Geopolitics Should Be Reinterpreted Through Gender Lens: Bidya Bhattarai

Former Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Bidya Bhattarai, has said that geopolitics needs to be reinterpreted from a gender perspective.

Speaking at an interaction program in Kathmandu titled “Reframing Geopolitics from a Gender Perspective,” she stated that the relationship between geography and politics is not fixed but evolves over time.

She said, “The way geography influences politics cannot be confined to a single definition. Various dimensions of change in society and the state continuously reshape its nature.”

Bhattarai also stressed the need to rethink the traditional view of politics as being associated with rigidity, power, and dominance. She noted that a gender perspective offers a different way to understand geopolitics.

She further pointed out that decisions regarding conflicts and wars around the world are often driven by power structures, with state security systems placed at the center of such frameworks.

“Perspectives on politics vary. The question is how we view our geopolitics through a gender lens. The long-held belief that politics must be rigid, harsh, and that toughness alone defines bravery needs to be reconsidered,” she said.