Skip to main content

Parliaments and Representatives

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.

November 29, 2012
Rwanda: African Women Lawmakers Want Higher Representation

African women lawmakers on Wednesday robustly pushed for strategies that will see more women supported to assume leadership roles on the continent.

Event

November 27, 2012
Trinidad and Tobago: Speaker wants law enforced to stop violence against women

SPEAKER Wade Mark yesterday called for the enforcement of legislation to curb instances of violence against women.

November 27, 2012
Australia: Gender Equality Bill Passes Through Parliament

New legislation supporting gender equality in the workplace has passed through the both houses of Federal Parliament.

November 27, 2012
Malaysia: Ban on sexist remarks in parliament

Malaysian lawmakers on Tuesday approved a ban on sexist remarks in parliament after a number of cases in which male MPs in the mostly Muslim country have drawn anger with their comments on the floor.

November 25, 2012
India: BJP lists 30 new faces, women, youth
The list of BJP nominations declared for the first phase of Gujarat Assembly polls includes 30 new faces even as many sitting legislators have been retained as part of continuity.

 

 

November 25, 2012
Bhutan: Moving beyond token numbers

Democracy can legitimize itself in the true sense of the word and spirit only through equal political representation of women.

November 25, 2012
Japan: Despite economic need, women continue to be underrepresented

n next month's general election, politicians — nearly all of them men — will make promises on what they will do to fix the economic morass, but very few of them will mention the role of women in the workforce.

November 23, 2012
Isreal: Livnat: Likud should have woman near top of list

There must be more women in the Knesset, the cabinet, and near the top of the Likud’s Knesset list, Culture and Sport Minister Limor Livnat said on Thursday, three days ahead of Likud’s primary.