Rural Grass-root Organization Of Women And Women's Power Participation

The Women's Anti-Drug Joint-Defense Team (WDDT) emerged in a Jingpo village named Erkun in Yingjiang County at the beginning of this century, is one of hundreds of women's anti-drug organizations formed spontaneously to resist the invasion of drugs and HIV/AIDS at community level in Yunnan border area.WDDT of Erkun village has been constructed earlier, its development history is longer and the characteristics are distinct, so it is a representative among those organizations and is selected as a case study.The purpose is to analyze:1) the existence space and successful gender factors of WDDT, 2) the function of WDDT on women's social capital, 3) relevance between women's social capital and men's social capital, 4) relationship among situation of women in community public power and allocation pattern of social capital in community as well as traditional gender culture.The analysis is from gender construction theory and social capital theory. It is also based on the description of the process of the construction and development of WDDT.This study is to provide useful experiences and theoretic reference to further the development of rural grassroots women's organization and then promote rural women's participation in public power.WDDT of Erkun village came from the platform jointly set up by the huge pressure caused by drugs, relevant anti-drug laws and policies of government, the power"vacuum"in"township politics and village governance " system, innovation of community institutions, men's vacancy in community anti-drug mechanism and women's activity, Among those, men's vacancy in community anti-drug mechanism and women's activity are important gender factors.WDDT has become the platform of women's voice as well as a carrier of women's empowerment.The process of women empowerment is also a process of reconstruction and appreciation of women's social capital.In the process, women increased their social capital in value such as respect from community members, improved reputation and self-confidence as well as the power of getting information and resources which includes material and non-material social capital.Their individual consciousness has been changed remarkably and their group awareness has been enhanced.The enhanced women's group awareness enabled WDDT could overcome the dilemma of collective action.Through many years of practice, women in Erkun village not only reconstructed and increased their social capital in value, challenge traditional pattern of sexual social capital allocation, but also break sexual segmentation in public power.In the field of public power traditionally controlled by men, women have occupied a spot and diversity in public power allocation has been gradually formed.However, grassroots women's organization is difficult to get more social capital from a wider range to compete with traditional male power due to the pattern of men's domination of public power for a long time and traditional gender perception.There are many obstacles derived from the traditional gender culture in the path of women's entering the core of community power.Under the double resistance forces of benefit distribution and traditional gender norm, rural grassroots women's organization would come to a standstill even fall if there are not long term strategies.