Patriarchy and pragmatism: Ideological contradictions in state policies

• Main Authors: Kong, Lily, Chan, Jasmine S.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2000
• Subjects: Women; patriarchy; government policies; education policy; Asian Studies; Education Policy; Gender and Sexuality; Public Policy
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2272; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/soss_research/article/3529/viewcontent/Patriarchy_and_pragmatism_av.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Theories concerning the state sometimes treat it as a rational system. This paper raises questions about this assumption by examining the coherence of the ideological frameworks underlying state policies in Singapore. The contradictions are shown most clearly when state policies deal with gender issues, especially where they concern women. Through an examination of such policies, we show that, under some conditions, state patriarchy may be subverted by the state's capitalistic developmental considerations. We are aware that patriarchy does not stand or fall by state policies alone, but the following article illustrates how such policies can limit the space for negotiation so that it becomes even more difficult for women (and men) to break out of patriarchy. In general, writings about women and the state in Asia have focused on three possible ways of examining the relationship between women and the state— namely, the state as a prime locus of patriarchal power; the contradictions within the state on gender issues; and the ways in which feminists can infiltrate the state and influence its policies (see Blackburn 1994). In this paper, our intention is to focus on women and the Singapore state by considering some state policies that impact on women's lives directly or indirectly, and how these policies have changed or persisted through the years since Singapore's independence in 1965.