Women's Leadership
Today, I’d like to reflect on why Southeast Asia stands out in the global history of gender, for pioneering female political and spiritual leadership; how job-creating economic growth, urbanisation and universities are the major contemporary drivers of gender equality; and how development cooperation can promote gender equality.
If you were to invent a time machine, where would you go to avoid gender discrimination? Pre-Christian Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, Central Asia and East Asia were all patrilineal and patrilocal. Survival and solidarity were rooted in clans, which were governed by men. Sons were celebrated as scions of the family line; heralded as providers and protectors. Daughters were merely temporary: they married out and moved away.
Since patrilineal societies trace descent down the male line, they usually care about paternal certainty and legitimate biological heirs. Virginity, chastity and cloistering were all idealised. In Ancient Greece, women were seen as inferior and ideally secluded. In public discourse, women’s names were not uttered. Men gained honour by providing for their families and keeping their wives at home.
Click here to read the full article published by Devpolicy on 8 December 2023.
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A noteworthy trend is emerging in Indian democracy, where women are choosing to participate in the electoral process. As the percentage of women voters rises across India, it is yet to be seen how future elections will be impacted.
New Delhi: In recent times, virtually every political party in India has included a dedicated section in its election manifesto, pledging to engage and attract female voters. Does this signal a significant shift in Indian society?
Traditionally, like in many South Asian societies, it was believed that women's electoral choices were heavily influenced by male family members, such as grandfathers, fathers, or husbands. Voting decisions were typically made by men within the family or local community leaders.
However, a noteworthy trend is emerging – an increasing number of women are actively participating in the electoral process. In the recently concluded elections in the state of Rajasthan, where women in rural areas often remain behind veils, the female voter turnout exceeded that of males, with 74.72 percent of women casting their votes compared to 74.53 percent of men.
Click here to read the full article published by The Friday Times on 7 December 2023.
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Belfast, Northern Ireland – Northern Irish academic and activist Monica McWilliams says it has taken 25 years for women to be recognised for their roles in bringing peace.
A co-founder of the Women’s Coalition political party and delegate at the multiparty talks that drove forward Northern Ireland’s peace process in the 1990s, she was also elected to the first regional power-sharing assemblies that were established by the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
Al Jazeera interviewed McWilliams at the recent One Young World 2023 summit in Belfast, on the key role women played in the peace process and unfinished work of the Agreement.
Click here to read the full article published by Al Jazeera English on 1 December 2023.
Image by AI Jazeera English
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Governance in Africa is undergoing an upheaval – the kind that is people-driven, and more recently and unfortunately, army driven.
These are trying times for democracy globally. From civilian threats against democratic processes in the United States in January 2021, to the recent combatant takeover of Gabon’s Government.
But democracy remains the most popular means of governance among Africans. Protection of democracy calls for us all to reject coups unequivocally, and counter harmful narratives that democracy could be traded off for good governance.
Click here to read the full article published by The East African on 1 December 2023.
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Previous work suggests that observing women officeholders increases women’s political ambition. Yet, jumps in women’s representation in the United States’ “Years of the Woman”—following the Anita Hill testimonies and the election of Donald Trump—are linked to women’s exclusion from political decision-making. Drawing on focus groups with prospective women candidates, we theorize that exclusion when combined with a gendered policy threat increases women’s political ambition. Using survey experiments replicated across different samples, we show that women who read about an all-male city council poised to legislate on women’s rights report increased ambition compared with their pretreatment ambition levels and to women in other treatment groups. Women’s increased sense of political efficacy drives these results. When women’s rights are not under discussion, men’s overrepresentation does not move (or even depresses) women’s ambition. Seeing the policy consequences of their exclusion causes some women to seek a seat at the table.
Click here to read the full article published by the American Political Science Association on 30 November 2023.
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Gender quotas have successfully brought women to positions of political power. But the question remains: how and why do they influence women’s political participation, especially in societies where entrenched patriarchal norms serve as barriers, both within political parties and households? In a recent study published in the American Political Science Review, Tanushree Goyal delves into the world of women politicians in local politics and uncovers their profound impact on reshaping the political landscape, notably in lowering gender-based barriers both within political parties and households.
Click here to read the full article published by the American Political Science Association on 28 November 2023.
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