Tuvalu’s zero-women Parliament, a “graphic error” in Australia, a first in Pakistan, and much more: All about women in politics this month
#WomenLead (Issue 147): Your monthly round-up on women in politics
Hello, and welcome to the February edition of #WomenLead!
We know 2024 is set to be the super election year, so expect nothing less but super-packed editions of your favourite newsletter on all things #womeninpolitics. This edition has election updates from Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Tuvalu, and other political updates from Hungary, Malaysia, UK and a lot more!
In case you missed last month’s edition, you can read it here.
Election Watch
Tracking women among candidates and winners
🇹🇻 TUVALU: Not a single woman was elected to Tuvalu’s Parliament in the January election. It’s not that Tuvalu was faring too well on women’s representation before the polls – the outgoing Parliament had only one female MP, and just one woman contested the 2024 polls, data from the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) shows.
🇵🇰 PAKISTAN: Maryam Nawaz Sharif has become the Chief Minister of the province of Punjab, after winning an election that was boycotted by the main opposition. This is the first time a woman has become a Chief Minister of any province in the country. Maryam is the daughter of the country’s former PM, Nawaz Sharif.
🇮🇩 INDONESIA: On Feb 14, general elections were held in Indonesia to elect representatives across the political spectrum – the President, VP, MPs and representatives to regional and local bodies. Three pairs contested for the top two roles, and all six were men. The situation is better among candidates running for Parliamentary seats, thanks to a law that mandates that 30 percent of candidates be women. While that helps, political participation for women remains challenging.
🇮🇷 IRAN: On Mar 01, Iran held legislative elections to elect the next set of 290 members of the Parliament. In the previous polls of 2020, women made up only 9.3 percent of all candidates and 5.9 percent of those elected, IPU data shows. This is the first election after the tragic death of Mahsa Amini in custody after she was arrested by the country’s morality policy for not wearing the hijab properly. Amini’s death sparked widespread outrage and protests led by women and young men. At 12 percent, the share of women who contested the 2024 polls was marginally higher – will that translate to some reduction in the gender gap in Parliament? We’ll find out soon!
Leaders
Updates about women leading countries, states and movements
On Feb 10, Katalin Novak stepped down as Hungary’s President. Novak’s decision comes after she pardoned a man who was imprisoned for his role in enabling child abuse at a state-run children’s home. The man in the picture was the deputy director of a children’s home, and was found guilty of forcing children to retract their allegations of sexual abuse against the director of the home. Novak granted clemency to the man along with others as part of Pope Francis' visit to Hungary in April 2023.
The decision came to light only recently, leading to criticism, protests and calls for Novak to resign. In wake of these, Novak apologised and announced her decision to quit her position during a live telecast. Judit Varga, the former minister of justice who approved the pardon, has also resigned from her current role.
“I made a mistake … Today is the last day that I address you as a president,” Novak said in a speech broadcast on state television.
In Russia, following the shocking death of her husband in prison, Alexei Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya finds herself on the centre of Russia’s political stage. While her husband was alive, Yulia had maintained that she wanted to be a politician’s wife, not a politician herself. Read more about her and her political journey in The Guardian and in the Financial Times.
On-the-job Updates
Spotlighting women’s experiences in political office
An Australian news channel used a doctored image of a female politician in one of its broadcasts. Georgie Purcell, a member of the Victoria state legislature, took to social media to share the ordeal:
“I endured a lot yesterday,” she wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“But having my body and outfit photoshopped by a media outlet was not on my bingo card. Can’t imagine this happening to a male MP.”
The outrageous move by the channel rightly angered many in the country, and was criticised by many. The news channel later apologised for the “graphic error”, very conveniently blaming the software Photoshop for the same. However, a spokesperson from Adobe (which owns Photoshop) clarified to the BBC that “any changes to this image would have required human intervention and approval."
In the United Kingdom, three women members of Parliament have been given bodyguards and chauffeur-driven cars to ensure their safety after a risk assessment was carried out, The Sunday Times reported. The names of the MPs have been kept anonymous to protect their safety. Read more here.
Policy Watch
Because policy shifts matter
In Malaysia, MP Rozaina Adam, has submitted a proposal to amend the Constitution with the aim to set a 33 percent quota for women in Parliament beginning 2029. Women currently comprise only 13.5 percent of MPs in the country. Separately, another MP, Ali Azim submitted a proposal to ensure a minimum number of women among candidates. Women currently comprise only 13.5 percent of the MPs in the country, and the country is ranked 150th on IPU’s rankings of countries based on women’s parliamentary representation.
Reading List
The more one learns, there’s only more to learn
“Mexico is for mujeres: The next Mexican president will be a woman”: Ms. Magazine
“Hitting the glass ceiling: Women and politics in China”: Modern Diplomacy
“Plurality of Israelis think electing more women will harm politics — survey”: The Times of Israel
“The Biden campaign is launching a nationwide effort to win the women’s vote. Jill Biden will lead it”: Associated Press
“Burundi’s quota for women in politics has had mixed results, but that’s no reason to scrap it”: The Conversation
Community Watch
A quick round-up from the community working at the intersection of gender x politics
In the USA, RepresentWomen, an organisation working on improving women’s political representation, released a research brief on breaking barriers for Black women candidates. It is available here.
IDEA International will co-host a session at the upcoming CSW68 to discuss women’s political participation and empowerment in post-coup Myanmar. Read/register here.
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Disclaimer: #WomenLead is a non-partisan newsletter produced in a personal capacity, and does not reflect any institutional affiliation/opinion. In case of any questions, please drop in a message at womenlead.project@gmail.com