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.
Since the foundation of the United States, of the thousands upon thousands of citizens who have served in elected office, just 23 are Native Americans; this is at every level of government outside tribal lands.
It may not have occurred to you, but 85 per cent of Canadians now have a woman as premier. Only five smaller provinces -- the three Maritimes plus Manitoba and Saskatchewan -- don't.
Rwanda's parliament is now almost two-thirds female, while Malawi, Liberia and Senegal have women at the helm. Western feminists, take note.
The latest round of national head-scratching about why there aren't more women in politics makes me want to poke out my own eyes with a rusty toasting fork.
For the first time in Habitat Toronto history, over 35 female politicians, from all levels of government, will set aside their political differences and come together to help build six Habitat homes in support of the 2013 Women Build.
The Lib Dems could introduce positive discrimination to redress the party's gender and ethnic imbalance, one of its cabinet ministers has said.
High-profile mayoral elections this year have already proved that the steps to City Hall remain steep for female candidates.
The National Party Women’s Caucus paid tribute to New Zealand’s first National Party Member of Parliament, Dame Hilda Ross, at an event held last night in her honour. The Party also holds a Memorial Fund in her name.