Improving Women's Representation in the Pacific
Improving the representation of women in political leadership is an issue that cuts across all of CDI's work program. CDI's focus region of Southeast Asia and the South Pacific has one of the world's lowest levels of female representation in parliament. The figures are stark: of CDI's six target countries of Indonesia, East Timor, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, only East Timor has more than 20 percent women in parliament, and the South Pacific in particular has the lowest levels of female representation in the world, with most countries having only a handful of female MPs.
CDI puts great emphasis on issues of gender equity in all our activities, particularly our core mandate of strengthening political parties and parliaments, and puts considerable effort into increasing the participation of women in these activities. This emphasis has been enhanced with a number of specific recent initiatives on the representation of women in new democracies:
Political Party Development
CDI's inaugural Political Party Development course (PPD) included a special session on women in political parties. The PPD course was designed to provide senior political party officials from the Southeast Asia - South Pacific region with the skills and capacity to strengthen their parties and party systems, with the objectives being improved governance and more stable democracies. As part of this, course participants met with a range of female political leaders from across the Australian political spectrum including Tanya Plibersek MP, Teresa Gambaro MP, and Senator Rachel Siewert at the federal level, and Karin MacDonald MLA, Mary Porter MLA, and Jacqui Burke MLA at the Territory level. The course also included a special session on women in politics featuring presentations from Penny Reader Harris from the Liberal Party of Australia and Tanya Pilbersek from the Australian Labor Party, on the role of women in their respective party organisations.
CDI & the Office of Women
Designed and implemented by the Australian Government’s Office for Women (OfW), a side program to CDI’s PPD was held in which two female participants from PNG - Joyce Grant and Monica Hasimani - were included in meetings with government ministers and senior officials in Canberra and Sydney. This activity was designed to extend the participants' awareness of, and access to, a range of individuals, organisations and networks in Australia that can provide formal and informal assistance for their work as party leaders in PNG. These meetings also enabled Joyce and Monica to share their experiences with Australian parliamentarians, political parties and others who gained a deeper understanding of the issues and challenges women face in their work with their political parties in PNG.
Gender Quotas in Indonesia
In the 2nd of CDI's new Policy Papers on Political Governance, Indonesian scholar Wahida Zein Br Siregar discussed the challenges to women's political representation in Indonesia. In 2004, Indonesia introduced a non-compulsory quota system in which political parties agreed to nominate 30 percent women in their lists of parliamentary candidates. However, the 2004 election still resulted in only a small proportion of women being elected to the national parliament. Wahida argued that the greatest obstacles to women's representation in Indonesia are found in the institutional design of electoral systems and the structure of political parties. Her paper canvassed various possible reforms which would improve the representation of women in the Indonesian national, regional and local parliaments, such as changes to the electoral systems and reforms to improve the operation of the quota system in the future.
The 8th annual CDI Pacific Parliamentary Dialogue - 'Including Everyone'
The 8th CDI Pacific Parliamentary Dialogue will provide a forum for Members of Parliament from the Pacific Island Countries, Australia and New Zealand to discuss public leadership with regional and international colleagues in a practical, non-partisan and dynamic environment. Creating personal networks among MPs and with regional institutions, the Dialogue will explore the foundations of public leadership in the Pacific Islands and thereby strengthen and enhance the political governance of Pacific Island Countries.
A feature of the event this year is a full-day's programming devoted to the theme of 'Including Everyone', which aims to explore the obstacles and opportunities of formal political representation and leadership facing women in the Pacific. This session focuses on the role of Women in political parties, parliament, and national leadership, and will include participants such as Senator Marise PAYNE - Australia, Ms Judith COLLINS MP - New Zealand, Hon O'Love Tauveve JACOBSEN MP - Niue, Ms Maryline Arnhambat ABEL, Vanua’áku Pati National Coordinator & Women’s Wing President - Vanuatu, Ms Anna PADARATH Young Women’s Officer, Fiji Women’s Rights Movement - Fiji, Ms Angela MANDIE-FILER, Women in National Government Strategy (WINGS) - PNG, Ms Joyce GRANT, General Secretary, National Alliance Party - PNG, and Ms Samantha HUNG, Gender Issues Adviser - Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
Consultation in the Region
CDI Program Manager Daniela Capaccio visited Papua New Guinea , Solomon Islands and Fiji in early October, and Vanuatu in November, for discussions with various organisations involved in promoting women in politics in the Pacific Islands. The visits were a scoping study of the initiatives that these organisations are undertaking as well as possible involvement in the 'Including Everyone' sessions that will be part of the CDI Pacific Parliamentary Dialogue to be held in Samoa in December as discussed above.
In PNG, Ms Cappacio met with representatives from many organisations including the National Alliance Party, Oxfam,
Meri Kirap Sapotim (MIKS),
Women in National Government Strategies (WINGS) - in Solomon Islands -
National Council of Women (NCW), Vois Blong Mere - In Fiji -
Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS), Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (PIANGO), Fiji Women's Rights Movement (FWRM).
In Vanuatu, Ms Capaccio held meetings with the President of the National Council of Women, Jenny Ligo and political parties, including the Vanuaáku Pati Women's Wing President, Maryline Arnhambat Abel, on work in assisting women to be more involved in the political process.
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