“Civil society, in my view as a social philosopher, could be and should be a growing actor in the country’s development”: An Interview with Nurgul Djanaeva

Nurgul Djanaeva’s life reflects two of the main concerns of the Alliance of Universities for Democracy: higher education and civil society. Formerly the Vice President for International Affairs and Strategic Planning at the International University in Kyrgyzstan, with a kandidat nauk degree in philosophy from Leningrad State University, Nurgul was instrumental in founding the Forum of Women’s NGOs of Kyrgyzstan in 1994, three years after the country became independent. She later left the university to work full-time with the Forum and other organizations that promote gender equity and poverty alleviation. We first met in 1996, while she was still at the International University of Kyrgyzstan (IUK) and I was a Fulbright scholar in Kyrgyzstan, working on issues of university reform.

MARTHA:

You were trained as an academic. You received your kandidat nauk in philosophy from Leningrad State University, wrote a dissertation on Nietzsche, and taught philosophy for 20 years. You later became Vice President of International Affairs and Strategic Planning at one of the new universities founded after independence, the International University of Kyrgyzstan. But in 1994, while you were a vice president at IUK, you founded the Forum of Women’s NGOs (http://www.forumofwomenngos.kg/index_en.htm), and you later left academe to work full-time on women’s issues. Why did you decide to found the Forum? And why did you decide to leave academe and work there full-time?

NURGUL:

I wrote my dissertation on the notion of the socio-ecological crisis. I left the university because of some disappointment in the development of the higher educational institutions in the country. The Forum of Women’s NGOs of Kyrgyzstan was set up much prior to my leaving the university job. Because this women’s organization already existed and my contribution was growing, I made a decision to commit myself to this organization’s development. I saw possibilities to contribute in full scale and develop the organization to its functioning as a big networking organization. Besides, civil society, in my view as a social philosopher, could be and should be a growing actor in the country’s development. So I could apply my knowledge and experience to make a women’s organization a serious part of the civil society movement.

MARTHA:

You and other women currently are working on reconciliation efforts in Osh, in the south of Kyrgyzstan, after the horrific violence there last summer. Would you be willing to describe that work?

NURGUL:

It was very demanding work—time, frustration, risk. But it was needed because women’s issues were left out by the majority of actors both during and after the conflict, and by those with a focus on women’s issues—their focus was limited to only sexual violence. Our work is not completed, because there is a need to step in, into the punishment phase, which is challenging. It is important to note that all women’s organizations reacted and started working. Women were creative and courageous in their work, not only in documenting but also in our work on peace building.

MARTHA:

What are some of the other projects the Forum is working on now? How do you decide what is most important?

NURGUL:

The Forum of Women’s NGOs of Kyrgyzstan is working on the long-term program level. It works on women’s participation in political processes, eliminating violence against women (VAW), and women and economic empowerment.

We work for the increase of women’s political participation, the increased use of law for the protection of women, to strengthen the capacity of women’s organizations, to strengthen the women’s movement, to decrease VAW, to increase the capacity to advocate for women’s rights, to change people’s attitude to women’s role in politics, to reach gender equality in all areas of life, to increase women’s economic and political empowerment, and to change patriarchal stereotypes.

We do this through the organization of joint discussions and the development of...