Tag Archives: Fiona Buckley

Gender Quotas: Why are they needed?

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Fiona Buckley, Department of Government, University College Cork writes…

Electoral gender quotas are highly controversial & stimulate a considerable amount of debate wherever they are adopted.

Analysis of the gender quota discourse in Ireland & elsewhere reveals that resistance to quotas derives from the liberal concepts of individualism & meritocracy.

  • Objectors consider quotas to be a form of discrimination, & a violation of the principles of fairness, competence & equality of opportunities.
  • Others believe quotas will lead to the selection & election of unqualified individuals who are in politics based solely on their biological sex & not on ability.
  • Liberal opponents suggest representation should be “about representing ideas, not social classes or categories” (Dahlerup, 2006: 10).

Merit & ability arguments assume, naively, that all election candidates make it into politics ‘on their own’.  This is untrue.

“Many candidates experience forms of advantage, whether it is family connections, large personal resources, favour by the party leadership, or, as is specific to Ireland, strong local profile due to GAA connections” (Buckley & McGing, 2011)[i].

These forms of advantage are considered normal – and are rarely questioned.

Politics is not a level-playing pitch.
Scholarly research has identified gendered barriers that prevent fair competition for political office.  These are summarised under the ‘Five Cs’ model as

  • care (childcare or otherwise)
  • culture
  • cash
  • confidence
  • candidate selection

Advocates argue that gender quotas are a compensation for the structural barriers that women face when entering politics. 

Gender quotas touch upon central debates in the theory of representation.  ‘Representation’ is a key concept in the study & practice of politics.  It is about:

  • who represents
  • who is represented
  • what is represented
  • how representation takes place.

Anne Philips’ seminal work The Politics of Presence argues that, as women all over the world have been excluded from representation, this must be taken as the starting point in the discussion of gender quotas & representation, not some abstract debate on the principles of representation[ii].

The continuing under-representation of women in Irish politics is a blight on our democratic record.

Speaking at the Oireachtas Sub-Committee on Women in Politics in September 2009, former TD, Liz O’Donnell pronounced – until we have more women participating in politics is Ireland, ‘our democracy is unfinished’[iii].

Legislators would do well to keep this in mind as they work together to finalise the gender quota proposal.

[i] Buckley, Fiona & McGing, Claire (2011) ‘Women and the Election’, in M Gallagher and M. March How Ireland Voted 2011, London: Palgrave

[ii] Phillips, Anne (1995) The Politics of Presence, Oxford: Clarendon Press cited in page 4 of Dahlerup, Drude (2002) ‘Quotas  – A Jump to Equality? The Need for International Comparisons of the Use of Electoral Quotas to obtain Equal Political Citizenship for Women’, a paper presented for a workshop hosted by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), Jakarta, Indonesia – http://www.quotaproject.org/CS/CS_Comparative.pdf

[iii] Oireachtas Sub-Committee on Women in Politics (2009) Women’s Participation in Politics – http://www.oireachtas.ie/documents/committees30thdail/j-justiceedwr/reports_2008/20091105.pdf

 

Fiona Buckley on Gender Quotas at 50/50 Public Meeting

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Fiona Buckley, Department of Government, University College Cork & The 50/50 Group
  • Only 25 of 166 Dáil seats are held by women (15.25%)
  • Ireland occupies 79th position of 133 nation-states in IPU rankings
  • Ireland is in 22nd place amongst 27 EU member states
  • Of 4,744 Dáil seats filled since 1918, only 260 (5.48%) have been occupied by women
  • Only 91 women have been elected to Dáil Éireann since foundation of the State
  • 181 people served in cabinet in Ireland since 1922, 12 (7%) have been women
  • With 15.25% female representation in lower house of parliament, Ireland is behind both world average 19.5 % & European Union average 24% 
  • Seanad  – 18 of 60 seats (30%) are held by women – only 86 women have served in Seanad
  • Women account for 17% of members of local authorities & just 12% of members of regional authorities
  • 86 women out of  564 candidates contested 2011 General Election –  lowest number of women candidates to contest a General Election since 1989
  • In 21 of 43 constituencies –  there are no women TDs 
  • National Women’s Council of Ireland estimated that, at present rate, it will take 370 years before gender parity in political representation is achieved in Ireland
“Irish political culture remains embarrassing because of its maleness and the contempt it continues to show towards women” (Diarmuid Ferriter: 2011)

Mary Robinson:
“A society that is without the voice and vision of a woman is not less feminine. It is less human.”

______________________________________
 Barriers to women’s participation in Irish Politics

There are 5 ‘C’s :

  • Care (childcare & other)
  • Cash
  • Candidate selection
  • Culture
  • Confidence
Do women face discrimination from Irish voters?
No – say White (2006); Buckley, Collins &  Reidy (2007); Marsh & McElroy  (2010);  Buckley & McGing (2011)
But:

  • NWCI survey of 2009 Local Elections – some female candidates subjected to sexist comments
  • O’Kelly (2000) found evidence of bias against women candidates in Irish political parties
________________________________________
Electoral ‘Gender’ Quotas
  • Act as a process of change & facilitator of women’s political inclusion
  • Compensate for many gendered barriers to accessing political office

    Implementation
  • Constitutional approach (e.g. France, Rwanda)
  • Legislative approach (e.g. Belgium, Spain, Poland, Argentina)
  • Voluntary approach (e.g. Scandinavian countries; Germany)
Application

  • Results /Outcome (Reserve Seats)
  • Nomination (Candidate Selection) –   this is proposed in Ireland
_______________________________
Why Quotas?  Background
  • Legacy of
    (i) historical exclusion  of women from political citizenship (ie suffrage)
    (ii) bias towards traditional gender roles have resulted in women’s under-representation worldwide
    _______________________________

    Quotas – things to consider
Questions about quotas:

Do ‘gender quotas’ work?
  • 17 of the top 20 nations, in terms of women’s political representation, have gender quotas
  • Incremental progress rather than fast-track changes

    How is the quota enforced & monitored?
  • Sanctions for non-compliance must be effective
Financial penalties; list rejections ; disqualifications; strong leadership; monitoring

Are gender quotas democratic/fair?
Liberals say ‘no’ but others say they are compensatory & promote democracy

What about the ‘merit’ debate?
  • Naïve to assume all politicians make it on merit alone
  • What of family dynasties; the ‘GAA’ or ‘celebrity’ candidate; differing access to funding
What about the ‘token’ or ‘quota woman’ debate?
_____________________________
Electoral (Amendment) (Political Funding) Bill 2011
  • Proposes that half of state funding of political parties be contingent on at least 30%  of candidates being women & at least 30% being men
  • Quota to rise to 40% after 7 years
  • Only applies at General Elections.; why not Local Government?
  • Why wait 7 years to raise quota; why not sooner?
  • Why 30% initially; why not  higher?
  • Why a legislative quota now?
  • Lack of progress; static development; Government policy
  • But have other strategies been used? Yes, but these have not been effective (see Claire McGing presentation)
  • Lack of party leadership & commitment
  • Where  will the political parties ‘find’  women candidates?
  • Draw from their membership – Women party members DO exist!!
    Fine Gael: 42%; Labour: 37%;     FiannaFáil: 34% & Sinn Féin: 24%
  • Head-hunt
  • Change selection processes  – have all- women shortlists at  nomination stage ?
When will we see changes?
Takes at least 3 electoral cycles before an impact on women’s descriptive representation is seen

We must expand the level of female representation from civil to political sphere!!

_____________________________

  • Quotas provide an opportunity structure to facilitate women’s electoral candidacy (access to the ballot paper)
  • Quotas provide voters with greater electoral choice ((i) option to choose between men & women & (ii) between women of different parties
  • Ireland’s record in relation to women’s political representation is a travesty of democracy 

    If not quotas, what is the alternative?     If not now – when?