War through an intersectional lens: female combatants and the Maoist insurgency in Nepal

The exponential growth in literature on female combatants in rebel groups so far has explored “why” women rebel, “where” women rebel, and “when” women rebel. Yet, existing literature largely assume women combatants as homogenous universal category having similar experiences of war and “post-war.” In this milieu, this book focuses on “how” women rebel given their multiple intersecting identities and social subjectivities. It looks how female combatants experience war and “post-war” in public and private spheres by using intersectionality both as a theoretical framework and a methodological tool inspired by feminist research methodology to explore complex experiences of women combatants during and after the war. This book is based on thirty-nine in-depth interviews with Maoist female ex-combatants, their leaders, and experts in Nepal between 2017 and 2018, complemented by wide-ranging primary and secondary sources, such as key Maoist statements and policy documents from the war era, women ex-combatants’ memoires, media sources, and academic literature. The book finds that female combatants’ experiences of war and “post-war,” both in public and private spheres, are conditioned by their interlocking systems of oppression and identities, such as class, caste, ethnicity, social status, educational status, and geographical location. The book makes an important contribution to the feminist International Relations literature, feminist security studies, and it has significant policy implications, particularly concerning reintegration of female combatants, peacebuilding, and the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda.