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Resolution 2111 (2016)
Assessing the impact of measures to improve women’s political representation
1. The Parliamentary Assembly notes
that, in spite of political commitments and legal obligations under international
equality and non-discrimination standards, women are still vastly
underrepresented in politics in most Council of Europe member States.
In almost one third of them, the proportion of women among members of
parliament does not reach 20%. Such low levels hinder the representative
nature of elected bodies. It is time to step up efforts in order
to address this issue. Whenever member States review their regulations
governing elections, they should adopt measures to promote the participation
of women that are able to have both a significant impact and be
sustainable in the longer term.
2. Electoral quotas are the most effective means of achieving
significant, rapid progress, provided that they are correctly designed
and consistently implemented. Quotas should be adapted to the electoral
system in force, set ambitious targets and be coupled with stringent
sanctions for non-compliance.
3. Accompanying measures are also needed to help women overcome
the hurdles they face in accessing and progressing in political
life. They include training and awareness-raising activities, media
time reserved for women politicians, policies to help reconcile
private life and political activities and, last but not least, legislation and
other measures in favour of more balanced sharing of family responsibilities
between women and men.
4. Political factors determining women’s participation in public
life include the electoral system; political parties and their statutes;
candidate selection criteria; positive measures such as quotas,
whether legal or voluntary; regulations; and the work of non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) and associations. The most important factor
is the enshrinement in the constitution of the principle of gender
equality, subsequently reflected in legislation and in the action
of governments and institutions.
5. Relevant social factors are the welfare system, parental leave
schemes, the sharing of care and household duties, measures to balance
work and family life and pension schemes.
6. Among the economic factors, the gender pay gap and access
to professions and careers are particularly relevant, as is the
financing of small businesses.
7. Cultural factors determine women’s ability to participate
in political life and in the economic and social development of
a country. Education and training are crucial, as they are a precondition
for acquiring the necessary skills and for eradicating the stereotypes
which still prevent the achievement of full and real parity. These
stereotypes are often related to a limited vision of women as mothers,
with the role of homemaker.
8. For women who are active in politics, access to the media,
representation and media time allocated during electoral campaigns
are crucial elements, as is campaign funding.
9. These elements should not be considered separately, as they
are in fact closely intertwined. The right approach to achieving
full gender equality in political life is a global, holistic one,
encompassing quantitative and qualitative measures with a gender
perspective in all areas of society.
10. Progress in the area of women’s political representation has
been achieved, in particular by means of reforms introducing 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. These constitutional rights are aimed at removing discrimination
on grounds of gender or any other discrimination limiting equal
citizenship. Provisions on political and civil rights for women
in various constitutions are essential because they pave the way
for gender equality and for equal citizenship and are the foundation
for more specific action for equality.
11. The electoral system has an impact on women’s political representation.
Even if quotas are not applied, various electoral systems will in
themselves work differently when it comes to the representation
of women. Systems that are entirely or partially based on proportional
representation appear to be more effective in promoting the election
of female candidates than plurality/majority systems based entirely
on single-member constituencies.
12. The Assembly reiterates that political parties have a crucial
role to play in improving women’s political representation. As they
are in charge of submitting electoral lists and supporting the candidates,
political parties are gatekeepers of elected positions and their
choices determine to a large extent the final outcome of elections as
concerns gender-balanced representation.
13. The media are also key players in determining the visibility
of candidates and the general image of women. They should avoid
perpetuating gender stereotypes, which are a barrier to the access
of women to political life. They should also guarantee fair and
proportionate coverage to political candidates based on gender quotas.
14. The Assembly underlines the importance of the gender dimension
in election observation missions. It is committed to promoting this
dimension with its international partner organisations in the framework
of election observation missions both concerning the composition
of missions, which should be gender balanced, and the observation
reports which should systematically include a specific focus on
women’s participation in all stages of the electoral process.
15. In the light of these considerations, the Assembly calls on
the Council of Europe member and observer States, as well as partners
for democracy, to spare no effort to increase women’s political
representation. Recognising the positive effect of the implementation
of parity, they should, in particular:
15.1. consider introducing the principle of parity into their
constitution or into their electoral legislation;
15.2. with regard to quotas and other positive measures:
15.2.1. include, if possible, in the legislation on the functioning
of political parties regulations on the nomination of candidates
aimed at ensuring equal gender representation;
15.2.2. introduce applicable sanctions for non-compliance with
positive measures, such as the rejection of lists of candidates;
ensure that independent bodies such as electoral courts or commissions
supervise the implementation of quotas and other positive measures
and apply sanctions; allocate adequate financial and human resources
to ensure the proper functioning of relevant bodies;
15.2.3. attempt to introduce electoral legislation based on strict
placement mandates or pairs of candidates of the opposite gender;
15.2.4. regularly monitor the impact of the implementation of
quotas and other positive measures aimed at increasing the political
representation of women and propose relevant recommendations;
15.2.5. encourage political parties to ensure transparency in
procedures for the selection of candidates and enhance women’s representation
through gender-balanced candidate nomination boards and internal
decision-making bodies at all levels;
15.2.6. encourage political parties to enhance women’s participation,
including through women's and men’s associations, capacity-building
efforts and mechanisms to support women in campaign financing;
15.3. with regard to accompanying measures:
15.3.1. encourage
parliaments and other elected bodies to adopt measures to reconcile
their activities with the private life of members, such as compatible
session and voting times, and childcare services;
15.3.2. promote training and awareness-raising activities on gender
equality targeting politicians irrespective of their gender; encourage
political parties and other organisations to provide training for
women politicians;
15.3.3. consider introducing incentives to increase awareness
of women in politics among the media, both quantitatively and qualitatively,
in order to ensure fair coverage of women in politics in the media;
15.3.4. ensure that part of the public funding of political parties,
when applicable, is reserved for activities aimed at promoting women’s
participation and political representation and guarantee transparency
in the use of the funds;
15.4. with regard to electoral management and observation:
15.4.1. ensure that electoral commissions apply provisions on
gender equality in the electoral process and involve them in the
legislative process when reviewing electoral legislation;
15.4.2. strengthen co-operation with international election observation
missions as regards the participation of women in the electoral
process and provide them with comprehensive information and gender-disaggregated
data;
15.5. with regard to research and data collection:
15.5.1. promote
research and data collection on women’s participation in political
life at national, regional and local levels;
15.5.2. promote the collection of gender-disaggregated statistical
data by electoral management bodies and relevant administrations;
15.5.3. regularly assess the impact of national legislation and
policies aimed at increasing women’s political participation and,
when needed, propose the relevant amendments;
15.5.4. collect, by means of surveys and research, data on the
way in which men and women vote in order to identify, analyse and
assess how men and women support candidates of their own gender;
15.6. with regard to civil society:
15.6.1. recognise
the role of civil society and involve NGOs in designing, promoting
and monitoring measures to increase women’s political representation,
particularly as concerns awareness-raising campaigns, training activities
and monitoring of the implementation of these measures;
15.6.2. encourage and support NGOs involved in the area of elections
to monitor and report on women’s participation in the electoral
processes.
16. The Assembly supports the principle of gender parity, which
represents a further step beyond positive measures and the ultimate
goal in political representation. Consistent enforcement of such
a principle requires the State to go beyond positive measures and
ensure equal representation of women and men in elected bodies and
other institutions at all levels.