The 5050 group is at the Fianna Fail Ard Dheis this weekend. We have been getting some very positive feedback and support. We are also getting the anti arguments which I’d like to deal with if I may.
Quotas are undemocratic – What about the geographical quotas that already exist. Is anyone suggesting that TDs should all be from Dublin – it would save on the mileage expenses!
Quotas work against merit – as Leo Varadker commented on Marian Finucane radio programme a couple of Sundays ago – if getting elected was based solely on merit there wouldn’t be only 15% women in the Dail.
Quotas are an easy way out – The whole point is that women don’t face a level playing field when it comes to participating in politics. Candidate selection quotas are a means of helping women overcome the extra barriers that men don’t face.
There are more important issues – That is a value judgement. I think its a fundamentally important issue. Our Dail needs to be reflective of Irish society and the most glaring gap is based around gender.
There are no barriers for women – This criticism often comes from young women. The evidence is there in the literature – Caring, culture, confidence, cash and candidate selection. Caring is very much seen as a female role and very good we are at it too. Ask Olwyn Enright and Mildred Fox who both left politics citing childcare as the reason. However if equality means anything then we need to be at the decision making table.
Women aren’t suited to Politics – ultimately that is saying that women aren’t equal to men when it comes to decision making.
Women don’t want to be involved in politics – Perhaps that view is reflective of the onerous job that politics has become. Very anti – family. This is a chicken and egg situation. Women can’t do politics because of their caring role and that caring role won’t change unless women do politics – so which comes first?
Thanks to all those who do support a more gender balanced Dail.
Let’s take these spurious arguments one by one.
1. “Geography” quotas.
National lists are a suggestion often made by reformers to get the members of the Dail away from being local politicians and towards being national legislators, so there’s no need to have “geography” quotas to have a healthy democracy. Other countries don’t. In any case, even with our current constituency system there’s no need to be from a particular area or even to live in a particular area, just to try to be elected to represent a particular area. Gender quotas propose to require that candidates, and TDs, be of a particular sex. It’s entirely different.
2. Quotas may indeed work against merit, but it’s beside the point. Merit is decided by the electorate, on whatever bizarre criteria they use. Michael Lowry is, according to our current democratic system and the vote he gets, one of the most meritorious members of the Dail. I’d tend to disagree, but it’s a democracy and it is not up ot me. Merit is, therefore, beside the point….or at the very least we are forced to admit that our ability to define “merit” is very limited.
3. Quotas ARE an easy way out, and a bad one. Again, we hear of “the extra barriers that men don’t face”. If there are extra barriers, then we can address these “extra barriers” one by one and eliminate them. Quotas are, rather obviously, a way of trying to cure the symptoms without even understanding the disease and nearly make as little sense as homeopathy.
4. There may be more important issues. That IS a value judgement. The economic collapse may be more important. The fact that Sinn Fein is strong in the polls may be more important. The fact that women make up a majority of the electorate is certainly important, but it’s not something that anyone has any right to change.
5. There are no barriers to women. Oh, wait, young women are saying this? That’s Terrible! They must be wrong. They’re foolish and ignorant of the past. Well, isn’t that the idea? Isn’t it the idea that in a modern egalitarian society women will and can reject the idea of barriers? I’m a man, no longer that young, and I certainly reject that notion. Anyone tries to block my daughters, they’ll have to be pretty sure of themselves. As for the 5 C’s, the sexist assumption that women lack confidence, or must take the caring roles in a family are so antiquated they’re practically hilarious.
6. Women aren’t suited to politics? What? What century is this from? Margaret Thatcher (love her or hate her), Indira Ghandi, Mary Robinson, Mary Harney, etc, etc., etc. Women are just as suited to politics as men. If they weren’t, then surely we wouldn’t want more women in politics? If they are, then there’s no need for quotas.
7. Women don’t want to be involved in politics. LOTS of people don’t want to be involved in politics. More concretely, if there are elements of political practice in Ireland that make it difficult for women (or men) to be involved, then let’s fix those elements. More sensible sitting hours for the Dail. Prohibitions on constituency work for TDs. There are many things that could be done.
All in all, this blog post by Collette Finn is another illogical argument for the indefensible. Genderquotas are sexist. They’re anti democratic. Modern Ireland doesn’t need them. They’re damaging to the very idea that men and women can pick whatever roles they like. The assumptions behind them are insulting to women and to the work done by feminists over the decades.
Boo… Hiss.