AA16CR16ADD1
AS (2016) CR 16
Addendum 1
2016 ORDINARY SESSION
________________________
(Second part)
REPORT
Sixteenth sitting
Thursday 21 April 2016 at 10 a.m.
Assessing the impact of measures to improve women’s political representation
The following texts were submitted for inclusion in the official report by members who were present in the Chamber but were prevented by lack of time from delivering them.
Mr ABERG (Sweden) – I thank the rapporteur for her work and commitment to this important issue, although I do not share the notion that special quotas for women are a solution to the problem. Women are not a collective and every woman that reaches the top is not per se a representative for the rest of womankind. We are individuals, and not interchangeable with each other.
As you know, Sweden is one of the most equal countries in the world. This is true as well when it comes to women's representation in the Parliament and other deciding bodies at both regional and municipal levels. Out of eight parties in the Swedish Parliament, four of them have a woman as their party leader. In my party, Moderates, which is the second largest party, forty three out of our 84 members of parliament are women. Our party leader is a woman, just like our group leader: strong and intelligent women who are chosen because of their personal abilities and not as a result of quota laws.
Rome was not built in a day, and neither was Swedish equality. Behind it lies a long tradition of the same rights for men as for women, a secular society, and excellent possibilities to education regardless of sex and economic resources. In fact, some university programmes, as for example for lawyers, doctors and economists, are dominated by young women. High participation in the workforce is also very important, as work gives both self sufficiency and self confidence. For women to have the possibility to engage themselves politically, it is more or less a prerequisite that the care for children and the elderly is developed.
I am convinced that women do not need quotas to get room in deciding assemblies. We can get elected by our own strength, because we are competent and quite simply the best suited for the assignment. I view quotas as an insult to all women who work hard to achieve success. Furthermore, quotas are a lapse from the principle of equal rights regardless of gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation.
We women are not victims who need help from specially designed rules. We are meant to tear down obstacles and create equal rules for women and men, not to advocate electoral quota. Lastly, I would like to remind you of the two most important and successful politicians in Europe, or the rest of the world for that matter: Margaret Thatcher and Angela Merkel were chosen on their own merits, because they were the best, not because of quota laws.
Ms ANTTILA (Finland) – I congratulate the rapporteur, Ms Centemero, on her excellent and important report. Unfortunately, it is true that women have reached a proportion of only 20% overall among members of parliaments. This is too little, it does not reflect the gender balance in our societies and it hinders women’s equal participation in political decision making. What should we do? In the draft resolution to this report, there are several good proposals that should be implemented as part of our national legislation.
The electoral system has an impact on women’s political representation. Even if quotas are not applied, the various electoral systems will, in themselves, work differently when it comes to the representation of women. Political parties have their own responsibility to enhance the participation of women in political life and decision making. We cannot tell the voters how to vote, but we must ensure that the choice of candidates is balanced.
I remind you of the equal constitutional rights, such as the right to vote and to be elected, the right of access to public office and other fundamental rights and freedoms such as the right to property, inheritance, marriage, citizenship etc. In Finland, only 12 % of our population had the right to vote before 1906. In 1907, we made a very dramatic reform allowing every person aged 24 or more, women and men, the right to vote in parliamentary elections. In the first parliamentary election in 1906, 19 women were elected members of parliament. They were the first elected women parliamentarians in the world. The number has been growing steadily since then, and today 83 out of 200 Finnish MPs are women.
I am very proud to say that, this year, Finland is celebrating the 110th anniversary of our universal right to vote and to be a candidate in the parliamentary elections. Finnish women are actively working with the European Women’s Lobby and other organisations to promote the realisation of women’s political rights and the enhancement of women’s participation in elections. As women, we must learn to support other women.
Ms CHRISTOFFERSEN (Norway) – Let me express my gratitude to our rapporteur for an excellent report. Women´s political representation is an important issue in many respects. I want to emphasise two aspects.
First, it is about the right to democratic representation for half of the population. Secondly, equal representation of men and women in decision-making bodies has an indisputable and important impact on the political agenda – at a local, regional, as well as national level.
The report states that electoral quotas are the most effective positive measures. I could not agree more. As a member of the Norwegian Labour Party, I have experienced this in practice. In our Articles of Association, we have a provision requiring a quota of 50:50 representation of both sexes in all internal organs, as well as on every electoral list at all levels. This illustrates one of the main points in the report – the political parties´ role as gatekeepers, or should I rather say, gate openers, to political positions.
A system of electoral quotas has its friends, as well as enemies. Nevertheless, it is a fact that quotas are the only measures with an immediate effect on female political representation. In Norway, we have seen this, both in politics and in business life, with our 40 percent quota of women on corporate boards. Once implemented, it works, if followed by sanctions. Opponents of quotas used to claim the unfairness in sacrificing an intelligent man for the benefit of a less-qualified woman. Such arguments are no longer valid. Practice has demonstrated clearly that female politicians are not at all inferior to men. Some years ago, female politicians in the Norwegian Labour Party used to wear buttons saying: “I am gender quoted, and proud of it.”
So, now to my second point: female representation matters. It is a prerequisite and a means for gaining gender equality in all aspects of society. Worldwide, history shows clearly how women have to do it for themselves. In Norway, we have seen how women have contributed to setting the political agenda, raising important matters such as contraception, self-determined abortion, reproductive health, the right to work, decent salaries, social insurance for single parents, kindergartens and parental leave, including a daddy quota, to mention but a few, all important for women’s possibilities to education, work and economic independence. And last but not the least, important for men and children as well, by women´s crucial contribution to economic growth and welfare.
Ms GUZENINA (Finland) – I am very proud to represent a country that was the first in Europe to grant its female citizens the right to vote. Finnish women were also the first in the world to be able to stand as candidates at elections. This recognition of full political rights and gender equality for women took place already 110 years ago in 1906.
The first female members of parliament in history were elected in Finland in 1907, when 19 women were sent to Finland's 200-member single-chamber parliament. Now I have 82 female colleagues – 41% of the representatives – in our Parliament. We have had governments in these millennia where female Ministers have outnumbered men. During the last ten years, Finland has had a female president and two female prime ministers. Women have also acted as ministers of foreign affairs and ministers of defence.
According to a recent study, Finns do not have many reservations about gender equality in politics. Only 5% of Finns think that we should have more male Ministers than female Ministers. But I have a strong feeling that with time this percentage will be zero.
And how has Finland managed to achieve such a high level of gender equality? It has taken a lot of consistent work and the will of all political parties in Finland over decades. There are no shortcuts. It is not a matter of one particular law or a sudden moment of awareness that hits nations simultaneously. The sooner the whole society realises that gender equality benefits everyone, the quicker the world becomes better in this sense.
Our Act on Equality between Women and Men has been in force since 1987. It has three goals: the prevention of gender discrimination, the promotion of equality and the improvement of women's status in working life. They all are of the utmost importance.
As a last point, I must emphasise that, since the first children’s daycare act in 1973, and later on its extension to be a subjective right of a child, gender equality has taken huge leaps that have borne much fruit. The equation is simple: if women are tied to domestic life and have no real possibility to attend working life and be equally represented everywhere in society, society will not flourish.
I hope the Finnish example can be of inspiration to all countries that are still taking early steps on this issue.
Ms KOBAKHIDZE (Georgia) – At the outset, I would like to express my sincere gratitude towards the respected rapporteur for her work on one of the most important issue of the modern world – improving women`s political representation. We strongly believe that democratic progress cannot be achieved without women's participation in public life.
Accordingly, it is crucial to create institutional and legal guarantees for the wide participation of women at all levels of decision making, including at executive, legislative and local government levels. Georgia has taken important steps in this direction, while envisaging financial incentives for political parties to maintain gender balance in party proportional lists. But this measure did not prove to be as efficient as expected, and the need for the introduction of compulsory quotas was put high on the agenda. In this regard, a draft law has already been initiated in our Parliament. Moreover, our parliament recently considered with the second reading legislative initiative, which aims to establish Gender Equality Councils in the municipalities.
It is also important to create party gender action plans, because such plans and their integration into the activities of the party will help to promote gender equality within the party, which is a prerequisite for raising the prospect for women's political representation.
In the same context, it is essential to challenge the gender stereotypes and make efforts to overcome prejudice that prevent women from active participation in public life. Investing in women’s economic empowerment greatly contributes to gender equality, poverty eradication and boosts economic growth. To ensure that women fully realize their economic potential, it is paramount to create an enabling environment. With this in mind, the policies of the Georgian government are focused on improving women's socio-economic conditions.
Education and professional skills are one of the key elements to women’s empowerment and their success in the public arena as well. Therefore, we aim to provide educational opportunities for women and girls by providing access to quality professional and higher education, while ensuring their financial independence.
In conclusion, let me appreciate the fact that our efforts are beginning to reap concrete results as confirmed through simple statistics, according to which, for the first time in the Georgian reality, women are appointed and elected at the top leading positions, and we will stand firm on the above-mentioned course!
Ms LOUHELAINEN (Finland) – In Finland, where I come from, women are quite well represented in the business sector and in politics. However, there is still a long way to go to achieve full gender parity.
After the parliamentary election in 2015, women make up 41.5% of the Finnish parliament. The parliamentary groups appoint members to committee seats. Women are respected by the political groups. Since 1906 we have had women in Parliament without any kind of quotas.
The Grand Committee of the Parliament deals with European Union matters and is often called "The second plenary" because it gives a mandate to ministers before European Union ministerial meetings. The Grand Committee is led entirely by women. Its Chairperson represents the conservative party, as the first vice-chair, I represent the Finns Party and the second vice-chair represents the opposition party, the Social democrats. The Speaker of Parliament is also a young woman from my political group. In Finnish protocol, she is the highest-ranking official after the President of Finland.
When it comes to the number of women on the boards of listed companies, Finland lists among the top in the European Union. The number has tripled during the last 10 years. In 2013, almost 30 percent of board members in all Finnish listed companies were women. The situation is good but far from perfect.
In principle, I am against quotas. The best person for the job, regardless of age or sex or race, should get the vacancy. All appointments should be based on professionalism and merits. Anyone, be it a man or a woman, should be able to advance in business through their own ability. However, I do believe that gender quotas might work in countries where the status of women and respect for women is not as high as in my country. In these countries, gender quotas might have a positive effect on the number of women in political representation for example.
It takes wise and strong men to have the courage to strengthen the role of women in political as well as other areas of life.
Mr NISSINEN (Sweden) – The report before us today starts out by advocating a greater role for women in society in general, and in public and political life in particular. So far so good, and we all agree with that.
But it then veers ominously into despotic territory by proposing law-based – indeed, constitutionally based quotas – and soon a 50:50 parity between men and women in elected public bodies, including in national parliaments, and presumably also in an international body such as this Assembly.
Quotas are always the wrong solution, and in elected bodies they would pose a threat to democracy itself. Women – and men – should be elected on the basis solely of their qualities and competences as perceived by voters, and not on account of belonging to a certain gender. If you have a 50/50 parity requirement, then neither the public, nor the person elected, will know for sure whether it was the quota that did it for them, or whether it was their own qualities. Voting for public office must be gender-blind!
Undeterred, the report goes even further, in calling for "accompanying positive measures" to make sure the quotas are respected, and in urging "effective sanctions" in the event of "non-compliance". What kind of police State would this be? What kind of democracy would be left?
The report also refers to a political party in my own country of Sweden, the "Feminist Initiative", which similarly has quotas and gender parity on its agenda. The Feminist Initiative has a governing board consisting of 15 members. Do you how many are men? Only two! What kind of parity is that? It is really a case, as the British say, of "the pot calling the kettle black"!
The kind of proportional electoral system we have in Sweden allows everybody – men and women, young and old – to campaign and be elected under equal conditions. Hence, no quotas are needed. If several people can be elected on a party list, voters choose the candidate they feel is the best suited, since every vote counts. Parties will attract different types of voters - and representatives - which is as it ought to be, since men and women often have different preferences. This is why quotas in politics move us away from democracy and freedom of choice. And this is why quotas are never a way forward, and why we must jointly reject their inclusion in this report, as I suggest in the amendments I have introduced together with several among you.
Baroness MASSEY (United Kingdom) – I strongly support this report. I agree that the Assembly should evaluate measures to improve women’s political representation and that there should be an analysis of the impact of measures.
On International Women’s Day every year in the United Kingdom Parliament, we have debates on aspects of women’s lives and achievements. We have had many outstanding women in British politics, and, of course, outstanding women in other countries. But the numbers succeeding is unacceptably low, and progress is slow.
Any discussion of women’s empowerment for us always starts with the Suffragettes, that brave band of women were not given the vote, they fought for the vote. I wonder what they would have thought of progress 150 years later. Our parliament is still dominated by men, but currently a quarter of the House of Lords and 30% of the House of Commons are women. There are two women Bishops. In local government, 32% of local councillors are women. In the last election, there were 1,033 women candidates – 26% of all candidates. So some progress has been made, although not enough, and not fast enough.
Girls outstrip boys in academic performance, but this does not translate into later career success. One of the biggest barriers is that women take on the largest share of caring – for children, elderly parents or partners. More than 40 years after the Equal Pay Act, the gender balance has improved, but women are still paid almost 20% less than their male counterparts. Women are often still assigned to traditional roles and expectations. Childcare has improved but not enough.
So, what is needed and what impacts can be assessed? Legislation must continue to support women in the areas I have mentioned. Quota systems are an example. Men must be willing to change, and to actively support women’s progress. Political education for all is essential, particularly focusing on the aspiration of girls. We have a programme where MPs and Peers go into schools to talk about the role of parliament and to encourage young people to be involved; we have mentors to encourage women to stand for political office; we have peer support schemes; and our political parties and local political groups have women’s sections.
But assessment of women’s success is not just about hard numbers, it is about how women are succeeding, sometimes under difficult circumstances. It may ultimately be difficult to assess the impact of individual initiatives, but they can be taken as a whole and the progress of women’s political representation measured, which I think vital.
Ms DOWNE (Canada) - Colleagues, I rise to speak about the measures in place at Canada’s federal Parliament to improve women’s political representation.
Since 1921, the year Agnes Macphail was elected to the House of Commons as Canada’s first woman Member of Parliament, women’s representation in Parliament has steadily increased. Currently, women hold 26.0% of the seats in the House of Commons and 37.5% of the occupied seats in the Senate.
Currently Canada has a gender-balanced federal cabinet, in which 50% of the ministers are women. Provincially, in 1993, Catherine Callbeck was the first women to be elected premier of a Canadian province when she won the general election in my home province of Prince Edward Island. Currently three of Canada's ten provinces are led by women.
Although this is a notable achievement for women’s representation, Canada continues to face challenges in overall representation of women amongst elected officials. The Inter-Parliamentary Union currently ranks Canada 60th overall in the world in terms of the percentage of women elected in lower chambers.
In Canada, there are no legislative measures in place to specifically increase women’s political representation. Steps taken to address gender equity are made on a voluntary basis. Some political parties' constitutions provide for gender-parity amongst the party’s highest-ranking officers.
Some parties have established special funds to help support and encourage women as candidates, providing them with financial and organizational assistance and training. A number of provincial parties also have similar funds in place. And while some political parties have announced gender-based targets for candidates, it cannot be said that any Canadian political party has adopted a formal gender quota. Meanwhile, the political parties in a number of countries around the world, such as Sweden, Norway and Germany, have had formal gender quotas in place for years, even decades.
Increasing women’s political representation is an important goal. It is widely accepted that women legislators raise distinctive concerns and priorities and play an important role. Furthermore, women in politics can act as role models and mentors to other women who wish to enter the political realm.
Ms O'CONNELL (Canada) - Colleagues, the active participation of women in our parliaments is a central feature of an effective, sustainable and legitimate democratic system.
In the recent Canadian federal election, women composed 33% of the candidates from the five principal parties. Once the ballots were counted, women had won 26% of the seats in the House of Commons. This represents the highest proportion of female candidates and female Members of Parliament in Canada’s history. Furthermore, in November 2015, Canada’s Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, appointed the first federal cabinet comprising equal numbers of women and men.
While I celebrate Canada’s progress, there remains work to be done both at home and internationally to improve women’s participation in politics. The reality is that most parliaments today still fall below the widely recognized 30% benchmark that, according to the United Nations, ensures a critical mass of women in parliament.
As parliamentarians, we must not forget that women remain underrepresented at other levels of government. For example, in Canada, at the municipal level, women represent only 18% of mayors and 28% of councillors. I am particularly passionate about women’s participation in municipal politics. Before I became a Member of Parliament, I was elected to three terms to the city council of Pickering, Ontario, and I served as the city’s deputy mayor.
I was first elected when I was 23 years old. When I decided to run, I was told by numerous people that I was wasting my time. However, I did in fact win in 2006, taking out a well-known incumbent. I thought the hard part was over, but winning the support of voters and my community did not come with support or respect from many of my colleagues and staff. I was treated as if my victory was a fluke and would be short lived. I had to work twice as hard to be taken seriously.
I tell this story because it is a common one for many women entering politics. We must work harder to eliminate any misperceptions of women in politics. To encourage a greater number of women to participate in politics, there must be a shift in the assumptions that women are not serious or credible candidates. We can make a special effort to encourage women to run for office. As parliamentarians, we have a responsibility to increase women’s leadership at all levels of politics.