Power, Resistance and Women Politicians in Cambodia: Discourses of Emancipation

In a world where there are few women politicians, Cambodia is still noticeable as a country where strong cultural and societal forces act to subjugate women and limit their political opportunities. However, in their everyday life, Cambodian women do try to improve their situation and increase their political power, not least via manifold strategies of resistance. This book focuses on Cambodian female politicians and the strategies they deploy in their attempts to destabilize the cultural boundaries and hierarchies that restrain them. In particular, the focus is on how women use discourses and identities as means of resistance, a concept only recently of wide interest among scholars studying power.

The value of this book is thus twofold: not only does it give a unique insight into the political struggles of Cambodian women; it also offers new insights to studies of power. Political scientists will find this book particularly useful because it extends the concept of resistance. However, it also creates a framework of analysis that will inspire researchers in other fields.