What is the 'Problem' with Gender in Afghanistan? A discourse analysis of the Women, Peace and Security National Action Plan in Afghanistan (2015-2022)

Sammanfattning: The aim of this thesis is to critically investigate the discourses of gender present in the National Action Plan of Afghanistan (2015-2022), asking how the ‘problem of gender’ is conceptualised and problematised in the policy. This is done through Carol Bacchi’s theoretical and methodological ’What’s the problem represented to be?’ (WPR) – approach which aims to analyse policy through identifying problem representations. Furthermore, the study is guided by and builds upon social construction theory, poststructuralism and intersectional gender studies. Through a discourse analysis of the NAP, four dominant problem representations were identified: 1) gender inequality as a failure of Islam, 2) gender inequality due to women’s vulnerability, 3) gender inequality as a result of insufficient gender parity, and 4) that Afghanistan’s peace-process is failing due to there not being enough ‘peaceful women’ involved in it. In turn, these problem representations rely on conservative and traditional assumptions of women as victims and men as perpetrators, as well as superficial notions of ‘equality’, ‘participation’ and ‘gender’.