Abstract
This thesis sets out to examine women’s organizing in contemporary Russia in the context of ambivalent state policies regarding women’s issues and civil society. With Putin’s return to power after a wave of protests in 2012, the Law on foreign agents was adopted. The biggest branch of organizations affected, were those concerned with human rights. At the same time, the regime favors non-profit organizations that provide social services and remain loyal to the government’s narratives. Since women’s issues have both a rights’ aspect and a social aspect, women’s groups are affected by both sides of this co-optation of civil society. Further, the state’s endorsement of “morality politics” and narratives stressing so-called traditional family values have proved an impediment to women’s rights advocacy. In 2017, a state program was launched which aims to improve women’s situation. The National Action Strategy for Women (NASW) is now in its implementation phase and lasts until 2022. So far, few noticeable effects have come out of the strategy, except from promises to reduce the number of professions banned to women from 456 to 100. There still is no law on domestic violence, and both state and church embrace women’s reproductive roles and responsibility in solving demographic problems. The core of the study is the analysis of 16 qualitative interviews conducted in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Voronezh in February 2019. I explore how women’s groups are affected by policies that on one hand restrict the opportunities of certain civic organizations, but on the other hand seem to benefit others. The thesis’ main argument is that women’s groups stand with one foot in the social sphere and one in the political, and that they strategically frame their activity according to their needs. Although independent women’s organizations are negatively affected by the Law on foreign agents, their work is not infeasible: motivated groups adapt quickly to new restrictive measures and find ways to continue to conduct meaningful work despite difficult times. Their opportunities to impact on policy making are scarce, but increased attention towards women’s issues and feminism in recent years leaves them with hopes for more activism and an increased state focus on women’s issues in the future.