2.2

2.2 Women's Rights and Cultural Relativism

Key concepts: Human Rights, Justice, Equality, Power, Sovereignty, Legitimacy, Globalisation

Theoretical Perspectives: Feminism, Universalism, Liberalism, Marxism, Post-Colonialism

New terms: cultural relativism, customary law, litigation, state obligation, nrachi ceremony, power sharing, private sphere, public sphere, equality, equity

In this unit, we are going to dive deep into feminist and post-colonial debates on human rights. We will explore the diversity of opinions and experiences among feminists across the globe and learn about how national governments and legal systems try to grapple with multiple domestic and international obligations and interests through the case study of Women's Rights in Igboland, Nigeria.

Key questions include:

- What is feminism, as a theory in Global Politics, what are some of the key issues it grapples with and what are its different waves and strands?

- What kind of feminist position does CEDAW take on women's rights around the world, and how did this position emerge?

- What expectations does CEDAW place on states, and are these expectations realistic?

- How does the UN use specific treaties like CEDAW to promote specific rights, in this case women's rights?

- How has the African Union, as a regional organisation, tried to adapt universal human and women's rights into an African context?

- How does a national government such as Nigeria try to reconcile different obligations and competing group interests?

- How does Nigeria's legal system work?

- What makes the law legitimate and just in the eyes of the population?

- How can states try to reconcile group rights and individual rights, legal equality and substantial equity?

- What is the role of cultural institutions such as Nollywood in changing society's attitudes over time?

- How can the global feminist movement tackle issues of culture, religion, race and class?

- Are human rights universal, or culturally specific?

- How can top-down and bottom-up human rights initiatives work together?