Paper short abstract:

Often repressed, marginalised and considered as anti-women parties, Islamist organisations witnessed women participation for decades. This paper delves into women participation within the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood (2011-) focusing on their conceptualisation of leadership, power and emancipation.

Paper long abstract:

Over the years, the study of the Muslim Brotherhood – the most relevant Islamist transnational organisation – has attracted conspicuous scholarly interest. In particular, in the aftermath of the Arab Uprisings (2011-), the academic output augmented due to the relevant role Islamists played in the transitional experiments (Egypt, Tunisia) or civil wars (Yemen, Libya, Syria). Traditionally considered as the main opposition party in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Muslim Brotherhood still represent one of the main political forces having an on-and-off relationship with the Crown ending up often in dynamics of marginalisation within the already distrusted political spectrum. The aim of this paper is to decipher female participation within the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood (JMB) after 2011. Historically involved in the JMB party, the Islamic Action Front (IAF), women’s presence counts as one of the highest in the region with women-candidate at the parliament since 2003. The paper delves into how women conceive their role within the organisation, their understanding of leadership, power and future opportunities. Islamist women not only challenge the idea that Islamist groups are anti-women, but also that Islam itself has a problem with women. Nonetheless, Islamist women are very vocal on matters concerning their role in society and view themselves as a resisting force. As such, it is necessary to contextualise their participation in a broader discussion of Orientalism, minority emancipation and political party strategies. This research is based on in-depth interviews with some of the main female leaders of the political party branch.