müller

Abstract

In Kyrgyzstan, nationalism has been on the rise in recent years. Increasing nationalist tendencies were accompanied by gendered implications, especially for women. This paper explores the gendered dimensions of nationalism in contemporary Kyrgyzstan through the prism of women’s rights activism. Building on qualitative interviews, the research discloses the experiences and perceptions of women’s rights activists towards the nationalist discourse and utilizes these perspectives for an examination regarding the gendered dimensions of nationalism. The research aims to unpack current nationalist developments through a gendered lens, whereby a better understanding of the linkages between gender and nationalism is attempted. One finding of this work is that the nationalist discourse is differently experienced by activists, while the overall tension regarding a lack of consensus where Kyrgyzstan as a nation should develop illustrates a main issue. As a major gendered dimension of nationalism, hegemonic masculinity is identified as a legitimization of gendered hierarchy. This reinforces the objectification of women as well as the symbolic meaning of women as the representation of the nation. Ethnicity plays an additional role since the Kyrgyz nation is aimed to be perpetuated, which could have implications for non-Kyrgyz groups. It is argued that the foundation of contemporary Kyrgyz nationalism might lie in the thought of continuity and temporality of the nation which is under continuous re-invention. This is shaped by the interplay of tradition and its institutionalization, emancipation practices of the Soviet past, remembrance of nomadic times, religious influences as well as Westernization, which all impact gender and gender roles perceptions in the current nationalist framework.