Creating change

During any election season there are many discussions on how Sri Lanka’s political culture can be changed and seasonally there is usually an effort to get the public to vote more women in. This week Sri Lanka celebrated the appointment of the world’s first prime minister 60 years ago and therefore it seems fitting to return to this issue once again. 

The numbers are known and they are dismal. Even though the former Government introduced legislation to create a quota system for women, their leadership has not gained national attention or importance. With Parliamentary Elections around the corner, it is important that the public understand their responsibility and consider marking a preferential vote for a woman candidate from whatever party they support.

According to the last Inter-Parliamentary Union, Sri Lanka with less than 6% representation in Parliament ranks 128th out of 140 countries. Sri Lanka had only 13 women in the Parliament out of 225 seats that formed the Government before 2015 and didn’t fare much better in the last parliament either. Females represent only 4.1% of seats in the Provincial Councils (PC), and, before the change in legislation only 2.3% of seats in the Local Government (LG) bodies.

Most parties have large women’s wings but these function only to promote male candidates. Women who are genuinely interested in pursuing politics do not have their ambitions promoted through these organisations. Ironically, women have to vote overwhelmingly for candidates or parties to gain a clear majority but are rarely given the chance to represent themselves.

Of course, social attitudes, limited resources and entrenched political systems all play a role. However, in a country that has high numbers of intelligent, qualified and ambitious professionals, continued distance from the political sphere is a recipe for disaster. With few women in Parliament, it is almost impossible to make their voices heard when legislation is passed, but results are overwhelmingly felt by women. 

To make matters worse, women parliamentarians make little or no effort to promote female representation, often falling in line with entrenched practices that promote social stereotypes. They are more a part of the problem than the solution. None of the 11 women elected last time have ever spoken out or worked for women’s rights and fight shy of embracing feminism. Such retrograde behaviour has left no excuses for Sri Lanka and it is hoped that at least the next crop of women parliamentarians take up this issue more proactively.  

Rwanda has the highest representation of women in Parliament with 64%. In the South Asian region, women’s representation in Parliament was: Nepal 29.5% (35th), Afghanistan 27.7% (39th), Pakistan 27.7% (64th), Bangladesh 20% (68th), India 12% (103rd), Bhutan 8.5% (120th) and Maldives 5.9% (127th). These statics shows female representation in Sri Lanka is the lowest in the region.

Deserving women should have a chance to represent themselves in all levels of governance. This should not be seen as an ‘us against them’ battle but rather an effort to improve good governance through inclusiveness, which largely overlaps minority concerns. The last round of US elections for Congress more women were elected and they have banded together to opposite many detrimental policies proposed by the Trump administration. Sri Lanka needs to start a similar process if it wishes to see the change it so badly desires.