Women’s Political Participation in the EE and CIS

1. Women’s Political Participation in the EE and CIS Emerging Themes and Issues Wendy Harcourt

2. Geopolitical Map of Women’s Political Participation in EECIS Region in 1989

3. Geopolitical Map of Women’s Political Participation in EECIS Region in 1994

4. Geopolitical Map of Women’s Political Participation in EECIS Region in 2008

5. The UNDP Report on Women and Government in the EECIS to be published in 2009 • will analyze the causes for women’s low political participation and propose concrete actions to address them • The Report will build on desk top research and surveys as well as UNDP Roundtables held in Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, Poland, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia tgether with an International Conference to be held on ‘Women and Governance’ in Istanbul in December 2008.

6. Aims of the Report • to identify processes that leading to women’s full and equal political participation in local, subregional and national institutions; • to increase state capacity to implement gender equality legislation; and • to build the commitment and cooperation of government with civil society in order to produce greater gender equality and ensure participation of women in public life, including in decision making processes, in line with international commitments and national legislation. • to provide a tool for women in the EE CIS region to advocate for their full and equal participation in political sphere as a prerequisite for gender equality and sustainable development.

7. Women’s political Participation in EECIS Region 1989, 1994 and 2008

8. Women’s Political Participation in EU, Accession Countries, and Associated Countries, 1989, 1994 and 2008

9. What do the figures show? • marked reduction in women’s political representation across EE CIS region after 1989 during the transition period. • women in the region have been slowly increasing their share of political posts during the last decade, due to gender quotas and also because of the adoption of acquis communautaire (the body of EU legislation). • EU has influenced the development of equal opportunities legislation by requiring accession countries to implement the acquis communautaire and most CEE countries now have non-discrimination clauses in their constitutions and statutes to deal with equality issues. • The EU accession process can be perceived in both accession and candidate countries as an opportunity for advocating for the improvement of women situation. • BUT the figures do not provide the key to understand democratic processes from a gender perspective in the Region.

10. Going below the figures • gender equality and democracy depend not only on how many women are in parliament and in political decision making positions but also on the ways the state protects and respects women, particularly in relation to labour rights, gender based violence, resources for social security, credit for women, treatment of minorities, responses to migration. • patriarchal prejudices (in political parties, the media, decision making bodies etc) that linger and make it difficulty to establish adequate mechanisms in political parties to promote women and ensure the accountability of governments to women and women’s organizations. • Often when women are in political positions women’s participation in political parties is often limited to technical duties and rarely leadership roles. • Women are not perceived as real players on the political field, even to the extent women are seen as political threats to male political leadership. Mechanisms to ensure gender equality are weak • considerable differences among the countries and across sub regions due to historical, cultural and social context.

11. Thematic Area One: Political Parties: How to ensure women’s representation in political parties • Political parties are key spaces where women can be brought into the political process at different levels, however it is proving complex to ensure women’s effective participation and leadership. Going below the figures the Report will examine how women are engaged in political parties, what mechanisms are operating in the region and how best to organize for greatest effect in decision making at both local and national levels.

12. Some questions for Theme One: • At national and local levels, how democratic and transparent is women’s inclusion in decision making? How are women overcoming barriers to women’s political participations inside political parties? • How have parties introduced programmes for women’s rights and gender equality? What is the actual commitment of political parties for a gender policy (women’s wings, programmes etc)? What have been the guarantees for implementation? • Do quotas work? What are the successes? What are the hindrances? Can women work across political parties for gender equality? When it is tried does it work? Is it a good strategic method. (IE Do women’s councils/women’s caucauses work? Are their agendas mainstreamed?

13. Thematic Area Two. Legislation: Acquiring and implementing gender equity Legislation • Moving from words to action demands solid gender equality legislation, the EU accession is providing an opportunity for accession countries, and there are now several examples of innovative legislation in place in the region. The Report will examine not only where legislation has been drawn up but also how effective it has been, what strategies have been used to put legislation in place and try to establish the difference such legislation has meant for gender equality democratic participation of women in the region.

14. Some questions for Theme Two: • How effectively is equal opportunity legislation being drawn up and being implemented? • What are the most important gender equality mechanisms to have in place (including legislation on domestic violence and public care systems ) • What opportunities are being created in the EU accession process and the acquis communautaire? • What opportunities for the improvement of women’s situation? • Women in the region have been slowly increasing their share of political posts during the last decade, because of the adoption of acquis communautaire (the body of EU legislation) what difference has that made for women in the region?

15. Thematic Area Three. Going Beyond the Numbers : Towards a 50/50 share of political economic and social power • Do the numbers of women in political positions really indicate women’s real political participation? This is a key question underlining The Report. • What is emerging is that numbers do not indicate the level of democratic deficit in the region. There are other external factors, including a growing fundamentalism and return to traditional values. Several countries have seen a decline in women’s ability to participate not only due to lack of adequate machineries to ensure their participation but also due to other demands on women’s time, resources and energy. The Report will look below the numbers to the changing economic and social (and cultural) trends, the possibilities and difficulties women are facing.

16. Some questions for Theme Three: • What are the conditions and norms that need to change the ‘democratic deficit’ for women and put in place a gender equitable sustainable democracy? • How is the growing return to traditionalism/fundamentalism, leading to discrimination gender based violence etc. combated in the region • How are masculine norms, values and practices being broken down? • How are gender-sensitive norms, values and practices that include women and women's needs, interests and perspectives in governance put in place? • What are the resources required to ensure labour rights, social security, credit for women etc. • What are the impacts of land reform and privatization?

17. Thematic Area Four: An Enabling Environment: Building support for women’s rights and gender equality and empowerment • In building an enabling environment for women’s political participation not only women in various political positions need to be engaged but also other actors are key. The Report will look at key actors beyond the government and local women’s movement that are involved and strategically need to be more involved in any regional programme for political participation, gender equality and empowerment: media, private sector and international donors. Three other important factors in the region is how great political participation for women can be strengthened through a link to the youth movement, the environment movement and minorities rights movements.

18. Some questions for Theme Four: • How is mainstream media engaged as a critical factor in changing discriminatory information and images of women. • How are trade unions engaged in ensuring more equal participation of women? • How are the private sector, international donors and ‘international’ (western) women’s groups work engaged in building an enabling environment in the region? • How are women’s civic groups engaging with the youth movement? • And in the work towards gender equality how is the treatment of women in minority groups taken into account?

19. Thematic Area Five: Civil Society working at local, national and regional level for women’s political participation • Civil society and strong women’s movements are key to ensuring women are fully involved in political democratic processes. The Report will focus on women’s movements engaged in lobbying for greater political participation and how governments can support the effective networking of women’s organizations at the national and regional level (across political party lines) as well as establishing clear agendas for gender equality and empowerment in the region. Such an agenda includes working with the agreements already made in Beijing, CEDAW, the MDGs and other agendas confirmed through UN processes as well as support given to women and democratic processes in the Region by organizations such as Open Society etc.).

20. Some questions for Theme Five • How are women’s organizations incorporated into political processes at local and national levels? What is working, what can be improved? • How are women’s organizations involved in gender equality and women’s rights issues in the region operating at local, national and regional level? • How are governments collaborating with women’s movement and women’s activist groups when addressing policy issues regarding women’s political participation? What is working, what can be improved? • How are women’s organizations incorporated into political processes at local and national levels? What is working, what can be improved?