Advocacy & Lobbying
JAKARTA - Politics and women are two things that are considered difficult to put together, but are being pursued. Women's involvement in politics is still underestimated, even though they have an important role for long-term policies.
Women are not the dominant actors in the political realm of various countries, including in Indonesia. According to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), in the 2019-2024 period, only 120 women were able to occupy the seats of the DPR RI out of a total of 575 people. This means that this number has only reached 20.87 percent of the total members of the DPR RI from the results of the 2019 Legislative Election.
This figure does show an upward trend in both the number and percentage compared to the previous three edition elections. But although women's participation in politics has developed in recent years, women's representation in politics is still low.
The lack of representation of women in the political field is partly due to patriarchal cultural conditions. In countries that adhere to patriarchal values such as in Indonesia, women's opportunities to become politicians are relatively limited due to public perceptions about the division of roles between men and women, which tend to limit women's role in household affairs.
Read here the full article published by VOI on 6 April 2024.
Image source: VOI
Earlier this month, in celebration of International Women’s Day, the National Democratic Institute premiered an interview we conducted with one of our partners, Honorable Neema Lugangira, a champion of legal reform and women’s empowerment in Tanzania. Hon. Lugangira has served as a Member of Parliament (MP) in Tanzania since 2020 and is Chair of the Women in Politics (WiP) parliamentary group that NDI conducts joint advocacy with on women’s issues. She is the founder of Omuka Hub, a non-governmental organization, and one of NDI’s legal reform advocacy partners who works to accelerate digital inclusion in Tanzania. Through Omuka Hub, Hon. Lugangira has championed access to digital resources in underserved areas and strengthened the online visibility of women in politics. As a parliamentarian with an extensive background in policy advocacy and legislative reform, she has prioritized promoting gender equality in politics in Tanzania and across Africa. In 2024, Hon. Lugangira, together with the WiP group, played a pivotal role in advocating for the adoption of inclusive amendments to three electoral laws. Her work with WiP has resulted in new protections within Tanzanian elections law that penalize Violence Against Women in Elections (VAW-E), making Tanzania the first country in the African continent to do so. We sat down with Hon. Lugangira to discuss this change, her insights into the legal reform process, and what this means for women in Tanzania.
“To get to where Tanzania is at the moment [you need to] first understand your landscape. You need to have a thorough review of your existing laws… and where Tanzania is at the moment.” - Honorable Neema Lugangira
Despite constituting half of the population as of the 2022 Census, women in Tanzania are significantly underrepresented in public office and political party leadership at both the local and national levels. In 2020, only 26 women were elected to parliament out of 264 seats, and women comprised only nine percent of candidates for president, parliament, and councilorships.
Read here the full article published by the National Democratic Institute on 2 April 2024.
Image source: National Democratic Institute
In the ongoing war in Sudan, there is an insufficiently narrated tragedy—the plight of women who are paying a hefty price for this war and are simultaneously being kept from the table in the discussion of how this war can end. International Women's Month coincides with a difficult period in Sudan, where women are facing various forms of violence and violations, including rape, sexual assault, kidnapping and the loss of providers. This is all occurring in a context marked by extreme poverty and lack of medical facilities, especially those related to sexual and reproductive health.
The war that erupted on April 15, 2023 between the Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces has led to a humanitarian crisis that UN reports have ranked among the largest globally—stating that nearly 8 million people have been displaced due to the war, 88 percent of whom are women and children. There are more than 4 million women and girls at risk of sexual assaults, and alarming reports have appeared of women being sold in markets in Sudan.
The painful irony is that Sudanese women were at the forefront of the Sudanese revolution that overthrew Omar al-Bashir's government on April 11, 2019. Despite their contributions and sacrifices, they found themselves marginalized and excluded from decision-making positions in the subsequent transitional government. The promises of allocating 40 percent of the Sudanese parliament’s seats for women remained unfulfilled. When the actual figures emerged, they reflected a failure to meet Sudanese women's aspirations and acknowledge their vital role in society and the political process.
Read here the full article published by the Washington Institute on 25 March 2024.
Image source: Washington Institute
Every March 8, millions of women mobilize in Latin America to be part of the agenda of International Women's Day. The problems experienced by women and gender diverse people in the region are not few: since 2018, 14 of the 25 countries with the most femicides are in Latin America, 27.4 percent of women in the region experience multidimensional poverty, and nearly 8,400 women die each year in the region due to complications in pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. According the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, in Latin America one in two women does not have a job and one in four does not have their own income. In Central America, less than 40 percent of women have a bank account.
On this day, women respond to and highlight the problems that affect them in their own contexts, causing each town and each Latin American city to have its own complaints and requests.
Here are some Latin American cities that filled their streets on International Women's Day.
Read here the full article published by Global Voices on 21 March 2024.
Image source: Global Voices
Excellencies,
Strengthening democratic institutions and processes is key for accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. Indeed, democracy is the political system best equipped to achieve these goals. Equally, gender equality is essential for democracy, as well as for sustainable development more broadly.
According to International IDEA's Global State of Democracy Indices, levels of gender equality are higher in democracies than in non-democratic regimes. The reasons for this are many. Relative to other forms of government, democracies provide more equal access to political power; produce more inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making; and develop more effective, accountable, and transparent institutions, with lower levels of corruption. All of these elements are critical for the empowerment of women and girls. Data from International IDEA Global State of Democracy reports have shown that only 3% of democracies perform very poorly on gender equality measures. For authoritarian regimes, the proportion is 50%. And since we know that the achievement of not just SDG5 but the SDGs overall depends upon further progress on gender equality, this means that democracy drastically improves the likelihood of success in achieving the 2030 Agenda.
Click here to read and hear the full state published by International IDEA on 19 March 2024.
On International Women’s Day, March 8, women in major cities across Pakistan, including Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi and Multan, took to the streets for the seventh consecutive year to advocate for gender equality, justice, and safety against patriarchal norms.
Aurat March is a feminist collective that unites to speak out against discrimination and inequality. The march was attended by hundreds of women, girls, transgender people, and male allies across Pakistan.
The theme of the Aurat March was the liberation and support of Palestine, with each chapter also presenting manifestos on topics related to gender equality.
Unrest in the Islamabad March
The women marchers of Islamabad’s Aurat March carried placards with messages of solidarity with oppressed communities, such as the apartheid happening in Gaza and the forced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Balochistan, Pakistan.
Placards also highlighted women's desire to walk home safely without the fear of being harassed. This is a very common concern for women in Pakistan, as they often face sexual harassment and violence in public spaces.
Throughout the march, the women chanted slogans about Gaza, showing their support for Gaza, where over 25,000 women and children have tragically lost their lives in Israel's conflict with Gaza since October 7, 2023. The atmosphere was charged with emotion and determination as the women raised their voices for justice and equality.
However, the march faced challenges from the police and authorities.
Read here the full article published by Global Voices on 19 March 2024.
Image source: Global Voices