The Role of Culture and Gender in Nation Building - Research Paper Example

The Role of Culture and Gender in Nation Building Abstract Nationalism refers to the ideology that helps in creating and sustaining a nation as a common identity concept for groups of human beings. The nationalism theory places a great value in a number of issues including the preservation of the nation’s identity features, the independence of the nation, the glory and well-being of one’s nation. Nationalism generally presents negative consequences for women. This is mainly as a result of women’s segregation, marginalization and discrimination. Timor-Leste is in the recovery phase following the trauma and destruction during the long decades of conflict. The violence as a result of the 1999 referendum had a far-reaching impact on the country. It led to a near-collapse of the agricultural sector, loss of skilled manpower, collapse of healthcare and education systems and a massive destruction of the infrastructure. The participation of women in social and economic life in any society is directly influenced by community and family demands. Whereas there may be regional differences (mainly between urban and rural areas) and ethnic differences, Uzbekistan women share a number of common characteristics. Women in Uzbekistan are generally associated with the family domain. Attitudes such as this have greatly hindered young women from pursuing higher education and work. It has also encouraged early marriage for these young women. Nationalism has brought about a change in culture. A change in culture has in turn come with social, economic and political conflict between men and women. All in all, women have endured the brunt of nationalism. This is because it has brought many negative consequences for them compared to their male counterparts. Introduction Nationalism refers to the ideology that helps in creating and sustaining a nation as a common identity concept for groups of human beings. The nationalism theory places a great value in a number of issues including the preservation of the nation’s identity features, the nation’s independence of the nation, the glory and well-being of one’s nation. Nationalists usually base their nations on a number of political legitimacy notions. Nationalism is also used to refer to the military and political exercise of religious and ethnic nationalism (Sarkar, 1997). One of the most fundamental questions that nationalism must answer is who belongs to a given nation and who does not. It also must answer what belonging to a nation really means. Early nationalism theories were of the view that a nation’s boundaries exist as a result of geography and ethnicity. However, the 20th century nationalism theorists began arguing that nations are socially constructed. A number of theorists described nationalism as simply imagined communities. Smith (1986) enlisted a number of conditions necessary for the establishment of a nation, such as historical records and thoughts, special customs, scripts and languages, sacred centers, memories of battles, hostile surroundings, high autonomy, and a fixed homeland; historical or current. Smith further argues that nations can only be formed by including the whole population and not just the elites. Other prerequisites for the formation of a nation include drawing of borders, international recognition, national ideology, and political and legal institutions. Nationalism generally presents negative consequences for women (Yuval-Davis, 1997). This is mainly as a result of women’s segregation, marginalization and discrimination. Gender and nation-building: a case study of Timor-Leste Timor-Leste is in the recovery phase following the trauma and destruction during the decades of conflict. The violence as a result of the 1999 referendum had a far-reaching impact on the country. It led to a near-collapse of the agricultural sector, loss of skilled manpower, collapse of healthcare and education systems and a massive destruction of the infrastructure. Timor-Leste is among the poorest countries in the world, with its per capita GDP standing at $426 as at the year 2004. Forty per cent of the country’s population is living below the poverty line, with the rural areas being the hardest hit. A good portion of Timor-Leste’s women are victims of malnutrition, with some being severely malnourished. Close to 50 per cent of Timor-Leste’s population is illiterate. The country’s life expectancy stands at 57 years and the health standards are very low (UNICEF, 2003). In spite of the poverty-related challenges that face Timor-Leste, the country’s attainment of independence has brought optimism and accumulated a great human potential. Timor-Leste’s nation building has presented an exceptional opportunity for progress in such matters as gender equality and genuine human development (Alexander, 2003). Women have greatly contributed to the country’s nation building since its inception. For instance, a quarter of representatives elected to parliament in 2001 were women. However, women are still more vulnerable to poverty compared to their male counterparts. The rate of unemployment among women is very high while that of labor force participation is very low. Most of Timor-Leste’s population is in the informal sector, although women seem to occupy the low income generating workforce of the informal sector. Sex segregation is slowly emerging in the formal labor workforce. There is also a wide disparity in wages between the genders. According to UNDP, there is a considerable gender gap in wages. Men are estimated to earn eight what their women counterparts earn. The women’s reproductive role as domestic caregivers has turned out to be a big challenge to women’s incoming generating activities. The reconstruction of Timor-Leste’s education after the 1999 destruction has been a big achievement. There has been a big improvement in the rates of enrollment in primary particularly in primary schools. However, repetition and drop-out rates have been very high, presenting a major challenge for the country. The drop-out rate among female students at senior school level is particularly high (ADB, 2003). Girls in Timor-Leste still find it hard to access education. This is because they face numerous cultural obstacles as well as other obstacles that prevent them from accessing adequate and quality education. These impediments include early pregnancy, financial constraints, a work burden in the home and long-distance walk to school. Illiteracy among females is very high. Fifty-two per cent of women are literate, compared to a massive 65 per cent literacy level among men (UNICEF, 2003). Adult vocational training and literacy programs have all along not succeeded to involve and sustain women’s participation. Another major problem facing Timor-Leste is lack of quality healthcare, with the country’s mortality rate being 800 for every 100,000 births. This can be attributed to high rates of fertility coupled with short time periods between pregnancies. The country’s rate of fertility is more than seven, one of the highest worldwide. Contraception use is currently very low, standing at only eight per cent (ADB, 2003). Timor-Leste’s women are also victim of health problems related to work hazards; like chronic heart and respiratory diseases as a result of being exposed to fuel-based fires. They also suffer spinal and back problems and miscarriages as a result of carrying very heavy loads. There is also a high prevalence of mental health problems due to violence against women; emotional and physical torture including rape, both in occupation and domestic (RDTL and UN, 2004). Timor-Leste’s high prevalence rate has turned out to be a big human rights and social challenge for the young nation. Food insecurity is also prevalent due to poor agricultural productivity triggered or aggravated by natural disasters like drought and floods. Women in Timor-Leste suffer excessively, with close to 33 per cent of them being malnourished (UNICEF, 2003). This has been attributed to low food and nutritional intake among women, particularly between harvesting seasons. Timor-Leste has however made tangible gains in terms of governance. The government is currently in pursuit of an affirmative action strategy for women. The 25 per cent women parliamentarians and a further 25 per cent employed in public service is a notable outcome. Despite these gender balance achievements, there is still a very long way to go, since the necessary regulations and legislation must be put in place in order to properly implement gender equality objectives and goals (Alexander, 2003). Timor-Leste has numerous opportunities to make progress as far as gender equality is concerned (Alexander, 2003). These opportunities however come with considerable challenges that must be addressed in order for men and women to utilize these opportunities and even make new ones. These opportunities are presented by the fact that Timor-Leste is a new country. Moreover the government is fully committed to attaining gender equality (Alexander, 2003). This has put in place policies conducive to the advancement of the objectives of gender equality. Consolidating and building on these openings will need an enormous effort on numerous fronts. Gender and nationalism: A case study of Uzbekistan Uzbekistan has a total population of about 25 million, with 62 per cent of this population living in the rural areas. Out of this population, 48 per cent falls between the ages of 16 and 60 (women) and between 16 and 65 (men). Uzbekistan’s plan to introduce a 12 year compulsory education will help in increasing the working age for both women and men to about 18. Women make up over half of Uzbekistan’s population, with more than half of them being between 15 and 49 years, which is the child bearing age. Close to two-thirds of women above 16 years of age are married, and only ten per cent of women above 50 years of age have never married. Uzbekistan’s average age for marriage among women is about 20, with close to three-quarters of women being married at between 20 to 24 years of age. The country’s marriage rates and divorce rates have greatly fallen since 1991. The decline in the rate of marriage is as a result of people postponing marriage because of hard economic conditions. However, the rate of marriage among poor families is still high. Marrying off daughters early is a survival tactic that helps in optimizing not only the daughters’ well being, but also that of the family since there are limited opportunities for education and employment. Despite there being a drop in the rates of divorce, Uzbekistan’s number of families headed by women is on the increase. This has been attributed to a high number of men leaving their families in search of work. Additionally, the number of children born to unmarried women has risen by 46 per cent. This may be as a result of an increase in polygamy cases (MMS, 1996). The participation of women in social and economic life in any society is directly influenced by community and family demands (Krenghel, 1997). Whereas there may be regional differences (mainly between urban and rural areas) and ethnic differences, Uzbekistan women share a number of common characteristics. Women in Uzbekistan are generally associated with the family domain. Attitudes such as this have greatly hindered young women from pursuing higher education and work. It has also encouraged early marriage for these young women (Krenghel, 1997). A good number of Uzbek women are of the belief that family concerns are more important than any professional or educational activity. A study carried out in Tashkent and Namangan provinces discovered that most teenage girls believe that they should put aside their professional endeavors after marriage in order to fully concentrate on new roles as mothers and wives (Krenghel, 1997, pp13). Uzbekistan’s women’s low political and economic status is directly attributed to heavy domestic responsibilities. This has been worsened by the large size of families since 57 per cent of the country’s families have five children and more. A desire for large families with many sons is still widespread, especially in the rural areas. Women’s burdens are worsened by lack or high cost of utilities like sewerage and piped water. Access to these facilities is very low in both urban and rural areas, with situation in the rural areas being worse. There has been an upsurge in domestic violence against women in Uzbekistan. This has been attributed to men’s inability to sufficiently provide for their families as a result of unemployment or decrease in income, which leads to make drinking, conflict over domestic finances and domestic violence. Uzbekistan’s financial squeeze and shrinking economy has greatly affected the economic status of women. These conditions were faced by both non-state and state enterprises after the Soviet period. This is because these enterprises were not integrated in the Soviet economy as before. This has made it hard for enterprises to maintain output and cover production costs. Consequently, many enterprises have either had to close or have numerous employees on unpaid leave. Uzbekistan’s current labor laws give working women numerous benefits, making employers reluctant to hire them, except for some female jobs. It is not a wonder therefore that even though women occupy 42 per cent of the workforce, they form a biggest portion of the registered unemployed (63 per cent). Two worrisome trends with regard to women’s employment and economic status have emerged in Uzbekistan. First, the country’s economic transition from a communist to a market economy has reduced the competitiveness of women in the job market, especially the private sector. Second, there is a growing concern that poverty is being feminized. There is little or no change in the percentage women and men who can be regarded as economically active (Vestbo, 1998). Over 50 per cent of female workers in Uzbekistan are in feminized and non-productive sectors such as culture, insurance, healthcare and education. On the other hand, men are concentrated in authorities, transport and communications and construction. There is also a trend in women’s sectoral distribution that requires investigation to make sure that women are not relegated to uncompetitive or less competitive sectors. For instance, while there has been stability in the percentage of women involved in the transport and construction sectors, their share in procurement, catering, trade, technical and material supply, communications and industry has declined. Women’s concentration in public health and education sectors has greatly influenced the women’s prospects of future employment and salary level. Generally, jobs such as these are mainly in public service, which has been affected by wages erosion. Conclusion Culture and gender play a major role in nation building. The two case studies have pointed out the relationship between culture, gender, nationalism, and nation building. In the case studies, women have been marginalized, segregated and discriminated. The women’s human rights have also been greatly violated. There is a strong relationship between nation building, culture, identity, invented tradition, and socio-economic and political conflicts. Some cultures in the society, such as marginalization of women negatively affect nation building. In cultures where women are not empowered to participate a nation building, the rate of growth is very low. On the other hand, countries that recognize and acknowledge the role of women in nation building greatly benefit. Nationalism has brought about a change in culture. A change in culture has in turn come with social, economic and political conflict between men and women. All in all, women have endured the brunt of nationalism. This is because it has brought many negative consequences for them compared to their male counterparts. References ADB (2003) Gender and Development, Manila Alexander, P (2003) Searching for Gender in Timor-Leste, Mimeo, Dili Krenghel, M (1997) Assistance to Family Planning, Project GTZ, Tashkent Ministry of Macroeconomics and Statistics (1996) Women and Children, Tashkent, Uzbekistan RDTL and UN (2004) Timor-Leste, Millennium Development Goals Report, Dili Sarkar, S (1997) Writing Social History, Oxford University Press, Delhi Smith, D (1986) the Ethnic Origins of Nations, Basil Blackwell, London UNICEF (2003) Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), Timor-Leste 2002, Dili Vestbo, K (1998) At Home We Are Uzbek, University of Oslo Yuval-Davis, N (1997) Gender and Nation, London, Sage Read More