Academic Master degree final presentation for final defense

1. ▪ FARDIN AYAR
▪ Master Degree Final Defense 6th Jan. 2020
Exploring Resources to Mobilize and Empower Women on Twitter: A
Case of the Enlightenment Movement in Afghanistan

2. Contents
1
Theory2
Introduction and Research Purpose
3
Findings4
Data Collection and Data Analysis
5 Discussion
5 Conclusion

3. ▪ This research using resource mobilization theory focuses on the importance of Twitter in
empowering women and mobilizing human resources to shape a social movement.
▪ The purpose of this study is to examine the importance of Twitter in mobilizing people and
empowering women with a case study of the Enlightenment Movement in Afghanistan.
▪ This study using a qualitative approach to investigates the possible relationships between the
presence of educated women on Twitter and the formation of the Enlightenment Movement in
Afghanistan.
Introduction and Research Purpose

4. ▪ This study is vital to the Afghanistan people because the younger generation, more specifically
young women, are using Twitter and some traditional sources to bring global acknowledgment
to local social injustices.
▪ The Afghanistan younger female generation are utilizing Twitter in such a way as to:
Importance and Reality
Unite the Afghanistan people Fight social injustices Highlight civil demands

5. Modern Sources
Twitter
Traditional Sources
Universities Mosques Schools Public places
Political
parties
Civil
Activists
People Solidarity Sources
1 2

6. Afghanistan Enlightenment Movement Big Landscape

7. ▪ This study conducted using a qualitative approach. For review, the research objectives, and
obtain study information, seven key questions and three sub-questions were asked separately
from participants in in-depth interviews.
▪ The evidence shows that questions raised in the study are a meaningful relationship to the
research theoretical framework.
Research Questions

8. ▪ The research has been done using a qualitative approach and open-ended questions. The
interviewees were selected in two categories of women and men.
▪ The study has been completed outside of Afghanistan in Shanghai, and interviewees contacted
through Skype, Messenger, WhatsApp, IMO and WeChat.
Research Methodology

9. ▪ To exploring the proposed research questions, a qualitative study conducted. Interviewees
lived in Kabul and Afghanistan central regions; questions shared online with them.
▪ The qualitative study was able to collect primary data within three months (from May 19,
2019, to August 30, 2019). In the study, all interviewees participated voluntarily without any
payment. All ethical considerations in this study are respected.
Data Collection Procedure

10. ▪ In order to select the participants of this study, purposeful sampling was used. Purposeful
sampling has been designed to achieve a significant amount of data in qualitative studies.
▪ In this study participated 25 individuals, including Enlightenment Movement organizers,
movement members, university professors, civil activists, and one researcher as interviewees.
▪ Participants, taking into account variables such as age, gender, educational background,
occupation, position, and civil-political activities.
Data Sampling

11. ▪ Data were analyzed using (INVivo12pro) software. all interviews were transcribed, then
summarized in three to five categories.
▪ The main topics are coded into three categories (Descriptive Codes, Categorical Codes, and
Analytical Codes). Codes are extracted from the transcript and then added to the dissertation
with the necessary academic explanations.
Data Analysis
48
Descripti
ve Codes
24
Categoric
al Codes
12
Analytica
l Codes

12. Qualitative Research Themes
From data obtained the interviews, twelve themes emerged

13. ▪ The data from this study are derived from qualitative questions, and the research questions are
out from the heart of the theory.
Findings
Research Data Close Related
People's Solidarity
Women's Empowerment
Twitter Storms
Human Resources for People
Mobilization

14. ▪ Enlightenment Movement was a popular movement, which formed after the discriminatory
decision of national unity government Cabinet for redirection of the TUTAP electricity
project.
Enlightenment Movement Formation
Opportunity
Historical
Injustice
Systematic
Discrimination
Joint pain

15. ▪ The main event that caused protester come to the streets, the historical oppression and
exclusion of one nationality from national and social projects which were applied by the
government.
▪ People were tired from the threat of the government and historical oppression. They are wan
to draw the attention of international institutions and politicians to show the systematic
injustice in Afghanistan.
People Mobilization

16. ▪ The women's lack of access to their fundamental rights and long-time tolerance of systematic
discrimination for national wealth equal distribution caused that they support EM demands.
▪ The Afghanistan young educated citizens in foreign countries in important international
meetings complained against the government's discriminatory decision (Munich, London, and
Washington DC).
▪ Many impressive countries such as Australia, England, France, Canada, and America
supported the Enlightenment Movement demands.
Women Empowerment

17. ▪ Many mass media were under government censorship, for that reason Afghanistan media did
not support the Enlightenment Movement news coverage.
▪ Twitter campaign and cyberspace had a significant role in people's solidarity. Educated
immigrants in foreigner countries beside of young generation in Afghanistan had a prominent
role in launching the Twitter storms.
Media Censorship and Twitter Campaign

18. ▪ The Enlightenment Movement messages were at the top level of international tweets.
Hashtags (#) connected more than two million people inside and outside of Afghanistan.
▪ Young girls distributed the flower bouquets to the security forces, cleaning the roads, and
even divided their food into them.
▪ Women supported the Enlightenment Movement's insensitive and lousy security conditions.
▪ Some of the young girls had written a letter of death.
Women Solidarity

19. ▪ National Security Council and the Ministry of Interior, they have no attention to the
Enlightenment Movement organizer's demands and protesters.
▪ Protesters described, that police fired over them. They pointed out that the security forces
knew that were among protesters but targeted them with non-civil tools .
Security Threats

20. ▪ The Enlightenment Movement severely suppressed by the ISIS terrorist group. The majority
of interviewees reported that ISIS was attacking the protesters with close cooperation the
Afghanistan government.
▪ In the ISIS attack, 86 protesters was killed and more than 400 protesters injured in one day.
▪ Global reactions formed about the happening, many international organizations and some
prominent politicians supported the Movement's demands and criticized the Afghanistan
government.
ISIS Attack

21. ▪ This study examined using of resource mobilization theory and has produced meaningful and
remarkable results.
▪ Enlightenment Movement in the presence of women found real meaning. The presence of
women on the roads, was a sign of democracy progress, freedom of expression, and
expansion of social media in Afghanistan.
▪ If the government did not prevent TUTAP electricity project crossing from the main way and
allow to be implemented based on Afghanistan electricity Master Plan, Afghanistan could
improve a lot and become square of electricity generating.
Discussion

22. ▪ This study results, in some cases, have closely related to similar researches in the past.
However, the evidence did not support the argument that the overall findings of this study are
identical to previous studies.
▪ Based on previous studies findings, men have played a vital role in the formation of social
movements, and the women's presence always has been symbolic, while this research's
primary focus is on women empowerment on Twitter and their role in the Enlightenment
Movement formation in Afghanistan.
Discussion

23. Resource Mobilization Theory
1
Knowledge
1
Media
1
Support social elite in shaping social protests
5
Social
activities
2
People
solidarity
3
Legitimacy
4
New issues for knowledge Support
2
Virtual networking
1
Information need
2
Trust-building
3
Suppression of protesters
4
Resource Mobilization Theory

24. ▪ Enlightenment Movement recognized as the most critical social and political event in
Afghanistan's recent contemporary history in a decade.
▪ This movement happened between educated elites and the new generation, especially
Hazara women. Following the launching of the Twitter campaign, many foreign countries
have noticed political discrimination and inequality in Afghanistan.
Conclusion

25. ▪ Twitter campaigns and Enlightenment Movement demonstrated the civic capacity of the Afghanistan
young generations specially young girls at the international level.
▪ According to the findings of this study, there was a clear ethnic and regional discrimination in the
redirection of TUTAP electricity project.
▪ Finally, all efforts of the Enlightenment Movement organizers and protesters to achieve the demands
of protesters remained unsuccessful.
Conclusion

26. Thanks for your Attention