8
Cyber fem inism , technology,
and inter national
‘developm ent’
R a d h ik a G a jja la a n d A n n a p u rn a M a m id ip u d i 1
Feminists from diverse backgrounds are considering the implications of the spread of Internet
technology, and questioning its benefits for women in developing countries. Apart from having
access to the Internet, wom en must also be able to define the content and shape of cyberspace.
h e sim plest w ay to d escribe the term
T ’ c y b e r f e m i n is m ’ m ig h t b e t h a t it
r e f e r s t o w o m e n u s in g I n t e r n e t
t e c h n o l o g y f o r s o m e t h in g o t h e r t h a n
sh op ping via the In tern et or b row sing th e
w orld -w ide w eb 2 . O n e cou ld also say tha t
cy b erfe m in is m is fe m in is m in rela tion to
`cy b ersp ace’ . C y b ersp a ce is `in form a tion a l
d a ta s p a ce m a d e a v a ila b le b y e le ct r ica l
circuits an d com p u ter n etw ork s’ (V ita n z a
1999, 5). In other w ord s, cy b ersp ace refers
to the `sp a ce s’ , or op portu n ities, for social
i n t e r a c t i o n p r o v id e d b y c o m p u te r s ,
m od em s, satellites, an d teleph on e lin es Ð
w h at w e h a ve com e to ca ll `th e In tern et’ .
E ven thoug h th ere ar e several ap proach es
to cy b erfem inism , cy b erfem inists sh are the
b elief th a t w o m en s h ou ld tak e co n trol o f
a n d a p p r o p r ia te th e u s e o f In te r n et
t ec h n o lo g ies in a n a tte m p t to em p o w er
them selves.T h e id ea th at th e In tern et can b e
em p ow erin g to in d iv id u a ls a n d co m m u -
n ities w h o are un d er-privileg ed is b ased on
th e n otio n of s cien tific a n d tech n o log ica l
p r o g r e s s a l le v i a ti n g h u m a n s u f f e r i n g ,
offerin g the ch an ce of a b etter m aterial an d
em otion al qu ality of life. In th is a rticle, w e
m ak e co n ce p tu a l lin k s b etw een `o ld ’ a n d
Gender and Development Vol. 7, No. 2, July 1999
`n e w ’ t e c h n o l o g ie s w i t h in c o n t e x t s o f
g lo b a lis a tio n 3 , th ird -w o rld d ev elo p m en t,
an d the em pow erm en t of w om en . W e w ish
t o q u e s t io n t h e i d e a o f `p r o g r e s s ’ a n d
`d ev elo p m en t’ a s th e in ev ita b le res u lt o f
s c ie n c e a n d te c h n o lo g y , a n d d e v e lo p a
c r it i q u e o f t h e t o p - d o w n a p p r o a c h t o
tech n olog y tra n sfe r fro m th e N orth ern to
th e S ou th ern h em is p h ere. T h ere a r e tw o
qu estion s of cen tral im portan ce: F irst, w ill
w o m en in th e S ou th b e ab le (a llo w ed ) to
use n ew tech n ologies un d er con d ition s that
a r e c o n te x t u a l ly e m p o w e r in g to th e m ,
b eca u s e th ey a re d efin e d b y w o m en
them selves? Second , w ith in w h ich In tern et-
b ased con texts can w om en from the South
tru ly b e h eard ? H o w ca n th ey d efin e th e
con d ition s u n d er w h ich th ey ca n intera ct
on -lin e 4 , to en a b le th em to form coalition s
an d collab ora te, aim ing to tran sform social,
cultura l, an d p olitical structures?
T h e In te rn e t a n d
`d e v e lop m e n t’
C y b erfem in is ts u r g e w om en a ll o v er th e
w orld to learn h ow to use com pu ters, to g et
`con n ected ’ 5 , a n d to u se th e In tern et a s a
 Cyberfeminism, technology, and international `development’
tool for fem inist causes an d in d ivid ual em -
pow erm ent. H ow ever, en suring that w om en
are em pow ered b y n ew tech n olog y requires
us to investigate issues w h ich are far m ore
com p lex th an m er ely p ro v id in g m a terial
access to the latest tech n olog ies. T h e In tern et
h as fascin ated m an y a ctivists an d sch olars
b ecause of its poten tial to con n ect p eople all
acr os s th e w orld in a w a y th a t h a s n ever
b e e n p o s s ib le b e f o r e . I n d iv i d u a ls c a n
p u b lis h w ritten m aterial in stan tan eou s ly ,
a n d b r o a d c a s t i n f o r m a t io n t o r e m o t e
lo c a tio n s . O b s e r v e r s p r e d ic t th a t it w ill
cause un preced en ted an d rad ical ch an ge in
th e w a y h u m a n b ein g s con d u ct b u s in es s
an d social activities. In m uch of th e N orth ,
a s w e ll a s in s o m e m a te ria lly p riv ileg ed
s e c t i o n s o f s o c ie t i e s i n t h e S o u t h , t h e
In tern et is celebrated as a tool for en h an cin g
w orld -w ide d em ocracy . T h e In tern et an d its
as sociated tech n olog ies ar e touted as g reat
e q u a lis e r s , w h ich w ill h e lp b r id g e g a p s
b etw een social g roups: the `h av es’ an d the
`h ave-n ots’ , an d m en an d w om en .
S in ce th e S econ d W orld W a r, d evelo p -
m en t Ð in th e s en s e o f tra n s ferr in g a n d
`d iffusing ’ n orth ern form s of scien tific an d
tech n olog ical `p ro g res s’ , k n o w led g e, a n d
m o d es o f p ro d u ctio n a n d c o n s u m p tio n ,
from the ind ustrialised n orth into southern
con tex ts Ð h a s b een seen b y m an y as th e
on e ov er-a rch in g so lu tion to p o verty a n d
in eq u ality arou n d the w orld . M uch of th e
c u r r e n t li t e r a t u r e , a s w e l l a s m e d i a
r e p r e s e n ta t io n s o f th e s o -c a lle d u n d e r -
d eveloped w orld , rein forces th is d iscourse
of `d evelopm en t’ an d `und er-d evelopm en t’.
A s s ch ola rs s u ch as E d w a r d S a id (1 9 7 8 )
h a v e p o in te d o u t, th is p r o ce s s is a ls o
a p p a r e n t in th e c o n te x t o f c o lo n i a li s m ,
w h en th e p rod u ction of k n ow led g e ab out
the colon ised n ation s served th e colon isers
in justify in g their project.
W h at, then , d oes it m ean to say th at the
In tern et an d tech n ology are fem inist issues
for w om en in d eveloping n ation s, w h en the
p roject of d ev elopm en t in itself is sa d d led
w ith colon ial b ag gag e? In ord er to exam ine
9
w h e t h e r w o m e n in t h e s e c o n t e x t s a r e
in d e e d g o in g t o r e a l is e e m p o w e r m e n t
throug h the use of tech n olog y , w e n eed to
un d erstan d the com plexity of the ob stacles
they face, by con sid ering the w ay s in w h ich
the con d ition s of their lives are d eterm ined
b y u n eq u a l p o w er r ela tio n s a t lo ca l a n d
g lob al levels.
T h e fo rm o f th is a rtic le
I n t h e fo llo w in g , w e e a c h d e s c r ib e o u r
en g ag em en t w ith cy berfem inism s, d evelop -
m en t, a n d n ew te ch n o lo g y , a n d d is cu s s
som e of the problem s that w e en coun ter in
our efforts. B oth of us h av e interacted quite
ex ten sively u sin g th e In tern et, w h ere ou r
interaction s occasion ally overla p w h en w e
e n g a g e in d is c u s s io n s a n d c r e a tiv e e x -
ch an g es w ith others 6 . O n e of us, A nn apurn a
M am idipud i, is also involved w ith an N G O
w o r k in g w i t h tr a d i ti o n a l h a n d lo o m
w eavers in south In d ia. T h e oth er, R ad h ika
G ajjala, w orks w ith in acad em ia, an d creates
an d run s on -lin e `d iscussion lists’ 7 and w eb-
sites from h er N orth A m erican g eograph ical
loca tion , aim ing to create sp aces th at en ab le
d ialog ue an d collab oration am on g w om en
w i th a c c e s s to th e in te r n e t a l l o v e r t h e
w o r l d . T h i s p a p e r w a s w r it t e n v ia t h e
In tern et, a cr oss a fa irly v a st g eo g ra p h ical
d istan ce of approxim ately 10,000 m iles. W e
h a v e w r itten th e a rticle a s a d ia lo g u e, to
m a k e ou r ind iv id u al vo ices a n d loca tion s
a p p a ren t. T h is u n con v en tion a l fo rm a n d
m eth od seem s a pp rop riate for our sub ject
m a t t e r : a b e l i e f i n t h e p o s s i b i l it i e s o f
d ia lo g u e a n d c o lla b o r a tio n a c r o s s g e o -
g r a p h ic a l b o u n d a r i e s o f f e r e d b y t h is
m ed ium of the future. W e d o n ot con sid er
eith er of u s to rep res en t th e N orth o r th e
S o u th , `th e o r y ’ o r `p r a ct ice ’ ; e a ch o f u s
w ill u s e h e r p r o f e s s io n a l a n d p e r s o n a l
exp erien ce of tech n olog y w ith in b oth `first
w orld ’ an d `third -w orld ’ con texts. W e sh are
c a s t e , c l a s s , n a t i o n a l , a n d r e l ig i o u s
affiliation s, b ut on ce ag ain , n eith er of us are
represen tative In d ian w om en .
10 Gender and Development
Annapurna Mamidipudi:
A s a field -w ork er in an organ isation w h ich
fo cu s es o n th e d e v e lo p m en t a n d u s e o f
e n v ir o n m e n t - f r ie n d l y d y e s f o r t e x ti le
p rod u ction , I am p a rt of a tea m th a t h a s
b een su ccessfu lly in trod u cin g a n d tra n s -
fer r in g th e te ch n o lo g y o f n o n -c h em ica l
n atural d y es to clien ts. T h e course w e offer
is com p reh en s iv e; it in clu d es tra in in g in
b o ta n y a n d d y e - m a te r ia l c u lt i v a t i o n
p a t te r n s , c o n c e p t s o f e c o - f r i e n d l y
tech n olog y , actual d y ein g tech n iqu es an d
to o ls , s p e cif ic m e th o d o lo g y f o r fu r th e r
resea rch , aesth etics, a n d m a rk et resea rch .
W h ile the service w e p rovid e is sim ilar to
th a t o f a n y p r o f es s io n a l co n s u lta n c y , a
crucial d ifferen ce is that w e cater solely to
tr a d i t io n a l h a n d lo o m w e a v e r s ; o u r
train ees, spon sors an d m an u fa ctu rers a re
a l l a r t is a n s , m e n a n d w o m e n f r o m
trad ition al w eaving com m un ities.
T h e craft of trad ition al n atural d yein g is
based on sophisticated k n ow led ge that h as
b e e n p a s s e d d o w n f r o m g e n e r a t io n to
g en er ation o f a rtis a n s . T h e e n d -p ro d u ct
created by these artisan s is exquisite h an d -
lo om ed cloth , w o v en o f y a rn h a n d -s p u n
fr o m lo c a l c o t to n b y w o m e n in r em o te
In d ian villag es, d y ed in the vib ran t colours
o f in d ig o a n d m a d d e r . T h i s h a s b e e n
e x p o r t e d a l l o v e r th e w o r ld f r o m p r e -
co lon ial tim es o n w a r d s . O n e m ig h t w ell
a s k , w h y s h o u ld a s k i ll t h a t h a s b e e n
p ass ed d ow n s u cc ess fu lly ov er so m a n y
g e n e r a ti o n s s u d d e n l y n e e d t e c h n i c a l
con sultan ts lik e m e for train in g?
Radhika Gajjala:
I am a prod ucer, first, of theory con cern ed
w i t h c u lt u r e , p o s t - c o l o n i a li s m , a n d
fe m in is m . I a m in co n tin u o u s d ia lo g u e
w ith w om en from n on -privileg ed an d non -
w e s te r n lo ca tio n s , e x a m in in g th e e x p e -
rie n ce o f a ctiv is ts lik e A n n a p u r n a , a n d
collab oratin g w ith m en a n d w om en from
the S outh. I rely to a larg e exten t on h av ing
ac ces s to k n o w le d g e th ro u g h N o r th e r n
tech n olog y an d pow er structures, but I am
n o t b lin d to th e fa c t th a t th e s e p o w e r
structures oppress w om en an d m en living
in poverty in both N orth an d South.
M y s e c o n d r o le a s a p r o d u c e r i s i n
creatin g electron ic `spaces’ w h ich are used
b y people of d ifferen t iden tities to ex press
th em s elv es an d ta lk to e a ch o th er 8 . T h e
S p o o n C o ll e c t i v e 9 , s t a r t e d i n 1 9 9 4 , i s
`d e d i ca te d to p r o m o ti n g d i s c u s s io n o f
p h i l o s o p h i c a l a n d p o li t i c a l i s s u e s ’
(h ttp://lists.villag e.virg in ia.ed u /~spoon s).
T h e S poon C ollective w as started in 199 4 ,
an d I en tered it in 1995, volun teerin g to co-
m od erate tw o `d iscussion lists’. I set up tw o
fu rth er d iscu ssion lists in 1 9 95 an d 1 99 6 ,
w h ich I w ill m en tion later in this ar ticle.
W h ile m em bers of the Spoon C ollective
h av e d ifferen t ind ivid ual aim s in b elon g ing
to th e C ollective, I b elieve that a ll of us ar e
in teres ted in th e p os sib ilities o f a ctiv ism
th rou gh electron ic com m un ica tion s. A ll of
us h av e set up, an d con tin ue to m od erate,
d iscu ssion lists tha t im plicitly question th e
g lob al sta tu s qu o, in on e w ay or a n other.
O n e m em b er o f th e collectiv e sa id , `O n e
w ay in w h ich w e con ceptualise w h at w e d o
is by talk ing about think ing [an d w ritin g/
speak in g on -lin e] as a civic, pub lic activity ’ .
A s is ch aracter istic of m uch In tern et-b ased
activity (w h eth er activist, person al, or com -
m ercia l), ou r g oals an d ou r a ctu al ou tp ut
a r e co n sta n tly eva lu a ted . W e ce a s eles sly
d iscuss their im pact on society a n d culture.
F or ex am ple, w h a t d eterm in es w h eth er a
list `w ork s’ or n ot? T h e volum e of m essag es
ex ch an g ed ? T h e qua lity of in form ation or
d is cu s s io n ? B u t h o w w o u ld `q u a lity ’ b e
d efin ed ? D o w e d eterm ine th e su ccess of
th e list b y th e n u m b er o f m em b ers w h o
s u b s c r i b e t o it ? O r b y t h e n u m b e r o f
m e m b e r s w h o p a r t ic i p a t e b y s e n d in g
m essages? B y the n um b er of w eb sites that
h av e lin k s to our list-arch ives or the Spoon
C ollective w eb site? H ow can w e tell from
this h ow m an y people w e really reach ?
In ord er to start up d iscussion lists, an d
co n stru ct w eb s ites , I h a d to tea ch m y self
s u fficie n t p r o g r a m m in g a n d c o m p u te r -
 Cyberfeminism, technology, and international `development’
r e la t e d s k i ll s t o b e a b l e to m a n a g e t h e
tech n ical sid e. M y b ack g rou n d a s cr eative
w riter an d stud en t in the h u m an ities h a d
n ot tra ined m e for th e tech n ica l as pects of
b eing an a ctive p rod uce r on -lin e, a n d m y
k n o w led g e is m ostly self-tau g h t. L a ter in
this article, I w ill d iscuss m y e-m ail lists as
p a r t o f a n e f f o r t t o t r y a n d f a c il i t a t e
collaboration s b etw een fem inists across vast
g e o g r a p h ica l b o u n d a r ies . W h a t sco p e is
th ere for th em to d iscu ss a n d a ssert th eir
d ifferen ces on an eq ual b as is, w ith in these
ele ctr on ic s o cia l s p aces w h ich a re th em -
selv es b a sed in u n eq u a l econ o m ic, s ocial
an d cultural relation s? In a sen se I suppose
m y on -lin e ven tures could be called `cy ber-
fem inist’ investig ation s.
Annapurna:
U n til th e n in eteen th cen tury , m o st o f th e
w eavin g ind ustry in the area w h ere I w ork
w a s s h a p e d b y t h e d e m a n d s o f lo c a l
co n s u m er s . C h in n u r is a little v illa g e in
A d i la b a d , i n a n in t e r io r r e g io n o f t h e
D ecca n plateau in South In d ia. T h ere used
to be a larg e con cen tration of w eavers w ith
a r e p u ta t io n fo r e x ce lle n ce in th is a r e a .
T h eir reputation w as b ased on three thing s:
t h e s k il l o f t h e f a r m e r s in p r o d u c i n g
d ifferen t v arieties of co tto n ; th e a b ility of
d ifferen t g roups of people to w ork tog eth er
a n d p ro c es s th e co tto n ; a n d , fin a lly , th e
w e a lt h o f k n o w le d g e o f d y e s a n d
tech n iq u es th a t a d d e d a es th etic v a lu e to
u tility . D iffe ren t ca stes a n d co m m u n ities
w ere inter-lin k ed in occupation al, as w ell as
s ocia l rela tio n s h ip s , ex ch a n g in g ser v ices
a n d m a t e r i a l s , c r e a t i n g a s t r o n g lo c a l
m ark et econ om y w h ich w as en tren ch ed in
th e trad ition s an d ritu als of d a ily life. F or
exam ple, d urin g specific season s or even ts,
w o m e n o f le is u r e f r o m n o n - w e a v in g
com m u n ities spu n , exch an g in g spun y ar n
for sarees (U zram m a 1995).
H ow ever, th e d evelop m en t of ch em ica l
d y es alm ost 100 y ears ag o in E urope h ad a
c a l a m ito u s e f f e c t o n t r a d it io n a l I n d ia n
d y ein g practices. Processes w h ich w ere the
11
prid e of the tex tile ind u stry of th is coun try
w ere aban d on ed an d replaced b y ch em ical
d y e s . E v e n in r e m o t e C h in n u r , t h e
spread ing w av e of m od ern scien ce ch an ged
peop le’ s p ercep tion s of trad ition al tech n o -
log y ; th ey n o w sa w it a s o u tm o d ed , a n d
th is r e s u lt e d i n a lm o s t t o ta l e r a s u r e o f
k n o w le d g e o f t h e tr a d itio n a l p r o ce s s e s
w ith in these com m un ities.
E uropean s h ad started to d ocum en t th e
local d y ein g an d w eav in g activ ities in the
eig h te e n th ce n tu r y ; I n d ia n s th em s e lv e s
co n tin u ed th is u p to th e ea r ly tw en tieth
ce n tury , in a b id to p reserv e k n ow led g e.
B u t th is p r o c es s m e a n t th a t k n o w le d g e
w h ich h a d b een firm ly in th e d o m a in o f
practice of the artisan s w as n ow con verted
in to tex tu a l in fo rm a tio n , a n d s h ifted th e
ow n ersh ip of the k n ow led g e to th ose ab le
to `stud y ’ , rath er than those w h o `d o’ .
A s th e o u t s id e w o r ld m u ta te d in to a
g lob al villag e, the org an ic processes of the
trad ition al artisa n w eaver turn ed full cy cle,
b ack to popularity w h en the colour of n eeli
(in d igo) caugh t the im ag ination of ecolog y -
con scious con sum ers in the late 1970 s. B ut
ev en w h ile th e se lf-con g ra tu lator y b a ck -
pattin g w en t on am ong the n ation alists an d
intellectuals, th e w eav ers h a d intern a lised
in f o r m a t i o n a b o u t `m o d e r n ’ c h e m i c a l
tech n ology . Just as they h ad b egun to fin d a
f o o t i n g in t h e m a r k e t , t h e i r p r a c t ic a l
kn ow led g e w as again fou n d w an tin g . T h e
on ly av ailab le inform ation about veg etab le
d y es w a s d ocu m en ted in th e lan g u ag e of
th e c o lo n is e r s , c o d if i e d , a n d p la c e d in
lib ra ries o r m u s eu m s , in a cce s s ib le to th e
tr a d ition a l p ra ctitio n er s fr o m w h o m th e
inform ation h ad been g ath ered in the first
in stan ce. T h u s, a lth o u g h it loo k ed as if a
d em and h ad b een created for their prod uct,
in reality this further rein forced the im a g e
of w eavers ’ tech n ology as n eed ful of input
from outsid e exp erts, in the w eavers’ ow n
m in d s as w ell as in those of oth ers.
T od ay, in m ost d escriptions of the han d -
loom ind ustry, the trad ition al w eaver is seen
a s a n o b ject o f ch a r ity , w h o ca n su r v iv e
12 Gender and Development
o n ly th r o u g h g o v er n m e n t h a n d o u ts o r
p a t r o n a g e f r o m s o c ia l e l it e s . Y e t t h e ir
`sun set’ ind ustry Ð as it w as referred to b y
a top official in th e D epa rtm en t of H an d -
loom an d T extiles in ch arg e of form ulatin g
s tr ate g y fo r th is in d u s tr y (p er s o n a l
com m u n icatio n , 1 9 99 ) Ð h a s th e seco n d
la rg est n u m b er o f p ra ctition er s in In d ia ,
fa rm in g em p lo y in g th e g rea test n u m b er.
F o r t h e m e n a n d w o m e n e n g a g e d in
w e a v i n g in v il la g e s a c r o s s I n d i a , t h e
jo urn ey fr om trad ition a l n eeli (in d ig o) to
m o d e r n n a p h th o l ( c h e m ic a l) d y e s h a s
m ea n t a jo u rn ey fro m s elf-s u fficien cy to
d epen d en ce, self-respect to su b ord ination ;
in sh ort, a journ ey to `prim itivity ’ .
Radhika:
M o s t h ig h ly -e d u ca te d w o m e n fr o m th e
third w orld , w h eth er or n ot w e live in the
N o r th , ex p e r ie n c e a p a r a llel jo u r n e y to
`prim itivity ’ in the sen se A n n ap urn a u ses
ab o v e. In p a r t, th is h ap p e n s th r o u g h
a cq u ir in g w e s t e r n - s ty le e d u c a tio n a n d
profession al statu s, w h ich is n ot often a n
auton om ous person al ch oice. N o w om an of
th e t h i r d w o r l d h a s t h e l u x u r y o f n o t
ch oosin g to b e w estern ised if sh e aspires to
be h eard , or even sim ply to ach ieve a level
of m a terial freed om , com fort, a n d lu x ury
w ith in glob al structures of pow er. M an y of
u s h a v e `m a d e i t ’ w i th i n w e s te r n is e d
p r ofes s io n a l s y s tem s , a n d h a v e en jo y ed
th e s t a t u s o f t h e r e p r e s e n ta t i v e t h ir d -
w orld w om an w ith in g lob al stru ctu res of
p o w e r. Y et, as a r es u lt o f o u r ed u ca tio n
a n d p r o f e s s io n a l s ta t u s , w e a r e n o t
represen tative, alth ough w e are of the third
w o r ld , a n d o u r s to r ie s a r e n o t th o s e o f
m a n y tr u ly u n d e r-p riv ileg e d w o m en in
third -w orld location s.
O fte n , w e m e e t o th er p e o p le’ s
e x p e c t a t io n s b y t a k in g o n t h e r o l e o f
v i c t i m s o f t h i r d - w o r l d c u lt u r e s , o r ,
altern atively , victors w h o h av e `survived ’
o u r b a ck g r o u n d s . Y e t, w h e n w e r e fu s e
th es e roles a llotted to u s , so m e fe m in is ts
fro m N orth ern b ack g rou n d s su g g est ou r
experien ces d on ’ t `coun t’, since w e are n ot
`r e a l’ th ir d - w o r ld w o m e n . E v e n a s w e
d em on strate our poten tial b y attain ing the
le v e l o f e d u c a tio n a n d `w e s te r n is a tio n ’
required to b ecom e pow erful w ith in g lobal
structures, w e are silen ced on ce ag ain .
Annapurna:
O utsid e the h ouse of on e of the w eavers in
th e v illa g e o f C h in n u r is a ch a lk-w ritten
a d d r e s s b o a r d in E n g lis h . I t s a y s :
`V e n k a t e s h U .S ., W e a v e r s ’ C o lo n y ,
C h inn ur’ . T h e initials U .S. after this m an ’s
n a m e s t a n d f o r `U n s k i ll e d L a b o u r ’ : a
p o w e r f u l s t a te m e n t o n h o w a n e x p e r t
w eaver ch ooses to categorise h im self. T h is
classification in the g overn m en t record s, h e
h o p es , w ill m a k e h im elig ible for a lo w -
g rad e job in a g overn m en t office.
I first cam e h ere as on e of a team of field
w ork ers from an N GO w h ich offered m ar -
k etin g s u p p o r t to cr a ft g r o u p s . N a tu r a l
d y eing seem ed an option w hich w ould ad d
value to th e cotton cloth, an d w h ich w ould
a lso even tu ally d ecrease w ea vers’ d ep en -
d en ce on a fick le m a rk et a n d cen tra lis ed
raw m aterial supply system s. W e ourselves
d id n ot k n ow the tech n olog y, but w e w ere
optim istic ab ou t the ch a n ce of reviving it,
provid ed there w as active participation on
the part of prod ucer g roups.
T ra n sfe rrin g th e tech n olog y of n a tural
d y e in g t o th e f ie ld p r e s e n te d m a n y
c h a lle n g e s . T h e s o u r ce s o f in fo r m a t io n
a va ila b le w ere tex ts Ð som e of th em 3 00
y ea rs old Ð n otin g origin al p roce ss es of
a r t is a n p r a c ti c e . S o m e s c h o la r s h a d
research ed frag m en ts of the old processes,
a n d s o m e p ra ctitio n ers reca lled p a rts o f
t h e m . W e n e e d e d h is t o r i a n s t o a c c e s s
i n f o r m a t io n f r o m li b r a r i e s w h e r e t h e
d ocum en tation w a s k ept; w e then n eed ed
d y e in g ex p e r ts to in te r p r e t th e r e cip e s ,
b o tan ists to p ar ticip ate in th e p r oces s o f
id en tify in g m a terials , en g in eers to cr eate
a ppropriate tech n olog y to en sure fa stn ess
a n d b rig h tn ess in colo u r s, a n d ch em ica l
tech n o log is ts to in ter p ret th e tech n iq u es
 Cyberfeminism, technology, and international `development’
a n d d em y s tif y p r o ce s s e s th a t h a d b e en
in ter -lin k e d w ith w a y s o f life th a t w er e
som etim es cen turies old . M ak ing scien tists
o f th e w ea v ers, w e h a d to h elp th em r e-
interpret inform ation to suit their ch a n g ed
en v iro n m en t a n d res o u r ce s . W e d id n o t
w an t to im pose on them Ð in the n am e of
tra d itio n a l tech n o lo g y Ð p r oce s se s th a t
w o u ld p la c e d e m a n d s o n t h e m w h i c h
w o u ld b e m o r e o p p r e s s iv e th a n to x ic
ch em ical d y es . T h e in n a te ca p a b ility a n d
sk ill of th e w ea vers m a d e th is seem in g ly
im possib le task feasible, an d success cam e
five years later, w h en w e prod uced a ran ge
o f c o l o u r s a n d d y e in g te c h n iq u e s t h a t
w ith s to o d th e m o s t s tr in g en t o f q u a lity
tests. A g roup of d y er-w eavers n ow acted
as resource people in w orksh ops held b y us
to train oth er g roups.
O ur clien ts tod ay are con fid en t w eavers
w h o com e b ack to u s tim e a n d a g a in , to
p ar ticip ate in th e effort to em pow er m ore
a n d m o r e a r t is a n g r o u p s b y s h a r in g
in fo r m a tio n o n a te ch n o lo g y th a t h a s
em erg ed from their efforts on the field .
In C h in n u r liv e s V e n k a ta v v a , w h o s e
h usb an d is on e of a g rou p of six w eavers
w h o d ecid ed that they w ould tak e the risk
of invitin g an outsid e ag en cy to h elp them
b e c o m e s e l f - s u f f ic i e n t . W h e n w e f i r s t
v is i t e d C h i n n u r e ig h t y e a r s a g o ,
V e n k a ta v v a w a s u n a b le to o f fer u s a n y
h osp itality . H er th ree-y ea r-old d au g h ter’ s
s t a p le d r in k w a s w e a k c o f f e e , d r u n k
w ith o u t m ilk . T h e r e w a s n o fo o d to b e
offered to visitors w h o turn ed up on ce the
m o r n in g m e a l w a s p a s t . T o d a y , s h e
e n te r t a i n s b u y e r s f r o m E u r o p e , w h i le
listen ing to h er h usban d tell th e story of h is
successes . H er ey es are brigh t w ith laug h ter
w h en s h e re m em b e r s les s s u cces s ful
ex p erim en ts w h ich r es u lted in p a le a n d
fu g itiv e colou rs, an d ira te cu stom ers. S h e
p o in t s p r o u d l y t o t h e s h i r t t h a t h e r
h u s b a n d O d e llu w ea r s tod a y , w h ich h e
h im s e lf h a s w o v e n . T h e jo u r n e y f r o m
ch em ical tech n olog y to the in d igo vat, from
d earth to b ou n ty, from apath y to lau gh ter
13
Ð this is h er journ ey . In this con text, w h ich
t e c h n o lo g y is t r a d it i o n a l a n d w h ic h
m od ern ? W h o is to d ecid e w h ich on e is the
road to em pow erm en t an d self-res pect?
Radhika:
M y journ ey to `m od ern ity ’ b eg an w ith an
increasing aw aren ess of m y ow n ign oran ce,
a n d o f th e co n tr a d ictio n s a n d in ju s tice s
w h i c h e x i s t w it h i n t h e N o r th e r n
ed ucation al sy stem . I refuse to b e eith er a
`victim ’ or a `v ictor’, an d con tin ue to h ope
th a t th rou g h d ialog u e, w o m en , m en an d
c h ild r e n f r o m d if f e r e n t b a c k g r o u n d s
throug h out the w orld can w ork tog eth er to
overcom e in justice.
I n la te 1 9 9 5 , w h e n I s ta r te d m y fir s t
In tern et d iscussion list, a ccess to the In ter-
n et w as lim ited m ain ly to m en an d w om en
from the N orth . (T h is is the case even now ,
alth ou gh there ar e m ore m en an d w om en
fr o m th e S o u th w h o u s e th e In ter n et). I
started the third -w orld w om en d iscussion
list partly as a result of m y frustra tion w ith
w h at I saw a s a lack o f p olitical com m it-
m en t a n d ex ch an g e w ith in som e w om en -
cen tred lists. I w as frustrated w ith the w ay
in w h ich top ics w ere d is cu ss ed . E v en in
th o s e in s ta n ce s w h e re w o m en a n d m e n
from the South h ad access, they cam e from
a p ar ticu lar class b ac k g ro un d . I w a s also
frustrated w ith the w ay people represen ted
them selves. In m y opinion , som e w ere too
ea g er to b e `id ea l n a tiv e in for m a n ts ’ fo r
N orth ern aud ien ces. S outhern participan ts
u s e d t h e I n te r n e t a s a n o p p o r t u n ity t o
p e r f o r m to a N o r t h e r n a u d i e n c e a n d
receive favours for sufficien tly w estern , or
a p pro priately ex otic, p erform a n ces . E v en
d iscu ssion lists an d w eb -s ites that claim ed
to b e critica l a n d fem in ist som etim es fe ll
in to th is trap (p ossib ly, m y ow n lists an d
w eb sites d o so, too).
I t w a s im p o r t a n t t o m e a t th e tim e I
s tar ted th e th ird -w o rld -w om en lis t, an d
con tin ues to b e n ow , th at a con sciou s effort
s h o u ld b e m a d e to b e c r itic a l a n d s e lf-
reflex ive. M y secon d list, S a-cy b org s, w a s
14 Gender and Development
started w ith a sim ilar goal in m ind , b ut the
focu s of this list is an interactive ex ch an g e
o f cr ea tiv e w ritin g in relation to g en d er,
ra ce, class an d g eog ra ph ical location . B oth
lists w ere for m ed in th e r eco g n ition th a t
acts of rep resen tation are p olitical.
O n e of th e m a in p u rp o ses of b oth m y
I n t e r n e t d i s c u s s io n li s ts is to f a c il it a te
con n ection s b etw een th ird -w orld activists
an d sch olars loca ted w ith in , a n d ou ts id e,
U S aca d em ic in stitutio n s . I h op e th a t this
d ialog u e w ill resu lt in colla b ora tiv e w ork
b y a n d f o r w o m e n l iv in g i n u n d e r -
p r iv ileg ed a n d o p p r ess iv e co n d ition s, in
N o r t h a n d S o u t h . M y li s ts a r e h u m b le
effo rts w h ich form a sm a ll s ec tio n of th e
la rg er effor ts b ein g m a d e b y w o m en a ll
ov er th e w orld . W h eth er th ey h a v e b een
successf ul in an y sen se is n ot for m e to say .
T h e r e a r e m a n y fe m in is ts a n d a ctiv is ts
u s in g th e In t er n et in fa r m o r e ef fe ctiv e
w ays, an d exam ples of these can b e seen all
ov er th e w o r ld - w id e w eb (see
h ttp://w w w .igc.apc.or g /vsister/res/ind ex
.h tm l for som e ex am ples).
Annapurna:
W o m en w h o tu s sle w ith th e q u es tio n of
h ow to d efin e their class an d N orth ern or
S o u th e r n id e n tity o n t h e I n te r n e t a r e a
p r i v i l e g e d f e w . Q u e s t i o n s r e le v a n t t o
w o m en to w h o m In ter n et te ch n o lo g y is
b ein g touted as th e route to em pow erm en t,
m i g h t a s k : `b u t w h o h a s t h e I n t e r n e t
em pow ered ? H ow h as this h appen ed ? H ow
r e le v a n t is th is p r o c e s s fo r w o m e n lik e
V en katavva?’.
V en k a ta v v a h a s s e en th e a d v e n t o f
ro ad s , ca rs, telep h o n es, a n d telev ision in
t h e s h o r t 3 0 y e a r s o f h e r l if e , a n d
u n d er s tan d s th e a d v a n ta g e s , th e
d is ad v an tag es, a n d th e illu sion o f a cce ss
that these g ive h er. In a lan d of fa ulty cab les
an d u n p red ictab le electricity su p p ly , h er
ch ild ren on ly d rink m ilk on the d a y s tha t
the b us d oesn ’t run, b ecause on those d ay s
the m ilk in the villa ge can ’t b e taken to th e
city to b e sold , an d isn ’ t w orth an y m on ey .
M od ern tech n ology h old s n o b ogies for h er;
sh e h a s ch o ices th a t m an y w om en in th e
n o rth d o n ’ t h av e a cc e ss to . O n d a y s th e
electricity fails sh e w a tch es th e trad ition al
story -tellin g en acted in th e v illag e s qu ar e
in s te a d o f th e d is ta n t S a n ta B a r b a r a o n
television . T h e qu ality an d qu an tity of the
ch oices av ailab le to h er are bas ed as m uch
o n t h e f a i l u r e o f t e c h n o lo g y , a s o n i t s
su ccess. S o w ou ld m od ern tech n olog y b e
w o r k in g t o w a r d s m o r e q u a l it y a n d
quan tity in ch oice, or less?
A s a n a ctiv is t w o r k in g in d ev e lo p in g
tech n olog y for h er I can on ly sa y this: let
h e r h a v e a c c e s s t o th e In te r n e t Ð w hy
sh ould this b e b arred w h en oth er aspects of
m o d er n life a r e im p o s ed , fr o m W es ter n
c o n s u m e r g o o d s , to t w e n ti e t h - c e n tu r y
d iseases su ch as H IV / A ID S . B ut let it n ot
b e as sum ed that the In tern et w ill em pow er
h er. O therw ise this too w ill d o w h at oth er
im p o s ed tech n o lo g y h a s d o n e: th e ex act
op posite of w h at it purports to d o.
T h e In tern et w ill b e a m o re co lou rfu l,
e x o t i c p la c e f o r u s w i t h w o m e n l i k e
V en k atavva flash in g th eir g old n ose pin s,
b ut w h at g ood w ill it d o them ? A s it is at
presen t, the In tern et reflects the percep tion s
of N orth ern society th at Southern w om en
a r e b r o w n , b a c k w a r d , a n d ig n o r a n t. A
altern ative, k ind er, d epiction of them w h ich
is a lso w id esp read is tha t they ar e victim s
of their cultural h eritag e. Is b ein g exposed
to such im ag es of them selves g oin g to h elp
S ou th ern w om en b y en coura g ing them to
fig h t in d ign ity a n d self-respect, or w ill it
furth er erod e their con fid en ce in th eir fast-
ch ang ing environ m en t?
W h at, th en , is th e p ro cess b y w h ich a
w o m a n l ik e V e n k a t a v v a c o u l d b e
em pow ered b y the In tern et?
Radhika:
V en k a tav va sh ould b e free to d ecid e h ow
the In tern et an d oth er related tech n olog ies
m igh t be used to b en efit an d em pow er h er
an d h er com m u n ity . T h e tools an d a ccess
sh ould be provid ed un con d ition ally , n ot as
 Cyberfeminism, technology, and international `development’
a w ay o f sellin g a so-c a lled su p erio r life-
style m od elled on the `civilised ’ an d u rb an
c e n t r e s o f t h e w o r ld . W o m e n li k e
V en tak avva are perfectly capable of m ak ing
t h e d e c i s io n s n e e d e d t o e m p o w e r
th em s elv es a c co r d in g to th e ir e v e ry d a y
n eed s. Policies d esign ed to b e em pow erin g
s h o u ld a id a n d en a b le , n o t im p o s e a n d
p reach w h ile fosterin g fu rth er in eq ualities
an d inad equacies.
I w ould like to paraph rase (n ot w ith out
r es e r v a tio n s s im ila r t o t h o s e v o ic e d b y
A n n apurn a in h er rejoin d er) a con trib ution
m a d e t o th e G e n d e r a n d L a w th e m a tic
group 10 at the W orld B an k . F or Spivak , the
sp eak er, th e k ey qu estion th at em erg es in
th e co n tex t o f h e r w o r k w ith w o m en in
B an g lad esh is `H ow d o w e a p p roa ch the
b ottom ?’. T h at is, `H ow can w e learn from
b elow ?’ . T h e id ea is to en ter into a society
an d learn its trad ition s from insid e, seein g
w h a t tr a d itio n s ca n b e w o r k ed w ith to
slow ly im prove the situation , an d to en sure
that n ew d ev elopm en ts ar e in itia ted from
the insid e so that the ch an g es are acce pted .
S p iv a k s e e s a n e e d t o d o `i n v is i b le
m en d ing ’ of th e n ative fab ric, b y w eaving
in the d ifferen t positive thread s w h ich exist
in the fab ric (m od eratorgl@ w orld b an k .org,
20 A pril 1999).
Annapurna:
H o w d o w e r e s o lv e t h e c o n t r a d ic t o r y
s en tim e n ts o f s ee in g th e In te r n e t a s a
p an a cea to th e p rob lem s of th e s ou th ; of
th in k in g that on th e con trary , it m ay even
b e b a d for u s ; a n d of a s s ertin g th a t th is
d oesn ’t m ean w e d on ’ t w an t it? W e n eed to
stud y processes of em pow erm en t an d w ork
out h ow it is to b e d on e in the con text of th e
In tern et. W h ile case stud ies ab oun d for the
f a il u r e o f t h is p r o c e s s , d e v e l o p m e n t
w ork ers in particular w ould n ot reg ard it as
fair (or politically correct) to d ow n -p lay the
poten tial of the In tern et to em pow er m an y
w o m e n li k e V e n k a t a v v a in S o u th a n d
N orth . W e can n ot say , `I w on ’t g ive you the
In tern et, for y our ow n g ood ’.
15
Radhika:
M y ex p erien ce of ob serving th e d ev elop -
m en t of the In tern et, an d usin g this m od e
of com m u n ica tion , is th a t w h ile there a re
h ierarch ies of pow er em b ed d ed in the very
con struction an d d esign of In tern et culture,
th ere is still p oten tial for u sin g it in w ay s
w h i c h m ig h t s u b v e r t t h e s e a n d f o s t e r
d ialogue an d action on various un expected
fron ts, in un pred ictab le w ay s. H ow ever, it
r em a in s tru e th a t th e N G O s w h o s p ea k
w it h a n d f o r w o m e n liv i n g i n p o v e r ty
t h r o u g h o u t t h e w o r l d , a s w e ll a s t h e
w om en them selves, h av e to n eg otiate an d
en gag e in d ialogue w ith the pow erful in the
N orth from position s of lesser pow er. T h is
situ ation of u n eq u al ec on om ic an d so cia l
pow er relation s b etw een the N orth an d the
S ou th p resen ts ch allen g es for people such
a s m y s e l f w h o a r e t r y i n g t o d e s ig n
electron ic spaces of d ialog ue an d activism .
T h erefore I reiterate the question s cen tral
to o u r d is cu s sio n in th is a rticle, a n d a s k
read ers to think d eeply an d h on estly ab out
the issues they raise, b ey on d those w e h av e
a d d ressed h ere. W ill w om en a ll ov er th e
w orld b e able (allow ed ) to use tech n olog ies
un d er con d ition s that are d efin ed b y them ,
a n d th eref ore p o ten tia lly em p ow erin g to
t h e m ? W it h in w h i c h I n te r n e t- b a s e d
con texts w ill w om en of lesser m aterial an d
cu ltu ra l p r iv ileg e w ith in `g lo b a l’ p o w er
rela tio n s b e ab le to d evelo p co lla b o rativ e
w ork , a n d co alition s, to tra n sform social,
cu ltu ral, an d political structures?
T h es e q u e stio n s can n o t b e ad d r es s ed
o n l y in r e la t io n to w o m e n o f t h e th ir d
w orld . W om en from th e first w orld n eed
an sw ers to these question s too. T h e In tern et
h as its `h ead quarters’ in the first w orld , b ut
th is d o es n ot m ean th a t it is co n tex tually
em p ow erin g to all w om en in that con tex t.
W h e th er lo ca ted in th e N o r th e r n h e m i -
sph ere or th e S outh, w h eth er rich or poor,
g lob a l stru ctu res of p ow er (th rou g h th eir
`in vis ib le’ co n tro l o f th e m ark et, In ter n et
service provid ers, softw are d esig n, lang uage
an d so on ) clearly d eterm ine w om en ’s use
16 Gender and Development
o f th e In tern et. If cy b erfem in is ts w a n t to
en sure that the In tern et is em pow erin g , it is
n ot en o ug h to `g et con n ected ’ a n d set u p
w eb sites an d m a in ta in e-m a il-d iscu ss io n
lists. T h e latter task s, w h ile n ecessary , a re
on ly a m iniscule part of the b attle.
Radhika Gajjala is an Assistant Professor in the
D epartm ent of Interpersonal Comm unication,
School of C om m unication Studies, Bow ling
Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio,
U S A . E -m a il: r ad h ik@ bg n et.bg s u .ed u , o r
cy berd iv a 1 6 @ h otm a il.co m . W eb s ite:
http://ernie.bgsu.edu/~radhik
Annapurna M amidipudi is a Field W orker,
D astkar Andhra, Secunderabad, India.
E-mail: annapurnam@yahoo.com
N otes
1 T h e w riters than k D r. M elissa Spirek , D r.
A V en k a tesh , a n d th e ed ito r of Gender
and Development , C arolin e Sw eetm an , for
co m m e n tin g o n s ev e ra l d r a fts o f th is
article. R a d h ik a G a jja la a ls o w is h es to
than k all the Spoon C ollective m em b ers
as w ell as the m em b ers of the various lists
that sh e (co-)m od erates. T h ey con trib ute
sig n ifican tly to our un d erstan d ing of on -
lin e ex isten ce . S evera l `r ea l-life’ b od ies
also com m en ted on this article, includ ing
fam ily m em b ers of b oth w riters.
2 T h e In tern et is a w orld -w id e n etw ork of
co m p u ters w h ich com m u n ica te v ia a n
a g r e e d s e t o f I n te r n e t p r o t o c o l . T h e
w orld -w ide w eb is a sub set of the In ter -
n et w h ich u s es a com b in a tio n o f tex t,
g rap h ics , a u d io an d v id eo m a terial to
provid e inform ation on m an y sub jects.
3 I u s e th is te rm to d en o te `th e r a p id ly
d ev elo p in g p r o ce s s o f co m p lex in te r -
con n ection s b etw een societies, cu ltu res,
in stitution s an d ind ivid uals w orld w ide.
It is a process w h ich involves ¼ sh rinking
d istan ces th roug h a d ram atic red uction
in the tim e tak en Ð eith er ph y sically or
rep res en tatio n a lly Ð to cr oss th em , so
m aking the w orld sm aller an d in a certain
sen se brin g ing h um an bein g s `closer’ to
one an oth er. B ut it is also a process w h ich
`stretch es’ social relation s, rem ovin g the
r e la t io n s h i p s w h ic h g o v e r n o u r
e v er y d a y liv e s fr o m lo c a l co n te x ts to
g lobal on es’ (T om lin son 1997) .
4 T h e te r m `o n - lin e ’ r e fe r s to a c tiv itie s
carried out via the In tern et or e-m ail.
5 G ettin g `con n ected ’ m ean s acquirin g the
n e c e s s a r y t e c h n o lo g y ( c o m p u te r ,
In tern et b row s in g s oftw a re, telep h on e
m o d e m , co n n e ctio n to a n In te rn e t
S ervice P rovider) to acces s the In tern et.
6 E ven a s w e collab orate on projects such
a s th is a rticle, w e are ex ch an g in g n o n -
trad ition al creative w ritin g , in relation to
o u r p e r s o n a l/ p r o f es s io n a l/ p o litic a l
con flicts an d d ilem m a s, on sa-cy b org s.
F o r in f o r m a t io n o n s a - c y b o r g s a n d
third -w orld w om en , see
h ttp://lists.villag e.virg inia.ed u
7 E lectron ic n etw ork s w h ose particip an ts
d iscuss a particu lar topic or topics.
8 S ee h ttp://ern ie.b g su.ed u/~rad h ik
9 T h e S p o o n C o l le c t i v e i s o p e r a t e d
t h r o u g h t h e I n s t i tu t e f o r A d v a n c e d
T ec h n o lo g y in th e H u m a n itie s a t th e
U n iversity of V irg inia.
10 Q u oted fr o m a p o st to th e g en d er-la w
d iscu ssion list, g en d er-law @ jaz z.w orld
b an k .org , received on 29 A pril 1999 .
R efe re n ce s
Said , E (1978) Orientalism, Pan theon B ooks,
N ew Y ork.
T om lin so n , J (1 9 9 7) `C ultural globalisation
and cultural im perialism ’ in M ohamm adi,
A (1997 ) In tern a tion al C om m un ication
an d G lobalisation , Sag e, L on d on .
U zram m a (1995) `Cotton handlooms -industry
o f th e fu tu r e ’, p a p e r p r e s e n t e d a t a
sem inar on In d ian textiles in 1995.
V ita n za , V (1 9 99 ) Cyberreader , A lly n a n d
B acon , B oston.