Work

Neo-Ibuism in Indonesian Politics: Election Campaigns of Wives of Regional Heads in West Sumatra in 2019

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: This article focuses on electoral victories by wives of regional heads in West Sumatra province during Indonesia’s 2019 elections. We argue that these victories can be explained by the emergence of a phenomenon we label “neo-ibuism.” We draw on the concept of “state ibuism,” previously used to describe the gender ideology of the authoritarian Suharto regime, which emphasised women’s roles as mothers ( ibu) and aimed to domesticate them politically. Neo-ibuism, by contrast, allows women to play an active role in the public sphere, including in elections, but in ways that still emphasise women’s roles within the family. The wives of regional government heads who won legislative victories in West Sumatra not only relied on their husbands’ political resources to achieve victories, they also used a range of political networks to reach out to voters, in ways that stressed both traditional gender roles and their own political agency.

Source: Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs

DOI: 10.1177/1868103421989069

Authors: Muhammad Ichsan Kabullah, M. Nurul Fajri

Institution: Andalas University

Language: English

Topic: Gender Politics and Representation

Subfield: Gender Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Peace, justice, and strong institutions, Gender equality

Open Access status: diamond

Funders: Australian National University, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australian Government, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Universitas Andalas