Feminism is central to the social, cultural and political movement for equality around the globe but how important is the role of feminist knowledge generation and retention to sustain the feminist movement? Is feminist resource center an answer? We explore.

Feminist movement and Nepal

In Nepal, from Yogmaya Neupane who ignited the rage against discrimination at the civic level in 1917, to the downfall of over a century long oligarchy Rana regime – made possible through women’s participation, feminist movement has played a significant role in shaping Nepal’s history.

The Department of Women Development was established in 2000 under the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare which was an achievement of the women's unified efforts through years of advocacy and movement. The leaders of Nepal's feminist movement, having recognized the need for an alliance to achieve rights and equality, established the Inter-Party Alliance of Women (IPWA) which was formed in 2006 as a common political mechanism for gender justice. IPWA is considered as the milestone in Nepal's feminist movement.

After the restoration of democracy, the reinstated parliament on May 20, 2006, unanimously adopted a resolution that incorporated four major points as women's equal right to descent, property, participation and law against violence against women (VAW). The resolution was followed by amendment of other various discriminatory laws - one being the issuance of passports for women under 35 with their father or husband's consent.

Feminist movement in Nepal has entered into the agendas carried by the third wave of global feminist movement. Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW) has been the focus with issues of recognition to women which transcribes challenges and policy implementation towards right to participation, descent, property, reproductive health, citizenship and more.

Gender equality is key to overall wellbeing of women, and researches[1] have shown that support for gender equality is high among women with higher education. However, Nepal’s documentation of feminist movement and its achievements are slight, scattered and unattainable.

Nepal has high prevalence of gender-based violence (GBV) despite its significant progress in gender equality and women empowerment over the years. There is still a long way for Nepali women to establish an equal footing with their male counterparts, but possible only with increased knowledge and experience which requires constant engagement and discussion to further feminist campaigns in the country.

Feminist knowledge generation and discord

Feminist knowledge generation is one of the significant aspects to advance shared achievements of the feminist movement of a country. Adoption and ratification of the international conventions and programs have provided Nepal an opportunity to both contribute and take advantage of the common plan of actions. CEDAW, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA) and the Sustainable development Goals (SDGs) have been the pillars for some of the prevalent reforms on inclusion, gender equality and women empowerment as enshrined by the Constitution of Nepal 2015.

However, the discourse on how these binding conventions and urgent call for actions were contextualized and interpreted in Nepali context, have not been found recorded as part of knowledge resource.

Similarly, in 2020, the parliament endorsed the government’s Citizenship Amendment Bill to the Citizenship Act of 2006. It states that children born to a Nepali father and a foreign-born mother are eligible for citizenship by descent, while those born to a Nepal-born mother and a foreign-born father will be granted naturalized citizenship, with less privilege.

The frustration with the endorsement was expressed immediately. The feminist fraternity along with media and academics raised voice against the unequal treatment of women in the bill. Many articles were published, and virtual discussions took place but, assembling of materials for a comparative study would prove extremely difficult due to information being scattered.   

Despite profound history of feminist movement, countless reforms and prevailing issues of feminism, Nepal lacks sustained effort to document the achievement, processes and struggles of Nepali women and their contribution to the feminist movement.

Need for an integrated feminist resource center

There have been efforts to resource knowledge around gender equality and feminism in the past through media outreach, academic researches and numerous consultations; however, not having an integrated platform of resources has proven difficult for individuals, organizations or networks interested in feminism to access them.

“A feminist resource center will help advance the evidence based advocacy that Nepal needs. It is important to document feminist knowledge as the concept of gender equality is not static. The gender discourse keeps evolving depending on the lived experiences and new researches based on evidence.” said Dr. Chandra Bhadra, Professor Emeritus of Gender Studies, Tribhuvan University, who played a crucial role in establishing Gender Studies in Nepal’s curriculum.

Department of Gender Studies at Tribhuvan University was established in 2009 that contributed to launching Master’s degree in gender studies. This created avenues for researchers and authors for more research and knowledge generation in the context of feminism and women development in Nepal. This has been an historic win for gender and feminist academics and researchers, however, it only catered to the students and academics, not the public in general.  

After the establishment of National Women Commission in 2010, organizations working on women and gender issues took the charge of civic awareness and launched various campaigns to define and re-define the demands of feminist movement in Nepal. Similarly, empowerment and inclusion being the core agenda, both national and international development organizations have been building up platforms that explain their works, impacts and achievements. But again, issues of segregation and individualistic working patterns affect the overall feminist movement in Nepal. It is crucial that there is a well co-ordinated, healthy partnership-led resource platform for all to discuss, dissect, inform, share and grow together.

Moreover, it is equally essential to capture the voices of those who are mostly underrepresented even within the feminist discourse. “While talking about feminist focused resource space, we need to be mindful that there isn’t segregation of women’s issues and LGBTIQ issues. It is important to understand that they are inter-linked. Issues around intersectionality such as class, race, identity and sex should also be considered when it comes to generating, discussing, and sharing feminist issues,” said Rukhshana Kapali, a transgender female human rights activist.

Gender justice and women rights in Nepal would be achieved only by changing culture, attitude and behavior at a personal, professional and policy level. It is also critical to consciously define, structure, retain and disseminate knowledge to sustain the feminist movement, on the basis of captured knowledge, policy reviews and revisions of laws and regulations, and bringing forward the local lived experiences of rural feminist champions.

The feminist resource portal will provide the right hub that will continue even after the actors fade away. It will provide individuals, institutions, policy makers, researchers, educators and gender advocates to further the feminist movement through an integrated platform where anyone can access knowledge on gender and women, feminism and feminist movement, on GBV and VAW, practices in other countries, on policies and laws, and most importantly on the shared agenda that women's right is human right.