Panel Title: Patriarchy, Party Politics, Mobilization, and Gender
Panel Code: RC07.19
Track: RC07 Women and Politics in the Global South
Date and Time: 15 July 2025, 17:30 UTC+9
Room: 3F 326
Convenor: Dr. Swarna Rajagopalan 
Chair: Prof. Meredith Weiss
Co-chair: Ms.Yukti Gupta
Discussant: Prof. Elizabeth Evans 
Rapporteur: Dr. Snigdha Tripathi

Panel Overview: 
This panel examined how women navigate political spaces beyond formal institutions, particularly in Asian and African contexts. It focused on grassroots mobilization, civil society activism, and community engagement as key arenas where women challenge patriarchal norms, advocate for rights, or align with dominant ideologies. Through comparative case studies, the panel highlighted the critical yet often overlooked role of non-institutional political participation in shaping democratic cultures and gendered political agency.
Paper Presentations:

“The Residual and the Resistant: Colonial Violence to Autocracy and Women’s Defiance in Morocco and the Philippines”

Presenter- Dr. Jesi Faust
In a compelling and deeply analytical presentation, Dr. Jesi Faust examined the interconnected dynamics of gender-based violence, autocratization, and colonial legacies through a comparative study of Morocco and the Philippines. Anchoring the discussion in the tragic cases of Amina al-Filali and Jennifer Laude, Dr. Faust highlighted how both women's deaths reflect not isolated incidents but the structural continuity of colonial and patriarchal oppression. Utilising the concept of the "residual"—as developed by Raymond Williams—she traced how colonial regimes, particularly the Spanish imperial project, established enduring, gendered, and racialised structures that continue to influence legal frameworks, social hierarchies, and violence in contemporary authoritarian states.
Dr. Faust introduced two powerful indigenous frameworks of resistance—inzi in Morocco and kalayaan in the Philippines—showing how women have historically and contemporarily drawn from these residual structures of defiance. Through archival research and field interviews, she brought to light the stories of figures such as Sayyida al-Hurra, the shikhat, and babaylan priestesses, highlighting them as embodiments of continuous resistance. These residual practices, Dr. Faust argued, are not merely symbolic but constitute living traditions of political agency that confront the autocratic state, imperial militarism, and systemic misogyny, especially as seen under the regimes of King Mohammed VI and President Duterte. 
Concluding her presentation, Dr. Faust emphasized the importance of situating contemporary gendered violence within the broader historical and geopolitical context of colonial residues. Her study demonstrates that the struggles of Amina al-Filali and Jennifer Laude reflect larger patterns of imperial domination and resistance. She urged for a recognition of the dialectical relationship between oppression and indigenous resistance, suggesting that the frameworks of inzi and kalayaan offer not only critique but also emancipatory visions for feminist futures in a world increasingly marked by autocratization.

Q/A:

Q. To what extent do colonial legacies shape current party politics and regional mobilization in regions, specifically in Morocco & Philippines? (Co-chair- Ms.Yukti Gupta)
Answer by Presenter - Dr. Jesi Faust emphasized that indigenous resistance continues to shape political dynamics, particularly in regions like Mindanao in the Philippines and the Rif in Morocco—areas that have historically evaded complete control by colonial or state powers, including the Spanish, the U.S., and current governments. She noted that the U.S. killed nearly a million people attempting to subdue Mindanao, highlighting the intensity of this struggle. She also pointed to the contradictions within Filipino society—where strong women’s movements and female political leaders coexist with deep-rooted misogyny, lack of divorce rights, and ongoing reproductive justice battles. These contradictions, she argued, are best understood through the lens of colonial residues and persistent indigenous resistance.
Q. Is there something distinctive about European colonialism, specifically Spanish colonialism? How to disaggregate the colonial residue from other endemic features within society? (Chair- Prof. Meredith Weiss)
Answer by presenter- The United States consciously inherited and built upon Spanish colonial structures in the Philippines, translating vast Spanish colonial archives into English to guide their rule. This continuity is evident in military practices—such as the U.S.'s first counterinsurgency against a Muslim population and use of waterboarding in the Philippines, precedents later referenced in Iraq and Afghanistan. The residue of U.S. imperialism thus builds upon Spanish frameworks. Similar dynamics exist in Morocco, with influences from both Spanish and French cultures. Disaggregating these overlapping colonial residues is complex but essential, as the concept of the “residual” highlights not determinism, but the enduring, active presence of past structures.
Comments by Chair – 
The presentation effectively highlights colonial residues, particularly those of Spanish imperialism. However, in the case of Jennifer Laude, U.S. colonial influence appears more directly relevant—primarily through frameworks like the VFA. This raises the need to distinguish between broader neo-imperialist legacies and specific colonial imprints. It’s also essential to separate colonial residues from other entrenched societal structures like patriarchy to better inform policy responses and civic education aimed at dismantling both inherited and evolving forms of oppression.

Conclusion:

The panel concluded by emphasizing that resistance to patriarchy and authoritarianism often emerges from the margins—through women’s activism in informal and community-based spaces. It showed that while formal political structures may limit women's agency, grassroots mobilization continues to foster feminist resistance and democratic engagement. The case studies presented underscored the enduring power of local struggles and the importance of situating gender mobilization within broader historical, social, and geopolitical contexts.