NEW DELHI: Advocating quotas for
greater political participation of women throughout the world, a Unicef report
says that it has proved to be an effective method for women’s empowerment. The
report’s conclusions come at a time when the UPA-led government has all but
pushed the women’s reservation Bill into cold storage.
According to the Unicef’s ‘State of the World’s Children
Report 2007’, women account for only 1 out of 6 national
parliamentarians.
However, the report notes that of the 20 countries with
the largest number of women in Parliament, 17 countries are using quota in some
form or the other.
The results from
India are an indicator. Due to reservation in panchayats, representation of
women is one-third at the local legislatures but women members account for only
10% in the Parliament. Data on women’s representation in the Lok Sabha accounts
for barely 8.3%, much lower than the other Asian giant China (20.3%) and
Pakistan (21.3%). In fact, representation has declined from 9.6% in 1999 to 8.3%
in 2004, in Lok Sabha.
The report
says that quotas could be in the form of gender quota system (to ensure that
women constitute at least a critical minority), legal quotas that can be
mandated through the country’s constitution or voluntary party quotas.
Quoting the Inter-Parliamentary
Union, the report says that as a result of the introduction of quotas, women’s
representation has increased throughout the world. For instance, Rwanda’s rank
has increased from 24th place in 1995 to first place in 2003, in terms of
women’s representation. Afghanistan, that had been unranked as women were denied
the right to vote under Taliban regime, now stands in the 25th position.
Women’s involvement in politics —
whether local or national — can help advance legislation that is more focussed
on women, children and families. "When women lack a voice in politics, powerful
advocates for children remain unheard," the report says.
But it also admits that quotas are not a panacea. "To be
effective, quotas have to match the electoral system of a country; unless they
do, and unless commitments are reinforced by a political system in which rules
matter and failure to comply carries consequences, the role of quotas is merely
symbolic," the report says.
The
report lays down seven milestones to achieve gender parity: education,
financing, legislation, legislative quotas, women empowering women, engaging men
and boys, and improved research and data.
