SECTION 5: POLITICAL FUNDAMENTALIST AND FASCIST ACTORS Many political fundamentalist and fascist actors and groups are linked to the long-lasting impact of colonialism in the region. The end of colonial rule came after decades of intense, often violent, anti-colonial struggles across different contexts. Following this period, many anticolonial movements embarked on their own exclusionary, patriarchal and nationalist agendas, with members of socially dominant groups and political and social elites in society often taking the reins of political leadership and governance for themselves. MANY INFLUENTIAL, FUNDAMENTALIST POLITICAL ACTORS ALSO EMERGED DURING THIS TIME, CLAIMING ‘ANTIIMPERIAL’ IDENTITY AND EXPLOITING RELIGIOUS DIFFERENCES BETWEEN COMMUNITIES. In later decades, a series of geopolitical power plays and imperialist military interventions around the world and around the region impacted South and Southeast Asia profoundly. Many influential, fundamentalist political actors also emerged during this time, claiming ‘anti-imperial’ identity and exploiting religious differences between communities. PAKISTAN Aurat March (AM) and Aurat Azadi (AAM) are annual socio-political demonstrations organized by feminist groups in various Pakistani cities on International Women’s Day. The AM is organized in Lahore, Karachi, and Multan, while the AAM takes place in Islamabad and Hyderabad.151 Since their inception, the marches, participants, and organizers have faced significant backlash manifested through various tactics, including media smear campaigns, legal challenges, death and rape threats, 151 suPWR. (2022). Aurat March and Aurat Azadi March https://supwr.org/struggles/aurat-march/ 45