Feminist Interjections in Securitization – Using the Socio-Political Erasure of Female Agency in Authoritarian Regimes to Redefine Securitization

This thesis examines the ways in which contemporary securitization practices under authoritarian regimes state the intent of their actions as safeguards to the nation's security interests, but in reality, undermine the physical, mental, and socio-political safety of women. These securitization practices operate upon state-centric protectionist logics that position women as passive subjects incapable of participating in security decisions and actions, while simultaneously justifying their expulsion from the socio-political spheres and diminishing the consequential insecurities they face. International relations theory on securitization presents a useful framework through which to analyze the construction of security threats, however, normative securitization practices often reproduce patriarchal and neocolonial power structures through their focus on the interests of states and political elites. Using feminist theory on international relations and security studies, specifically critiques of gender dynamics and the masculinist logic of protection, this thesis thus asks: How have securitizing practices under post-industrial authoritarian regimes, such as the Taliban in Afghanistan, marginalized women's socio-political presence and agency? What strategies have women employed to resist this erasure and articulate opposing security concerns, and how have these been acknowledged, ignored or oppressed by the government? Using a qualitative case study of female oppression and agency under Taliban rule, this thesis argues that contemporary securitization practices that intend to protect the nation's security concerns collectively often exacerbate the vulnerability of marginalized groups, like women. In response to this problem, the thesis calls for an intersectional feminist reconceptualization of securitization, which centers the lived experiences of marginalized communities and challenges dominant security paradigms and practices that perpetuate oppressive patriarchal standards.