The 2015 Sri Lankan Parliamentary Election is due to be held on 17 August 2015, ten months ahead of schedule, to elect 225 memebers to Sri Lanka's 15th Parliament.
The current political climate seems to favour an increase in the number of seats in parliament to female and minority representatives. The 20th Amendment to the Constitution foresees a 30% quota of women across political bodies and Sri Lanka’s major political parties have nominated two to three women candidates for the general election.
There is still much to do. According to the most recent Inter- Parliamentary Union statistics on women in parliament, Sri Lanka ranks 128 out of 140.
The Chairperson of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the National Committee on Women, Ms. Swarna Sumanasekera said, “We want well-educated women who can contribute to the social and national development of the country’s economy to be nominated and elected into the new parliament’. The National Democracy Institute training manual on ‘Increasing Women’s Political Participation through effective training programs: a Guide to Best Practices and Lessons Learned’ points out that women politicians from all parties in Sri Lanka came together to draft and endorse a platform for improving women’s political participation, despite extreme political tensions.
A recent article authored by Mr. Vidya Abhayagunawardena and published in the Daily Mirror highlights the role of women in the history of Sri Lanka’s politics and links it to the current trends. He pledges to seize the opportunity of the 2015 parliamentary election to increase women’s political participation and leadership.
To read the full article, please click here.
The 2015 Sri Lankan Parliamentary Election is due to be held on 17 August 2015, ten months ahead of schedule, to elect 225 memebers to Sri Lanka's 15th Parliament.
The current political climate seems to favour an increase in the number of seats in parliament to female and minority representatives. The 20th Amendment to the Constitution foresees a 30% quota of women across political bodies and Sri Lanka’s major political parties have nominated two to three women candidates for the general election.
There is still much to do. According to the most recent Inter- Parliamentary Union statistics on women in parliament, Sri Lanka ranks 128 out of 140.
The Chairperson of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the National Committee on Women, Ms. Swarna Sumanasekera said, “We want well-educated women who can contribute to the social and national development of the country’s economy to be nominated and elected into the new parliament’. The National Democracy Institute training manual on ‘Increasing Women’s Political Participation through effective training programs: a Guide to Best Practices and Lessons Learned’ points out that women politicians from all parties in Sri Lanka came together to draft and endorse a platform for improving women’s political participation, despite extreme political tensions.
A recent article authored by Mr. Vidya Abhayagunawardena and published in the Daily Mirror highlights the role of women in the history of Sri Lanka’s politics and links it to the current trends. He pledges to seize the opportunity of the 2015 parliamentary election to increase women’s political participation and leadership.
To read the full article, please click here.
