Equality and the Promotion of Women in Political Office?
2.4. Benefits for society
Society in general benefits from the increased representation of women in political parties and elected office. Women’s political presence can ensure that policy issues affecting women in particular are channelled into political debates, raise awareness about gender-based discrimi-nation in all spheres of political and public life and enhance socio-economic development.
2.4.1. Increases public trust in the political system The presence of women in political office, both elected and appointed, can increase the political system’s legitimacy and, thus, public confidence in the system.67 As noted above, both male and female citizens believe that government is more
democratic when more women are present in political institutions. Electing more women to political positions can, therefore, enhance voters’ identification with the political system, lead-ing to a higher voter turnout.
In addition, greater inclusiveness and representativeness of the electorate in political office can lead to greater political stability, constituting one of the most effective tools of conflict preven-tion. The premise of inclusion is that stability can only be guaranteed if everyone feels part of society on an equal footing.
2.4.2. Impacts the policy agenda
A critical mass of women68 in politics can bring vital attention to issues that disproportionate-ly affect women.69 Participating States in the OSCE region continue to face major challenges in achieving gender equality in the following areas: education; remuneration and access to certain sectors of the labour market, such as military service; social policies and healthcare, in-cluding maternal and reproductive health; and care of dependents, inin-cluding children and the elderly.70 Women in many participating States are particularly susceptible to problems arising from political and economic restructuring, domestic violence, sexual harassment and traffick-ing in human betraffick-ings.71 If women are absent from politics or constitute only a small fraction of elected assemblies, important issues such as these are not likely to be prioritized or addressed.
67 Ibid.
68 Critical mass of women in office—postulated as around 30 per cent of legislators in a given country—refers to the level of women’s representation in elected office when they can begin to influence policy and laws and, potentially, move the gender equality and women’s empowerment agenda forward.
69 Sarah Childs, New Labour’s Women MPs: Women Representing Women (London: Routledge, 2004); Michelle Swers, The Difference Women Make (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002); Sue Thomas, How Women Legislate (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995).
70 Tanja van der Lippe and Eva Fodor, “Changes in gender inequality in six eastern European countries”, Acta Sociologica, Vol. 41, No. 2, 1998, pp. 131–149; Sylke Viola Schnepf, “Gender differences in subjective well-being in Central and Eastern Europe”, Journal of European Social Policy, Vol. 20, No. 1, 2010, pp. 74–85.
71 Janet Elise Johnson, “Domestic violence politics in post-Soviet States” Social Politics, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2007, pp.
380–405; Olga Avdeyeva, “When do states comply with international treaties? Policies on violence against wom-en in post-communist countries”, International Studies Quarterly, Vol. 51, No. 4, 2007, pp. 877–900; Jane Hardy, Wieslawa Kozek and Alison Stenning, “In the front line: women, work and new spaces of labour politics in Poland”, Gender Place and Culture, Vol. 15, No. 2, 2008, pp. 99–116; Tomas Sobotka, “Re-emerging diversity: Rapid fertility changes in central and eastern Europe after the collapse of the Communist regimes”, Population, Vol. 58, No. 4–5, 2003, pp. 511–547.
Gender equality in political parties can increase confidence of the public in the political system.
Evidence suggests that the inclusion of women’s voices – especially when addressing complex challenges – broadens the diversity of viewpoints, experiences, interests and expertise brought into parliamentary debates.72 Electing more women from different backgrounds and political parties can further enhance these positive effects by allowing women’s views to be channelled into public policy discussions.
2.4.3. Contributes to socio-economic development
There is also a growing consensus among international actors that gender equality is not only the right thing to do, but also the smart thing to do. There is some evidence suggesting that a higher number of women in elected office leads to greater economic advantages.73 The World Bank, for example, argues that promoting gender equality is “smart economics” because it can increase output per worker by 3 per cent to 25 per cent across a range of countries:
“Countries that create better opportunities and conditions for women and girls can raise productivity, improve outcomes for children, make institutions more representative, and advance development prospects for all.”74
Similarly, the World Economic Forum’s 2011 Gender Gap Report finds that:
“Countries and companies will thrive if women are educated and engaged as fundamental pillars of the economy, and diverse leadership is most likely to find innovative solutions to tackle the current economic challenges and to build equitable and sustainable growth.”75 Another finding of this report is that women are more likely to invest a larger proportion of their household income than men in the education and health of their children.76 Similarly, a 2011 study found that if one dollar of development money is given to a woman, she is likely to spend 90 per cent of that money on her family and on her community. If one dollar of de-velopment money is given to a man, he is likely to spend only 30 to 40 per cent of that money on his family and on his community; the rest he will spend on himself.77 Figure 2.10 illustrates the proportion of funds allocated by men and women to their community and to themselves.
72 Anne Phillips, The Politics of Presence (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995); Jane Mansbridge, “Should Blacks Represent Blacks and Women Represent Women? A Contingent Yes”, Journal of Politics, Vol. 61, No. 3, 1999, pp.
628–657.
73 Kofi Annan, Quotes on Human Rights, 2008, <http://www.unfpa.org/rights/quotes.htm>.
74 “World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development”, The World Bank, 2012,
<http://go.worldbank.org/CQCTMSFI40>.
75 “The Global Gender Gap”, World Economic Forum (WEP), 2011, <http://www.weforum.org/issues/global-gender-gap>.
76 Ricardo Hausmann, Laura D. Tyson and Saadia Zahidi, “The Global Gender Gap Report 2011”, World Economic Forum, 2011, <http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GenderGap_Report_2011.pdf>.
77 Cherie Booth QC, “Seeking True Democracy: The Challenge and Promise of Full Equality for Women”, Chatham House, December 2011.
Figure 2.10: How 1 dollar of development money is spent according to sex
Source: Prepared by ODIHR for the purposes of this handbook based on Cherie Booth QC, “Seeking True Democracy: The Challenge and Promise of Full Equality for Women”, Chatham House, December 2011.
2.4.4. Promotes better understanding of gender-equality issues in society
Gender equality is still misunderstood in many societies in the OSCE area as a whole. It is dif-ficult to prioritize on the policy agenda a concept that not everyone – particularly politicians, decision makers and policy-makers – understands. When elected representatives are able to define gender equality and identify the benefits of gender equality for society at large, there is a greater chance that these messages can be communicated in a positive way to citizens – both male and female.
For the most part, respondents to the 2012 ODIHR Survey generally demonstrated a good understanding of the concept of gender equality.78 A male respondent from Kazakhstan, for example, described gender equality as a “necessary attribute of modern life, meaning equal rights for women and men.”
A female respondent from Moldova defined it as “the opportunity for both men and women to express their position, to affirm their qualities, to participate in the process of making life bet-ter, to be heard and try to realize their ideas and plans for the benefit of the society.” For a male respondent from Georgia, “gender equality is a full democracy.” A female respondent from Kyrgyzstan defined gender equality as “equal rights and responsibilities of men and women in all the spheres of life, as well as equal income and access
to resources.” Other interlocutors mentioned the necessity of legal measures for gender equality, the provision of a level playing field for women and men, the presence of women and men in all spheres of the society, as well as an understanding of the roles and importance women and men play in society.
78 2012 ODIHR Survey, multiple respondents from pilot countries.
“Gender equality is EQUALITY regardless of gender.”
Source: 2012 ODIHR Survey, male respondent from Moldova
“Gender equality is necessary to create equal conditions for women and men in political, social and cultural life”.
Source: 2012 ODIHR Survey, female respondent from Kazakhstan
men women 100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
community her/himself
Conclusion to Chapter 2
This chapter has explored arguments for promoting women’s political participation, with a fo-cus on women in political parties. It highlighted traditional arguments, rooted in respect for and compliance with international human rights instruments, as well as adherence to princi-ples of legitimacy, representation and inclusivity. In addition, it looked at more incentive-based arguments, linked to enhancing the appeal of political parties to voters. From the perspective of political party leaders, women politicians and civil society, this chapter has demonstrated that gender equality in politics is not only the right thing to do, but the smart thing to do. The following chapters will elaborate on concrete strategies and measures that can support politi-cal party leaders, women politicians and civil society in realizing these benefits.
CHAPTER 3: TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction to Chapter 3 46
3.1. What strategies work? 49
3.1.1. Institutionalizing gender equality within party structures,
processes and practices 50
3.1.2. Adopting voluntary measures to support women’s political advancement 60 3.1.3. Ensuring gender-equal access to financial resources and campaign funds 76 3.1.4. Making gender a part of a party’s electoral strategy 78 3.1.5. Promoting gender-responsive governance at the national level 82
Conclusion to Chapter 3 87