An Assignment

On
Participation of Women in Politics in South Asian Countries

COURSE TITLE: Sociology of Gender.

COURSE NO: SOC 4207.

Submitted to:

Nusrat Jahan
Assistant Professor,
Sociology Discipline,
Khulna University,
Khulna-9208

Submitted By:
Humaun Kabir Munna.
ID No: 121627
4th Year 2st Term
Sociology Discipline,
Khulna University,
Khulna-9208

Date of submission: November 20, 2016

Introduction
From the local to the global level, womens leadership and political participation are restricted.
Women are underrepresented as voters, as well as in leading positions, whether in elected
office, the civil service, the private sector or academia. This occurs despite their proven abilities
as leaders and agents of change, and their right to participate equally in democratic governance.
Women face several obstacles to participating in political life. Structural barriers through
discriminatory laws and institutions still limit womens options to run for office. Capacity gaps
mean women are less likely than men to have the education, contacts and resources needed to
become effective leaders.
As the 2011 UN General Assembly resolution on womens political participation notes,
Women in every part of the world continue to be largely marginalized from the political
sphere, often as a result of discriminatory laws, practices, attitudes and gender stereotypes, low
levels of education, lack of access to health care and the disproportionate effect of poverty on
women. Individual women have overcome these obstacles with great acclaim, and often to the
benefit of society at large. But for women as a whole, the playing field needs to be level,
opening opportunities for all (Clark et al, 1998).

South Asia Countries

South

Asia or Southern

Asia is

term

used

to

represent

the southern region of

the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan SAARC countries and, for some
authorities, adjoining countries to the west and east. Topographically, it is dominated by
the Indian Plate, which rises above sea level as Nepal and northern parts of India situated south
of the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush. South Asia is bounded on the south by the Indian
Ocean and on land (clockwise, from west) by West Asia, Central Asia, East Asia,
and Southeast Asia. The terms "Indian subcontinent" and "South Asia" are sometimes used
interchangeably (Mallik & Chowdhury, 2001).
The current territories of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, India, Pakistan,
and Sri Lanka form the countries of South Asia. In addition, with deviating definitions based
on often substantially different reasons, the British Indian Ocean Territory, Myanmar, and
the Tibet Autonomous Region are included as well. The population of South Asia is about
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1.749 billion or about one fourth of the world's population, making it both the most
populous and the most densely populated geographical region in the world. The South Asian
Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an economic cooperation organisation in
the region which was established in 1985 and includes all eight nations comprising South Asia.

Political participation of Women

Women's rights are entitlements and freedoms claimed for women and girls of all ages in many
societies. In some places these rights are institutionalized or supported by law, local custom,
and behavior, whereas in others they may be ignored or suppressed. The women's rights
movement functions in response to an inherent historical and traditional bias against the
exercise of rights by women and girls in favour of men and boys. Women's suffrage in the
United States was achieved gradually, at state and local levels, during the 19th century and early
20th century, culminating in 1920 with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United
States Constitution (Conway et al, 2005). The amendment stated, "the right of citizens of the
United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on
account of sex." Politicians responded to the newly enlarged electorate by emphasizing issues
of special interest to women-prohibition, child health, public schools, and world peace. Women
responded to these issues, but in terms of general voting, they shared the same outlook and the
same voting behavior as men.
In the United States, the National Organization for Women (NOW) was created in 1966 with
the purpose of bringing about equality for all women. NOW was one important group that
fought for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). This amendment stated that "equality of rights
under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of
sex." But there was disagreement on how the proposed amendment would be understood.
Supporters believed it would guarantee women equal treatment. But critics feared it might deny
women the right be financially supported by their husbands. The amendment died in 1982
because not enough states had ratified it. ERAs have been introduced in subsequent sessions
of Congress, but they have never been ratified. While women are generally as likely to vote in
developed countries, they are underrepresented in political positions. Women make up a very
small percentage of elected officials, both at local and national levels. In the U.S., for instance,
in the 109th Congress (2005-2007) there were only 14 female Senators (out of 100) and 70
Congressional Representatives (Siim, 1994).
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Political Participation of Women in South Asian Countries

A UN Women report looks at the state of women and their political representation in all the
countries of South Asia. The report finds that despite being guaranteed equality
constitutionally, patriarchal social structures impede political ambitions of women all over. A
recent report by UN Women called 'Country Reviews: Womens Political Participation in
South Asia' looks at the political participation of women in South Asia. Political participation,
especially in the local levels is something that is affected by numerous factors. The research
looks at filling the gap in research about women in governance, and how do factors like
economics, gender relations affect the participation of women in politics (Jahan, 1987).
The South Asian countries face issues of their own, the most being patriarchy and traditional
gender stereotypes that prevent women from entering the public sphere due to different reasons.
The research threw up many expected and some interesting results. Bangladesh for instance,
found that the functions of women have largely remained limited to the Union Parishads, due
to resistance from male colleagues and the discrimination emerging from such resistance. Also,
knowledge of women regarding financial issues of the Parishads was inadequate, which in turn
resulted in their opinions being side-lined during decision-making processes. There was also
much opposition from religious groups and violence from factions often deterred women from
participating. Bhutan on the other hand, was a place where though women enjoyed considerable
economic success and decision-making powers, political representation as still less. The
situation in Pakistan was perhaps direst. Due to the overt patriarchal set-up, political
representation was scarce among women (Niaz, 2003). Till as late as 1977, there was no
provision for women in Pakistan to be represented politically. Moreover, as the report states,
that although women are brought into political institutions, no effort is made to transform the
patriarchal nature and culture of institutions
Most South Asian countries throw up almost similar circumstances for women, poverty and
dependence on men prevent women from exploring avenues like politics. Also, lack of
education ensures these women are not taken seriously and even if they get a political office,
the culture is maintained to prevent them from making major decisions. In their sameness, the
South Asian countries have many differences as the report shows. As the reports states,
Violence in the public arena is particularly responsible for hampering their mobility and public
participation in countries such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka, due to religious protests and military
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activity in the former and the long-standing civil war in the latter that ended in 2009. Bhutan
presents an interesting case where women have enjoyed a strong position in society, especially
in the north, due to the matrilineal form of family, but this has not translated into participation
in public life. All in all, the report states a fairly obvious fact. That even though the
constitutions of these countries guarantee equality and freedom, there is a perpetuating
patriarchal set-up that prevents the women from making decisions and ensures they live in
subordination. The report looks at itself as a starting point into these issues, wherein there
should be more investigation into these aspects and more research to create more avenues for
women all around (Dahlerup, 2013).

Womens Participation in Bangladesh

The most recent elections conducted in Bangladesh in 2008 saw women form 18.55 per cent
of the strength of the current Parliament of Bangladesh, that is, 64 of the 345 members are
women. Although the reservations for women under the 1976, 1983 and 1993 ordinances
increased the representation of women in government bodies at the local level, it did not have
much bearing on their participating because their entry depended upon nominating, and later
indirect electing, because of which they lacked the support base of a constituency. This
diminished their legitimacy to govern as compared with those representatives who had been
elected by their constituencies. Moreover, the roles and responsibilities of the women on
reserved seats were left undefined by all three Acts. Even the 1997 Act did not do much to
spell out the specific roles of women, but it provided women on the reserved seats with greater
legitimacy by introducing direct elections for them (Schuler et al, 2010). However, these
women were at a disadvantage as they had to cover three times the area to be covered by general
category candidates, as three wards electing one general category seat each were combined to
elect one reserved seat. This also limited the role of women elected on reserved seats, as they
did not have a dedicated constituency; they functioned merely as additional representatives. In
some cases, representatives elected on reserved seats had to obtain permission from those
elected on general seats before implementing development plans or policies. It has been found
that the functions of women have by and large remained very limited in the Union Parishads,
due to resistance from male colleagues and the discriminating emerging from such resistance.
Also, knowledge of women regarding financial issues of the Parishads was inadequate, and
their opinions were often side-lined in decision-making processes.

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Womens Participation in Pakistan

The most recent elections to the National Assembly were conducted in 2008, and women
formed 22.2 per cent of the house, that is, 76 of the 342 members were women. Elections to
the Senate were conducted in 2009 and resulted in the entry of 17 women into the 100-member
house, that is, 17 per cent of the members of the Senate were women. The number of women
in local governance by province is unavailable. The rationale for bringing women into politics
has been deemed faulty by some womens activists. It seems to be based on the efficacy
paradigm of development, wherein the contributing of women is treated as instrumental for
efferent development and equity (Sudarshan, 2011). So, although women are brought into
political institutions, no effort is made to transform the patriarchal nature and culture of
institutions. Therefore, even though it helped a small percentage of women enter the
government, their participating was constrained because the structures perpetuating inequality
were left intact. Women who enter local government bodies through reserved seats reportedly
encounter institutional resistance frequently they are not included in development planning,
budget making, monitoring committees, etc.; their participating in the public domain was
considered inappropriate, they were discouraged from speaking in meetings, and they were
confide to working on only those issues that were considered women-centric, etc.

Womens Participation in Sri Lanka

Currently, 12 of the 225 members of Parliament are women; that is, women comprise 5.33 per
cent of the total strength of the Sri Lankan Parliament. The number of women in local
governance is unavailable. Information regarding the nature of their participating in politics is
unavailable. Lack of investment by political par-tis in grooming women for greater
participating and better performance is another barrier that women in Sri Lanka face. They are
not prepared for contesting elections, for discharging their duties as representatives, and are
often side-lined in decision-making for reasons of their so-called ineptitude (De Mel et al,
2014).

Linkages Between South Asian Countries

Drawing links between ongoing initiatives in India and other South Asian countries can
highlight replicable practise and contribute immensely to advocacy initiatives. However,
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before such analysis is conducted, it is necessary to generate a comprehensive body of reliable

information regarding the political participating of women in South Asia. This preliminary
review has revealed that such information is lacking, particularly in the countries of Bhutan,
Nepal and Sri Lanka. Nevertheless, some basic similarities and dissimilarities in country
contexts have made themselves apparent (Lumbiganon et al, 2010). All the fie South Asian
countries studied, as well as India, present cases where poverty is rampant and economic
dependence of women on men is a common truth. The division of labour in the household is
such that women are burdened with the responsibility of nurturing and caring for the family
and remain restricted to the domain of the home, whereas men are entrusted with the providing
for the family and engaging more actively in public and political life. This restricted mobility,
coupled with attitudes that see women as inept to handle public office, translates into a lack of
investment and interest in developing the capacities of women for successfully contesting
elections to public office, performing the required functions and bringing new ideas to the
governance agenda. There is a perceptible lack of education and awareness regarding political
systems and governance processes, and families, political parties, the state and other
institutions do precious little to educate and train them in order to enhance their ability to
govern. In addition, the incidence and fear of violence outside the home create security
concerns for women, and this aggravates the restrictions placed on them in terms of mobility.
Violence in societies, as well as within the home, is also an important factor having far-reaching
consequences for their political participating, as it negatively impacts their health, selfperception and confidence to participate in public life and express their thoughts freely (SharifAbbasi et al, 2011).
Some differences in context are obvious among the countries, primarily stemming from their
political trajectories and the history of their participating and affixation actin. Whereas Bhutan
has only recently transformed from a monarchy to a constitutional monarchy with a bicameral
legislature, Nepal has abolished monarchy completely and adopted a Constituting that declares
the country a federal democratic republic. Pakistan has been a democratic republic since
independence from British rule in 1947, but its history of democracy has been interrupted in
the past by military rule. Bangladesh is a parliamentary democracy with a unicameral
legislature, whereas Sri Lanka is a unitary democratic republic. An additional factor to be
recognised in the case of Pakistan and Bangladesh is that orthodox religious groups and
institutions play a major role in curtailing the political participating of women, as they promote
very conservative views regarding the place of women in society. Violence in the public arena
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is particularly responsible for hampering their mobility and public participating in countries
such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka, due to religious protests and military activity in the former and
the long-standing civil war in the latter that ended in 2009. Bhutan presents an interesting case
where women have enjoyed a strong position in society, especially in the north, due to the
matrilineal form of family, but this has not translated into participating in public life. The fact
that the population of Bhutan is now gradually shifting from agriculture to urban occupations
is not alleviating the condition of women, as being traditionally less educated than men, they
are forced to take up low skilled and poor-paying jobs, thereby becoming increasingly
economically dependent. Any attempt to understand political participating of women in these
countries must contextualise the issue in these socio-economic, religious and geo-political
particularities if it has to feed into planning for responsive policy formulating (Nelson, 2015).
In terms of affixation actin, Bhutan and Sri Lanka have not had any legal provisions for
reservation of seats for women at any level of governance. Although Bangladesh has made
provisions for reserving seats for women in local governance as early as in 1976, and at the
national level since 1972, the form and nature of such reservation has been legally amended
repeatedly in subsequent years. In 2001, Pakistan had made it mandatory for 33 per cent seats
to be reserved for women in local government. However, after the end of military rule, there
has been a reduction of seats at the Union Council level in the local government systems
proposed by the provincial governments in 2009. Following this, there has been a negative
overall impact on their participating despite upholding of the reservation clause. At the national
level Pakistan reserves 60 of the 342 seats (17.5%) in the National Assembly, and 4 out of the
100 seats in the Senate (4%) for women. Affixation actin for participating of women in local
government in Nepal was taken in 1999 with the reservation of seats for women in the VDCs,
whereas at the national level it was introduced in 2007, with the Interim Constituting providing
for the reservation of 33 per cent of the seats, through elections and nominations for women,
and mandating that 50 percent of the party candidate lists comprise women. In India, although
reservation was introduced only at the local level through the Constituting (73rd Amendment)
in 1993, which reserved 33 per cent of seats in Panchayats for women, this has been significant
in improving the participating of women in formal political processes and decision-making at
the local level. The demand for reservation at the national level in India must be recognised
and responded to by the legislature. Simultaneously, it is essential that the manner in which
reservation has been operationalised in these countries and the results it has generated be
evaluated in order to understand if and how suitable changes can be made to make governance
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more. Focussed studies can identify barriers at the structural, social and individual levels, as
well as existing spaces that can be exploited to engender structures and processes to ensure that
women are able to participate more effectively in governance, and governance itself becomes
responsive to gender (Bauer & Tremblay, 2011).

Conclusion
A key point that emerges from this preliminary review of the status of participating of women
in governance in the five countries in South Asia is that although affixation actin in democratic
countries is more likely to secure the representation of marginalised groups, it is by no means
an automatic guarantee of their effective participating. Although equality for men and women
might be legally provided for, women are still subordinated to men in all spheres of life due to
the fact that discriminating persists unabated within the family and other social institutions.
Poor enforcement of legal provisions as well as the lack of effort to strike at the base of
institutional frameworks and social norms perpetuating patriarchy and gender inequity
contributes to this. In such indubitably patriarchal social systems, reservation for women in
political institutions is a significant but stuffiest prerequisite to ensuring a minimum level of
political representation for them. In order to make their participating effective and sustainable,
a comprehensive gamut of supportive mechanisms must be introduced to address the factors
perpetuating gender inequality in public and private life. Critical reviews of structures,
operational guidelines and legislations must redefine the framework to be more inclusive and
gender responsive. The principle of gender equality needs to be centred in democratic
governance.

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