Though women tend to be considered victims of armed conflict, recognising their political agency is imperative for their inclusion in peacebuilding and combatant rehabilitation processes. Recent...Show moreThough women tend to be considered victims of armed conflict, recognising their political agency is imperative for their inclusion in peacebuilding and combatant rehabilitation processes. Recent studies suggest women’s presence is beneficial to mobilisation success, but it remains unclear whether this effect varies based on the roles women have. This research proposes two mechanisms to theorise why female presence in specific positions may increase a violent political campaign’s likelihood of success. A mobilisation mechanism suggests that women can prompt mass mobilisation, loyalty shifts and strong social capital. A legitimacy mechanism posits that they may increase external support and resources. Correlation between female participation in frontline, symbolic or leadership roles and campaign success is tested quantitatively with an analysis of 168 violent resistance campaigns drawn from the Women in Resistance dataset. Empirical results reveal that women’s presence in leadership roles may be a particular catalyst for the success of violent political campaigns. Conversely, there is no significant effect of female presence in frontline or symbolic roles on campaign outcome. This study thus contributes to the existing literature by providing a detailed analysis of women’s positions in armed mobilisation. Future research could deepen understandings of the topic by operationalising campaign outcomes in a more nuanced manner.Show less
In March 2022, Yoon Suk-Yeol became the 8th President of South Korea, with a 1% victory margin over his competitor. This result has become known as the most closely contested presidential election...Show moreIn March 2022, Yoon Suk-Yeol became the 8th President of South Korea, with a 1% victory margin over his competitor. This result has become known as the most closely contested presidential election outcome in South Korea. Then-candidate Yoon announced arbitrarily in January 2022 on his Facebook account the abolishment of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family as a campaign pledge. This case study has sought to illuminate motives behind this policy move and explain why this particular case highlights complex social issues central to gender equality in Korean society. A framework of analysis is offered for the reasons behind the high political and social upheaval in Korea concerning gender. Outcomes of the analysis point to a reorganization of the Ministry due to its contested position and a required renewed approach on gender equality.Show less
Abstract This thesis explores the connection between the two driving forces behind the phenomena women’s empowerment and gender equality in the Arab Gulf region. These driving forces are (1)...Show moreAbstract This thesis explores the connection between the two driving forces behind the phenomena women’s empowerment and gender equality in the Arab Gulf region. These driving forces are (1) international (Western) standards (top-down approach) and (2) efforts by Arab women themselves (bottom-up approach). The social change, which has taken place in the recent years, has created new spaces and visibility for Arab Gulf women. However, it is argued with a postcolonial feminist theoretical framework that international development standards and Western liberal & Orientalist narratives often overshadow Arab Muslim women’s agency in their liberation by portraying them as oppressed and silent. As such, the existence and role of Islamic feminism is analysed to challenge these Western liberal & Orientalist narratives. This study employs various case studies as its qualitative research method, which are spread between two analytical chapters which provide a critical discourse analysis of the two approaches outlined above. Analysis of the top-down approach discusses the existing international framework of female empowerment and gender equality and relates it to the UAE as regional case study. Analysis of the bottom-up approach discusses the case of Saudi Muslim women’s rights activist Manal al-Sharif to challenge both the national patriarchal and Western neoliberal narratives, which belittle women’s agency in their own increasing empowerment. Ultimately, this thesis will focus on a how female empowerment as a regional phenomenon can be analysed within a global context.Show less
This BA thesis analyses the relation between the gig economy and Japanese gender roles that influence women’s career opportunities in Japan. For a long time, separate social duties between men and...Show moreThis BA thesis analyses the relation between the gig economy and Japanese gender roles that influence women’s career opportunities in Japan. For a long time, separate social duties between men and women have led to the exclusion of Japanese women from particular careers and opportunities. Nowadays, the lack of women within Japan’s workforce is problematic to economic growth, and the gig economy might be a promising avenue for women to contribute to the economy. Through conducting case studies on the experiences of Japanese women engaged in gig work, this thesis reveals some of the issues and complications that accompany online employment relations for Japanese women. The results show that gig work does not address the main inadequacies that complicate women’s careers and work-life balance within Japanese society. Therefore, Japanese women looking to find aspiring and refreshing employment in the digital realm might come to find that online work does not offer them a getaway from women’s traditional social duties and career options.Show less
Crises impede the achievement of gender equality worldwide, and are unlikely to cede in the coming years. Therefore, understanding the gender effects of crises is crucial to inform policymakers and...Show moreCrises impede the achievement of gender equality worldwide, and are unlikely to cede in the coming years. Therefore, understanding the gender effects of crises is crucial to inform policymakers and strive towards universal gender equality. This thesis seeks to add a new empirical contribution to the existing state of art by exploring how the type of crisis affects gender equality. By pursuing a single-case study focused on Sweden, this thesis aims to address limitations of current literature on this topic, which often lacks thick description and has largely neglected country-specific analyses. Using feminist theory as the theoretical framework, this thesis compares and contrasts the impact of two types of crises on gender equality in Sweden, namely financial and climate crises through document analyses. Whereas financial crises had a limited impact on gender equality, which already enjoyed a high standard pre-crisis, climate crises had a much more profound impact on gender equality in Sweden. By comparing and contrasting findings, this thesis concludes that the type of crisis does matter in terms of the impact it has on gender equality as it varies significantly in terms of the scope and nature of impact.Show less
South Korean women face structural challenges when participating in the labour force. As of today, female labour participation is at its highest point in recorded history, yet gender inequality...Show moreSouth Korean women face structural challenges when participating in the labour force. As of today, female labour participation is at its highest point in recorded history, yet gender inequality causes persistent disadvantages for women regarding opportunities and decision-making power. Building on existing work, this study aims to determine the structural challenges that contribute to an unequal position in the work environment for South Korean women. It includes a research survey among 55 South Korean working women who share their experiences and offers a new perspective to the current scholarly work written on the topic of gender (in)equality in the South Korean work environment.Show less
This thesis aims to examine the various discursive approaches utilised by development organisations which work to ameliorate the status of women both globally and locally. In particular, the thesis...Show moreThis thesis aims to examine the various discursive approaches utilised by development organisations which work to ameliorate the status of women both globally and locally. In particular, the thesis compares the discourse analyses of international development organisations and Moroccan women's NGOs in order to identify recurrent terminologies and discrepancies in their construction of a feminist narrative. The results of the discourse analyses allow to further focus on the link between discourse, gender and hegemony by assessing whether the comparison demonstrates the presence of a prevailing feminist discourse on an ideological and linguistic level. In fact, the initial influence of international organisations in the development of Moroccan women’s NGOs has caused the presence of analogous nodal points definable as the transnational feminist language. Nevertheless, through the reformulation of the transnational language, the use of locally bounded nodal points, as well as through the unuse of the notion of empowerment Moroccan women’s NGOs have developed an independent and flexible strategy in constructing their feminist narrative which is increasingly overcoming the international tendency of hegemonizing the feminist discourse. Moreover, the semantic individuality elaborated by Moroccan women’s NGOs can be crucial to increase the participation of the principal receivers of their projects: hence, Moroccan women.Show less
In 2017, the European Commission, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament came together to agree upon the introduction of a “European Pillar of Social Rights” - the EPSR. It entails a set...Show moreIn 2017, the European Commission, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament came together to agree upon the introduction of a “European Pillar of Social Rights” - the EPSR. It entails a set of 20 social principles already recognized as binding in the EU social acquis, or that are yet to be implemented at EU or the domestic level. A recent deliverable thereof includes the Work-Life Balance Directive adopted in 2019. This thesis seeks to determine whether the EPSR can facilitate equal sharing of care within families and explores alternative approaches to that effect. The thesis argues that whereas the EPSR may have been criticized for merely paying lip service to social Europe, its strengths lie in its flexibility. A non-rigid approach to advancing social rights accommodates a wide diversity of preferences and facilitates enhanced cooperation as well as coordination of policy which both on the long term as well as on the short term may contribute to the advancement of social rights on an EU level, in particular in the field of care sharing in the family.Show less
Consociationalism is a type of power-sharing that has been implemented throughout peace-agreements in several civil conflicts during the last decades and proved to be successful in satisfying the...Show moreConsociationalism is a type of power-sharing that has been implemented throughout peace-agreements in several civil conflicts during the last decades and proved to be successful in satisfying the major groups in dispute. Notwithstanding, feminist scholars claim that consociational settlements are detrimental for marginalized communities such as women, that are usually co-opted or ignored by state institutions that are framed to prioritize the main elite constituencies. However, saying that consociationalism is always unfavorable for women is limiting, not only because its features are not inherently against gender equality, but also because there is limited research regarding which intervening variables can induce consociational settlements in promoting women’s rights. The thesis aims at filling this academic vacuum by investigating whether consociationalism promotes women's rights with the conditions of having a feminist civil society and the international community involved in women's empowerment. Bosnia-Herzegovina and North Macedonia are the case studies selected for this analysis, as they are both consociations that experienced a civil conflict and share many socio-historical similarities. Therefore, the research question is: Does consociationalism impact gender equality? If so, under which conditions can consociationalism promote gender equality? Did Bosnia-Herzegovina, a corporative consociation, and North Macedonia, a hybrid consociationalism, promote gender equality between 2005 and 2018?Show less
Johannesburg the “city of creativity” is known for its modernity and its cultivation of a postApartheid urban identity that remains central to its profile as a contemporary South African city....Show moreJohannesburg the “city of creativity” is known for its modernity and its cultivation of a postApartheid urban identity that remains central to its profile as a contemporary South African city. However, South Africa as a nation is troubled by high levels of unemployment that disproportionally affect Black South African women. This thesis paper intends to analyse Johannesburg’s fashion and textile industry as a means to promote development through the inclusivity of women. It analyses their current roles in creative industries and the ways in which the fashion and textile industries can increase their accessibility for further inclusion of women. Additionally, this thesis looks at ways in which the fashion and textile industries can expand to promote increased income generation for the women already involved.Show less
Since the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the strive for gender equality and female empowerment has gained momentum. Yet, how to achieve gender equality and female empowerment...Show moreSince the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the strive for gender equality and female empowerment has gained momentum. Yet, how to achieve gender equality and female empowerment remains debated – especially in the realm of politics. African countries are increasingly resorting to electoral gender quotas to reach higher female representation in national legislatures. While scholars have analysed the effect of political regime structure on female representation, they have not accounted for the effects of gender quotas. Thus, this thesis assesses the impact of political regime structure on gender quotas in empowering women by comparing authoritarian Rwanda and democratic Senegal. Female empowerment is measured through an in-depth analysis of descriptive, substantive and symbolic female representation. The paper finds that women in both Rwanda and Senegal have become increasingly empowered as a result of gender quotas.Show less
Reggaeton has risen in popularity, spreading outside its continent of origin and entertaining both Latino and non-Latino people alike in recent years. However, the songs within this music style...Show moreReggaeton has risen in popularity, spreading outside its continent of origin and entertaining both Latino and non-Latino people alike in recent years. However, the songs within this music style have been criticized for their degrading lyrics that perpetuate machista behavior, which is still prevalent in Latin American countries like Chile. This paper analyses how machismo manifests in reggaeton and the extent to which its songs’ specifically vulgar lyrics affect Chilean women’s perception of gender roles, their self-worth and the state of gender equality in their society. This investigation has been conducted via an online survey in Chile among women between the ages of 18 and 30. The findings of the research indicate that the women are more or less likely to be affected by the lyrics based on their individual state of mind and demographic factors such as age, education level, and geographical location. However, seeing as the majority of the women that answered the survey could be categorized as members of the middle- and upper-classes, the results cannot be generalized beyond these particular strata of women without further research. Nonetheless, the data indicates that reggaeton still plays a role in the reproduction of machismo in Chilean society.Show less
The main focus of this thesis is the Japanese gendered and masculinized work culture in relation to the creation of a work-life balance (WLB) for employees in large companies. Specific problems...Show moreThe main focus of this thesis is the Japanese gendered and masculinized work culture in relation to the creation of a work-life balance (WLB) for employees in large companies. Specific problems with Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe’s current ‘Womenomics’ program and possible consequences are looked into. It is argued why instead of focusing on certain targets (e.g, 30% of high positions occupied by women), companies have to innovate their current working environments and establish gender equality in order to eventually be able to create a WLB. This thesis also includes a case study that discusses Japanese cosmetics company Shiseido’s views and strategy in creating a WLB for all employees.Show less
The literature on women’s inclusion in peacebuilding has not only raised much criticism about women’s poor involvement, but also hopes for what their inclusion could entail. This research aims to...Show moreThe literature on women’s inclusion in peacebuilding has not only raised much criticism about women’s poor involvement, but also hopes for what their inclusion could entail. This research aims to unravel the question of whether involving local women's groups in the official peace process will lead to women's political, legal and economic emancipation in post-conflict societies. This is done with a case study of Liberia, as it has become well-known for its active women’s peace movement, and election of the first woman president in Africa. The 2003 Comprehensive Peace Agreement was somewhat gender-sensitive, and also involved a regional women’s organization— MARWOPNET— as one of the signatories. Yet, while the gender agenda has been present in several programs and policies in Liberia’s reconstruction, the results so far have been moderate. This thesis argues that local women’s involvement in official peace processes will lead to gender issues being more present in countries’ post-conflict reconstruction. However, to achieve their goals, women’s organizations need support from other actors, and the focus should be on their involvement both in quality and quantity.Show less
