Paper short abstract:

This paper is a qualitative study of women's leadership, strategies and achievements during five gendered contentions in Pakistan.

Paper long abstract:

This is a qualitative study of five gendered contentions underway in Pakistan, involving claims-making for rights and entitlements related to employment, security, sexuality, citizenship, and justice. The contentions primarily address their grievances to the state, although there is a growing feminist voice from across episodes to resist gendered norms that perpetuate inequality. We find distinct feminist principles of leadership and organizing strategizing that co-exist with variations in leadership styles across gendered contentions. There is an oscillation between women's involvement in protest and formal politics, indicating each domain is engaged with viewing its potential effect on claims-making in the other domain. Women activists in episodes of contention are engaged in multiple protest mobilizations across typology. The relatively few numbers of women who protest in the public domain may be consolidating onto a platform, in response to the impact of closing civic spaces on bringing rights-based claims-making.