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Growing threats faced by women candidates undermine our democracy
Growing threats faced by women candidates undermine our democracy

As Liberal MP Pam Damoff prepares to leave politics, she joins other Canadian women MPs in warning that growing threats and harassment are driving them out of politics.

Their call adds to the voices of other politicians in Australia and the United Kingdom who caution that misogyny and threats of violence, especially on social media, have caused them to refrain from seeking re-election.

With the Canadian federal election approaching, campaigns expose politicians to increased online incivility and abuse. Nearly 19 per cent of tweets analyzed by the Samara Centre for Democracy during the 2021 campaign contained harassment.

Harassment undermines democracy and threatens the equal participation of women in politics. When women politicians don’t seek re-election, we lose key voices advocating for a more equitable future.

Despite threats to our democracy being a key theme of the ongoing federal election campaign, barely anyone is talking about the threat harassment poses.

Read here the full article published by The Conversation on 16 April 2025.

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BBC
Women's campaigners celebrate court win - but what will it change?
Women's campaigners celebrate court win - but what will it change?

The UK Supreme Court has unanimously and unambiguously backed the argument that the definition of a woman in the Equality Act should be based on biological sex.

Reading out the ruling, Lord Hodge cautioned that it should not be taken as a triumph for one group in society over another.

But there were scenes of jubilation for women's campaigners outside the Supreme Court.

Tearful hugs were exchanged and a bottle of champagne was cracked open.

The fact someone had thought to bring one along underlines that it was potentially on the cards, but For Women Scotland (FWS) still seemed shocked by the scale of their victory.

The Scottish government's argument - that sex can be changed via the gender recognition process, and that someone with a gender recognition certificate should have the protections of that sex - were dismissed.

So what does it all mean?

Read here the full article published by the BBC on 16 April 2025.

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NWHP
Damning study of online abuse of female MPs shows urgent legal reform is needed
Damning study of online abuse of female MPs shows urgent legal reform is needed

THREE KEY FACTS

  • Women MPs face increasing misogynistic, racist, and sexual online abuse, causing fear and distress.
  • The Harmful Digital Communications Act struggles with anonymous, volumetric harassment, often involving VPNs.
  • Experts recommend new regulations, similar to the EU and UK, to hold social media companies accountable.

Women MPs are increasingly targets of misogynistic, racist and sexual online abuse, but New Zealand’s legal framework to protect them is simply not fit for purpose.

Recently released research found online threats of physical and sexual violence have caused those MPs to feel fearful, anxious and distressed. Some included in the study said the harassment led to them self-censoring, using social media less often, and considering leaving politics early.

But the current legal framework is not well equipped to address the nature or volume of the online harassment aimed at MPs.

Serious online threats made by identifiable individuals can be criminal offences under the Crimes Act 1961. Similarly, the new stalking law, expected to pass later this year, will create some protection for women MPs from online harassers – as long as the stalker can be identified.

Under the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015, victims of online harassment can ask the court for protection from the person harassing them, which can include orders to stop all contact. But once again, police need to be able to identify the perpetrator.

And that is the sticking point. Online abuse is usually committed anonymously and often by perpetrators using a VPN service that encrypts internet traffic and protects their online identity.

Read here the full article published by The New Zealand Herald on 14 April 2025.

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nyt
Germany’s New Parliament Is Sworn In, but Where Are the Women?
Germany’s New Parliament Is Sworn In, but Where Are the Women?

Two days after a coalition of conservatives won Germany’s federal election last month, the governor of Bavaria took to Instagram to say the parties were “ready for political change” and posted a group picture of the likely future chancellor, Friedrich Merz, with five other leaders.

But the photo seemed to suggest that a changed Germany will look remarkably like the country of old: It shows six white middle-aged white men sitting around a table of snacks. The only apparent concession to modern sensibilities was that half of the men are not wearing neckties.

Three-and-a-half years after Angela Merkel, the only woman to serve as chancellor, retired, German national politics seem to be backsliding when it comes to gender parity. The new German Parliament, which met for the first time on Tuesday, has always been more male and less diverse than the population it represents, but the new one will be even more male and — compared with the society as a whole — less diverse than the one before it.

Only 32 percent of the 630 new lawmakers are women, a drop from 35 percent when the last Parliament was formed in 2021.

Read here the full article published by The New York Times on 25 March 2025.

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guardian
Violence and sexist harassment against female MPs ‘rife across Asia-Pacific’
Violence and sexist harassment against female MPs ‘rife across Asia-Pacific’

Sexism, harassment and violence against women are rife in parliaments across the Asia-Pacific region, according to a damning report published on Tuesday that lays bare the scale of abuse faced by women in politics.

Based on interviews with 150 female MPs and parliamentary staff across 33 countries across the region – including Australia, Mongolia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Fiji and Micronesia – the study found that 76% of MPs and 63% of staff had experienced psychological gender-based violence, with 60% of MPs saying they had been targeted online by hate speech, disinformation and image-based abuse. An equal number of women were interviewed from each country.

One in four women reported having experienced sexual violence, with more than half of the harassment against female MPs taking place on parliamentary premises and committed by male parliamentarians. Two respondents said they had been sexually assaulted.

Read here the full article publiished by The Guardian on 25 March 2025.

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abc news
Women in Asia-Pacific politics reveal alarming level of gender-based violence they face
Women in Asia-Pacific politics reveal alarming level of gender-based violence they face

Women in dozens of parliaments across the Asia-Pacific are experiencing significant levels of abuse, violence and harassment, a new report has found, with online abuse a key issue.

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) interviewed 150 female MPs and staff, finding that 76 per cent of MPs and 63 per cent of staff had experienced gender-based violence.

The women worked in parliaments in 33 countries in the region, including in Australia, China, Indonesia, Thailand, India and the Philippines.

Sixty per cent of respondents said they had been the target of hate speech, image-based abuse and disinformation online — the highest recorded by the IPU since they began studies of this kind around the world.

One in four reported having experienced sexual violence, with more than half of the incidents taking place within parliamentary grounds and committed by male MPs.

Two women reported being sexually assaulted.

IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong said violence and sexism against women in parliamentary workplaces "is a direct assault on democracy itself".

"Parliaments must be sanctuaries for healthy debate and law-making," Mr Chungong said.

Read here the full article published by ABC News on 26 March 2025.

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Women in politics: 2025
Women in politics: 2025

The “Women in politics: 2025” map, created by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and UN Women, presents new data for women in executive positions and national parliaments as of 1 January 2025. These data illustrate men’s overrepresentation in decision-making worldwide, thereby slowing down the achievement of equality between women and men in politics.

Women serve as Heads of State and/or Government in only 25 countries and make up 27.2 per cent of Members of Parliament. Globally, fewer than one in four cabinet ministers is a woman (22.9 per cent). The 2025 map shows that, while women lead important human rights, gender equality, and social protection policy portfolios, men dominate policy areas like foreign affairs, financial and fiscal affairs, home affairs, and defence.

Check here the full map by UN Women published on 12 March 2025.

 

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Publication of practical guidelines for local politicians and women interested in politics
Publication of practical guidelines for local politicians and women interested in politics

Just in time for International Women's Day on 8 March, the brochure "Democracy needs women to help shape it" is being published.

After the election is before the election. Women are still underrepresented in local politics in Saxony-Anhalt - especially in rural regions, equal participation is still a long way off. To counteract this, the municipal equal opportunities officers of the Börde and Jerichower Land districts and the independent city of Dessau-Roßlau are publishing the brochure "Demokratie braucht Frauen zum Mitgestalten. A practical guide for female local politicians in Saxony-Anhalt".

The guide is the result of the joint pilot project "Municipal Action Programme - Women in Politics" and is aimed at women who want to get involved in local politics. It provides practical tips, insights into everyday political life and encourages women to find their place in the political landscape. Interested women should not wait until shortly before the next local elections to become active - it is worth making initial contacts now and setting the course for political involvement.

The municipal equal opportunities officers will continue to campaign for more women in politics beyond the duration of the project. The guide is intended as a practical "guide" that is available both online and in printed form.

Click here for the guide "Democracy needs women to help shape it"

Article published by Landkreis Börde on 4 March 2025.

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‘We have a big body of work ahead’ – New junior minister says government is facing uphill task to attract more women into politics Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth has said the current junior and senior ministerial make-up of the new government is not reflectiv
‘We have a big body of work ahead’ – New junior minister says government is facing uphill task to attract more women into politics Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth has said the current junior and senior ministerial make-up of the new government is not reflectiv

Newly appointed Minister of State Niamh Smyth has conceded the Government has a “big body of work” ahead of it in arresting a gender divide in politics after less than a quarter of ministerial posts were assigned to women.

The Cavan-Monaghan TD was one of six women to be appointed to minister of state roles by Taoiseach Micheál Martin yesterday with the remaining 17 positions going to their male counterparts.

That followed three out of 15 full cabinet positions which went to women less than a week earlier, figures which meant just 24pc of the 38 posts which were up for grabs went to females.

Ms Smyth had been widely touted for promotion following her eye-catching performances as chair of the Oireachtas Media Committee during various RTÉ payments controversies last year.

Read here the full article published by the Irish Independent on 31 January 2025.

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Digital threats and public participation landscape assessment methodology
Digital threats and public participation landscape assessment methodology

The Transform Digital Threats and Public Participation Landscape Assessment Methodology reflects the collaboration and contribution of many people  and organizations engaged in preventing, responding to, and mitigating Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence. All sources have been cited. Contributors of individuals remain unnamed here for their confidentiality and safety.

Technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) is a global threat to health, safety, and political and economic wellbeing—not just to those who experience it, but to society as a whole. Indeed, the 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (2023) highlighted the deep impact of technological change on the empowerment of all women and girls and the ability to achieve gender equality. Nearly 40% of women globally have experienced TFGBV, with research highlighting certain groups of women that are at higher risk of attack, including women in politics, women journalists, women human rights defenders, and women in other public facing roles. This assessment centers women in politics and public life,  and the nuanced ways TFGBV threatens and impacts them. TFGBV is an increasingly prominent form of violence against women in politics and public life (VAWPP), which is defined as an “act, or threat, of physical, sexual or psychological violence that prevents women from exercising and realizing their political rights and a range of human rights.”  Much like other forms of gender-based violence (GBV), there is clear data to indicate that TFGBV is a universal problem that affects women in all their diversity regardless of socioeconomic class, educational status, religious affiliation, or other social identities. TFGBV reinforces gendered stereotypes and rigid patriarchal social norms and harms the well-being of those who experience as well as witness it. TFGBV also exacerbates other forms of harm directed at women, girls and LGBTQIA+ persons based on racialized ethnicities, caste, [dis]ability and other intersecting identities. However, TFGBV is uniquely able to amplify and persist in perpetrating harm against women and gender diverse individuals with highly visible online presence due to their occupation or activism, resulting in the systematic silencing of women in public spaces such as politics, journalism, and civic activism—a phenomena known informally as the “chilling effect.” 

Read here the full report published by the USAID funded Transform Program on September 2024.

 

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Women quit politics over feeling like office plants': study
Women quit politics over feeling like office plants': study

Women are voluntarily leaving politics not because of sexism, double standards or work-life balance, but because they feel under-utilised, according to a new study.

Historian Alexandre Dumas was commissioned to conduct the study titled “Why do women leave politics?” by the women's committee of the Cercle des ex-parlementaires de l'Assemblée Nationale after a wave of departures in 2022.

According to his interviews with 21 former elected women, they had the impression of playing the “office plant”, he explained in parliament, borrowing the famous expression of former CAQ MNA turned Conservative Claire Samson.

At her last press briefing in June 2022, Samson shocked many by declaring that MNAs were treated "like plants" in the Salon bleu and that she had personally toiled harder as a 17-year-old at Da Giovanni.

According to Dumas, Samson — who was outraged at having to ask pre-scripted questions in parliamentary committee — “perfectly illustrates the frustration provoked by the feeling of playing a ceremonial role.”

“Women who leave politics ... feel that their skills are not recognised and that they have no other use than to be present in the House to ensure a quorum, ... in other words, to play the role of 'office plant'”, Dumas wrote.

Read here the full article published by CTV News on 11 October 2024.

Image credits: CTV News

 

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To write or not to write about female politicians: Factors that influence Malaysian journalists in their news reporting
To write or not to write about female politicians: Factors that influence Malaysian journalists in their news reporting

Abstract:

The media significantly influences the formation of public opinion as well as the development and maintenance of gendered stereotypes of men and women. Given this impact, understanding gender representation is crucial for evaluating news credibility and addressing gender stereotypes. In addition, media plays a key factor in the development of democratic societies. Apparently, women are underrepresented in the news, which suggests that although they make up about half of the world's population, they are not equally represented in the reality that the news generates. Thus, this study aims to investigate factors that might influence news reporting, especially about female politicians. Adopting a qualitative approach, 11 Malaysian journalists were interviewed on their journalism practices.

Read here the full article published by the Taylor's University on 6 September 2024.

Image credits: Taylor's University

 

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