ARCHIVES

Women's Participation in Political Processes (WPPP) Programme

2004


Studies have shown that factors associated with the patriarchal system embedded in the current economic globalisation forces have directly or indirectly reduced the level of political participation of women in Asia Pacific. Neo-liberal globalisation has increased the gaps between the rich and poor communities, further entrenching pre-existing class barriers, which have determined participation in political processes dominated by the elite. With the increasing feminisation of poverty resulting from this phenomenon, women's access to political space is reduced considerably.

Democratic mechanisms have also been negatively impacted upon by globalisation, as the States prioritise the demands of international financial institutions, northern governments and multi-national corporations over the demands of local constituencies. The decreasing accountability to local constituencies and the high levels of corruption are further narrowing opportunities for women’s participation. States have also been increasingly repressive of dissenting communities and organisations by restricting civil and political rights. The increased state violence, which often targets women in the form of sex and gender based violence, further repels women from participating in political decision-making processes.
In 2004, several countries in Asia Pacific are holding their national elections. These countries include Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Mongolia. The Women’s Participation in Political Processes (WPPP) Programme perceives this as an opportunity both to increase women’s political representation and promote a women’s agenda in existing political structures. To this end, the objectives of the Programme for 2003- 2005 are:

• To assist women in Asia Pacific to challenge existing political structures (i.e., electoral processes) and increase their representation at national and local levels;
• To increase the capacity of Asia Pacific women decision makers to promote a feminist perspective and agenda in existing political processes.

Publication:	WPPP Collation of Laws
Copies:	100 copies
Distribution:	WPPP TF members, the researchers involved, participants at APWLD events
Funders:	Sida, Hivos, Rights and Democracy Centre, Canada

This collation is a legal resource on women's participation in political processes in Asia Pacific. A total of nine countries were covered - Bangladesh, Fiji, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Each country report includes an assessment of a broad scope of laws, including personal laws which, discrimination of women directly or indirectly. It also comments on the effectiveness of the implementation of these laws in advancing women’s political participation. The collation also provides an analysis of best practices on women’s political participation in Asia Pacific. In an effort to incorporate personal experiences of women involved in political processes, two interviews with women candidates have been included: Zaitun Kassim, Malaysia; Vimala Karanuratne, Sri Lanka. Evidence of the need for this resource among women’s groups in the region was seen at the national colloquium, wherein women requested the development of such a resource. It was a positive initiative as there have already been requests for use of the information contained in the collation.

Activity:	Participation at the Asia Social Forum
Date:	3-7 January 2003
Venue:	Hyderabad, India
Key strategies:	Advocacy and Networking
APWLD Participants:	Representative, Shan Women’s Action Network, Thailand
Key Actions:	Spokesperson on Stop License to Rape Campaign in various workshops Collection of signatures supporting campaign
Funders:	Novib

The WPPP programme supported a representative from Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) to participate in the Asian Social Forum on 3-7 January 2003, Hyderabad, India. The SWAN representative was a spokesperson on the Stop License to Rape campaign in several workshops. She also collected signatures to support the campaign among ASF participants. Aside from drawing more support for their campaign and enhancing their network with other movements, the participation of the SWAN representative at ASF also influenced discussions on issues of sexual and gender based violence at the forum.

Publication:	Gender and Politics Training Manual
Copies:	20
Distribution:	WPPP TF members and the six trainers involved
Funders:	NORAD

The training manual was completed, incorporating the amendments from the national level pilot training workshop in Sri Lanka and the inputs from APWLD’s Programme Officer, Vani Dulaki, who has a background in training and is familiar with the Pacific contexts. The training manual is intended to enhance the capacity of women leaders (e.g., as parliamentarians, local representatives, community leaders) to lobby for the inclusion of women’s agenda in their respective spheres of work. This revised manual has been made applicable for national and regional level workshops, in both Asia and Pacific.

Two WPPP Steering Committee members have conducted trainings on women and politics and have used information from the WPPP training manual. One woman from Kyrgyzstan organised a four-day training for Central Asian women in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in November 2003. She used some of the sessions outlined in the manual and noted some suggestions to further improve it. The other Steering Committee member used the manual in East Java with participants from universities and NGOs. She had to make some modifications to the manual as it was intended for South Asian participants, otherwise she found it a useful resource.

The is an annual planning and evaluation meeting of the Task Force. The Task Force members reviewed the Programme concept paper, which details the issues the Programme will focus on until 2005 and the matrix of indicators for its 2003- 2005 activities. The discussion centred on organising the National Colloquium in light of the upcoming elections in various countries in Asia in 2004. The Colloquium would include women from different countries in the region who are preparing for the national elections, with the intent of surveying the different political contexts within which women will participate in the elections. The Task Force members also prioritised their activities and allocated their budget for 2004.

The colloquium was an effective forum for bringing together women’s networks involved in national elections in their respective countries. It was a venue to analyse common problems on political participation faced by women and the strategies they employed to address them. Particularly for Malaysia, since several representatives from government and non-government organisations participated, it was a useful gathering to reflect on the political repression and fundamentalist practices that similarly hamper the participation of women in political processes in their country.

However, one day was insufficient time for the participants to consolidate their analyses. So to maximise the results of the colloquium, a writer will be engaged to develop a discussion paper based on the results of the meeting. The paper could subsequently be used as a resource for women’s participation in the coming national elections in several countries in Asia Pacific. The WPPP programme also plans to document national or local strategies used by women to participate in elections as a follow-up activity to the colloquium. Such collation can complement the discussion paper produced from this meeting.




To date, the WPPP Programme has produced valuable resources that can be used in promoting women’s political participation in Asia Pacific. The collation of laws contains comprehensive analyses of laws, rules and regulations as well as best practices that can advance women’s political representation. The continuing demand for the collation of laws publication has increased recognition for APWLD’s role in providing useful resources on women’s political participation in Asia Pacific. The completion of the Gender and Politics training manual also has the potential of increasing the capacity of the participants to lobby for a women’s agenda in their respective spheres of political influence. Two APWLD members who used the manual in their national trainings have found it a useful resource. The usefulness for the training based on the manual for the participants in developing and advocating for a feminist agenda in women’s political participation has to be monitored.

The changes in Programme Officers and the need for more active members in the Task Force have hampered the implementation of the activities under this Programme. The regional training on Gender and Politics planned for November 2003 was postponed to 2004. The training would have been an opportunity to build the capacity of women leaders, especially those participating in 2004 elections in various countries in Asia Pacific, to develop a women’s agenda and strategise for increased women’s presence and participation in the coming elections. There is also a need for the WPPP Programme to contextualise its work on increasing women’s participation in electoral processes within the growing repression of democracy in various countries in Asia Pacific. Anti-terrorism measures adopted by governments have justified military actions, including in situations of conflict over access to resources, and suppression of dissent from critical women’s human rights groups and social movements. The WPPP Programme can play a crucial role in analysing and consolidating women’s resistance to repressive State policies that impact negatively on women’s political participation.

Programme officer: Vani Dulaki