Democracy and the equal participation of men and women in the political arena are closely intertwined. No parliament or any decision-making body can claim to be representative without the participation of both men and women. As stated in the Universal Declaration on Democracy adopted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Member Parliaments in 1997, "The achievement of democracy presupposes a genuine partnership between men and women in the conduct of the affairs of society in which they work in equality and complementarity, drawing mutual enrichment from their differences."
Recent years have seen a steady increase in the number of women in parliament, though the world average of less than 22 percent remains far from the goal of parity between women and men. The election of women to the highest positions of state and government in several countries has also contributed to the changing face of politics.
While the road to election is a difficult one, the challenges for women do not stop there. Once women enter parliament or other bodies, they are faced with many new challenges. Parliament is traditionally a male-oriented domain where the rules and practices have been written by men. It is, therefore, an ongoing challenge to transform parliament into a gender-sensitive environment, to ensure that actions are gender-sensitive and to guarantee that gender is mainstreamed throughout the legislature.
African legislatures have been urged to use their legislative and political powers to enact and enforce laws that will dismantle entrenched barriers to women’s participation in politics.
THE recent election results in Bangladesh show that, while women are at the forefront, their presence is not translating into power. This is not a gender issue; it is a democracy issue.
Morocco’s electoral system has introduced new measures aimed at increasing women’s representation in Parliament and expanding their role in the creation of political parties ahead of the Sept. 23 elections, according to Morocco’s Press Agency (MAP).
Women make up roughly half of Israel’s population, but as the country heads toward its next election, their representation in national politics appears to be moving backward.
Women in Power: Fighting for Democracy in an Age of Authoritarianism explores the connections between the current wave of democratic backsliding and the stalling of women’s political leadership after decades of steady gains.
The Democratic Association of Moroccan Women (ADFM) announced on Tuesday the launch of a «barometer of women’s political representation», designed to assess parties’ commitment to genuine equality.
As South Sudan prepares for a defining moment in its democratic transition, another transformation is unfolding – not in campaign rallies or political negotiations, but inside the Parliament.
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