His Rights/Her Duties: Citizen and Mother in the Civics Discourse

Abstract

The boundaries of states and nations do not necessarily coincide. As imagined and unstable constructs, they are contested and have shifting borders. States tend to regulate their citizenry through selective processes of inclusion and exclusion on the lines of gender and ethnicity. These define who is included within the state's self- definition and who is excluded from the collective self-image, enabling the state to exert power and control over those within its boundaries. This article analyses how through civics education in Pakistan the image of the ideal (gendered) citizen is created that deprives some groups and women of access to full citizenship.