Political Representation of Women

Context

Over the years, the representation of women in political spheres has seen significant progress. But, this progress has been uneven, and there’s still much work to be done.

About

  • Women’s equal participation and leadership in political and public life are vital to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
  • However, facts display that women are underrepresented in any respect of decision-making worldwide and that reaching gender parity in political life is far off.

Women in National Parliaments

  • Only 26.9% of Parliamentarians in single or lower houses are women, up from 11% in 1995.
  • Only six nations have 50% or extra women in Parliament in single or lower houses: Rwanda (61%), Cuba (56%), Nicaragua (54%), Andorra (50%), Mexico (50%), New Zealand (50%), and the United Arab Emirates (50%).
  • A further 22 countries have reached or surpassed 40%, including 13 nations in Europe, 5 in Africa, 4 in Latin America and the Caribbean, and one in Asia-Pacific.
  • Globally, there are 21 States in which women account for less than 10% of parliamentarians in single or lower houses, which include two lower chambers without a woman in any respect.
  • At the contemporary rate of development, gender parity in countrywide legislative bodies will not be accomplished before 2063 (some other 40 years).

Women in Local Government

  • Data from 141 countries display that women represent more than three million (35.5%) of elected members in local deliberative bodies.
  • Only 3 nations have reached 50%, and a further 22 nations have more than 40% women in local government.

Women in Indian Politics

  • The share of women Members of Parliament (MPs) in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of India’s Parliament) remained very low—between 5% and 10%—until 2004.
  • It marginally elevated to 12% in 2014 and presently stands at 14% in the 18th Lok Sabha.
  • State Legislative Assemblies fare even worse, with a national average of around 9% women representatives.
  • The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments of the 1992-93, provided for one-third reservation for women in Panchayats and Municipalities.
  • However, attempts between 1996 and 2008 to provide comparable reservation within the Lok Sabha and assemblies were unsuccessful.

Expanding Participation in India

  • 106th Constitutional Amendment: It reserves one-third of all seats for women in Lok Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies, and the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, together with the ones reserved for SCs and STs.
    • It shall come into impact based on the Delimitation Exercise after the relevant figures of the first Census carried out after the graduation of this act is published.
    • Census is overdue because 2021 and ought to be carried out without any further postponement to make sure that this reservation is carried out beginning with the overall elections in 2029.
    • India ranks 143 in the list of nations within the ‘Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments’ currently posted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, a global organisation for national parliaments.
    • Naam Tamilar Katchi, a State party in Tamil Nadu, has been following a voluntary quota of 50% for women applicants in the last 3 preferred elections.
  • Intersectionality Matters: It’s important to apprehend that women aren’t a homogenous organization. Their identities intersect with other elements (which includes caste, magnificence, religion, and ethnicity), influencing their political representation.
    • Ensuring that women from various backgrounds have a voice in politics is essential for genuine representation.
  • Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action: Balanced political participation and energy-sharing among men and women in decision-making is the world over agreed goal set in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

Conclusion and Way Forward

  • Women exhibit political leadership via working across party strains through parliamentary women’s caucuses — even within the most politically combative environments — and through championing troubles of gender equality, which include the elimination of gender-based violence, parental leave and childcare, pensions, gender-equality legal guidelines, and electoral reform.
  • While development has been made, the street to equitable political representation for women stays difficult.
  • Advocacy, policy changes, and societal shifts are vital to create a more inclusive and representative political landscape.

UPSC Mains Practice Question

Q. Discuss the desirability of greater representation to women in the higher judiciary to ensure diversity, equity and inclusiveness. (2021)

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