Jacob Cross, Press Corps 3
AD-HOC COMMITTEE of the SECRETARY-GENERAL, Non-Traditionals — Delegates from the extremely competitive Ad-Hoc Committee to the Secretary General are serving as a council of revolutionary anarchist women prior to and during the Spanish Civil War of 1936. This collective is primarily focused on adapting to the fracturing Republican Party and establishing their own political movements to promote equal rights in a society that often disregards them.
On the first day of the conference, a significant majority of delegates agreed to place their support behind the Republican Party, as an alternative to the right-wing Nationalist Party. As all of the women represented are anarcho-feminists, there are large overlaps in their political beliefs and ideally, this collective would serve as a unified front dedicated to progressing the rights and opportunities available for women in a largely inequitable society. However, as the committee has continued to debate through numerous crises, certain notable fractures have formed in this once-unified body.
Some delegates raised concerns surrounding the numerous factions within the Republican Party and the party's inability to provide stable support for women. This included movements to support an anti-war faction that dedicates its attention to improving the lives of women under the current government. However, an increasingly strong faction hopes to improve the status of women in the event a civil war does occur, providing an important discussion on which side to support entering the second day.
The second committee meeting reinforced the trend of straying away from remaining as one unified body as the war drew closer. Many delegates continued to resist the war and argue for policies aimed at protecting the peace. Included in this group was Soledad Casilda Hernaez Vargas, a prominent revolutionary, who endorsed creating another faction focused entirely on progressing women’s rights.
“We should create our own political movement and our own party to be able to protect women and push our ideals forward,” she told the NAIMUN Daily.
This would involve pursuing policies that promote the economic expansion of the roles of women such as creating agricultural communes, which would also ensure food security. This group is primarily anti-war hoping to avoid the inevitable cost of a bloody conflict and continues to support measures increasing the power of women under the current government rather than fighting for radical changes.
However, another large faction, led by Felisa De Castro Sampedro, is arguing to immediately abandon the path for peace and fully endorse the Republicans. This would provide women a much larger say in the weakened Republican government should a civil war erupt. Although this faction doesn’t support the civil war, they note that they would rather preemptively establish themselves than be left behind supporting peace when the war begins.
The first two committee sessions have already divided the collective opinions of Spanish women from a once unified coalition to a split based on party lines, a trend that can only be expected to continue. It is simply a matter of time until each delegate finds out for themselves for whom the bell tolls.