Intersecting Inequalities ― Women and Social Policy in Peru, 1990-2000

As the only male head of state to address the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995, Alberto Fujimori projected an image as a promoter of progressive policies to improve the condition of women, especially the poor, in society. And indeed, during his tenure, the Peruvian government did pursue such policies in several areas, including poverty relief, population control, and domestic violence. In Intersecting Inequalities, Jelke Boesten uses these policies as case studies, examining the relationship between gender/race/class/ethnic divisions and the state in its project of nation-building. Her investigation reveals that policies meant to further women’s development and emancipation often reproduced the marginality they were supposed to fight. She also explores the strategies women developed to negotiate with and challenge the state.

Jelke Boesten is Lecturer in the School of Politics and International Studies at the University of Leeds.