1. Gender quotas and political representation

2. Two concepts of equality The classic liberal notion of equality was a notion of "equal opportunity" or "competitive equality“ Equality of outcome - real equal opportunity does not exist just because formal barriers are removed. Direct discrimination and a complex pattern of hidden barriers prevent women from being selected as candidates Compare the application of these concepts of equality to positive discrimination in other areas  Gender employment equality  Employment discrimination legislation in Northern Ireland  Positive discrimination in race legislation in the US

3. Quotas and contemporary politics Current political issue – writing on this topic frequently has an overt political agenda Pro quota groups (including some academics) promote the use of quotas as a way of advancing women - focus on the positive aspect of quotas Has been a topic of international discourse and the goal of gender equality in political representation widely accepted, also positive discrimination In developed democratic states linked to discussion on nature of democracy – status of parliaments and politicians Topic enmeshed in North/South power relations – idea of quotas has the support of external actors in reconstructed states

4. Quotas World Wide Information from www.quotaproject.orgwww.quotaproject.org 89 Countries have some sort of quota 41 – nearly half, have voluntary party quotas – a quota for the % of women candidates a party puts forward for election 13 have voluntary party quotas plus a legislative quotas 19 have a legislative quota system only 16 operate a reserve seat system, mainly in Africa, also Pakistan and Afghanistan

5. Five countries with over 30% women are not in the data base because they don’t have quotas  Cuba; Finland; Denmark; New Zealand; Belarus Denmark has 38% women in Parliament, Socialist party introduced 40% quota in 1977 abandoned in 1996 Denmark, Finland and New Zealand – early integration of women in public sphere Belarus – Democracy does not work – parliament does not matter. 10% in 2000, up to 29% in 2005 – why? Cuba – pattern in socialist states

6. Aim of Quotas Quota systems aim at ensuring that women constitute at least a "critical minority" of 30 or 40 percent Quotas for women - women must constitute a certain number or percentage of the members of a body, whether it is a candidate list, a parliamentary assembly, a committee, or a government. The quota system places the burden of recruitment not on the individual woman, but on those who control the recruitment process Quotas assume equality of representation is the goal

7. Arguments against Quotas Quotas are against the principle of equal opportunity for all, since women are given preference over men. Quotas are undemocratic, because voters should be able to decide who is elected. Quotas imply that politicians are elected because of their gender, not because of their qualifications and that more qualified candidates are not selected Many women do not want to get elected just because they are women. Introducing quotas creates significant conflicts within the party organization. Quotas violate the principles of liberal democracy.

8. Arguments for Quotas Quotas for women compensate for actual barriers that prevent women running for political office Women have the right as citizens to equal representation. Women's experiences are needed in political life. Election is about representation, not other qualifications. Women are just as qualified as men, but women's qualifications are downgraded and minimized in a male-dominated political system. It is in fact the political parties that control the nominations, not primarily the voters who decide who gets elected; therefore quotas are not violations of voters' rights.

9. The quotas debate in Ireland JOINT COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE, EQUALITY DEFENCE AND WOMEN’S RIGHTS, Second Report, Women’s Participation in Politics October 2009 Reasons for Increasing Women’s Political Representation  A more representative democracy  Advantages for Political Parties  Public Support  Increased Choice for Voters International Obligations Challenges for Women: the ‘Five C’s’  Childcare  Cash  Confidence  Culture  Candidate Selection Procedures

10. Female Politicians define the problems A legacy of conservative and traditional gender stereotypes Women tend to lack confidence compared to their male counterparts Women are more likely to lack the finance and the networks necessary to run an election campaign The political culture in Ireland is male The political culture is not family friendly and participation in political life can be particularly difficult for mothers of young children Women are less likely than men to succeed in the political party candidate selection process

11. Committee’s proposal The introduction of mandatory positive action measures through legislation political parties would adopt gender targets or quotas in their candidate selection process. Following the Belgium, Smet-Tobback law, a maximum limit is placed on candidates of each gender i.e. parties are penalised if more than two-thirds of their candidates are of one gender. Enforceable penalties if target not reached, e.g. the French model of financial penalties.

12. Irish Government policy on Quota’s Announced June 2011 Next general election 30% candidate gender quota. Parties who do not comply will lose 50% of government funding In 7 years time (or at the following general election) the quota will be raised to 40% Will be up to each party how they apply the quotas as part of their candidate selection Will not apply to local government elections in 2014 – which are likely to happen before the next general election

13. Reserve seat quotas For example used in many Africa countries Rather than candidate quotas – in a reserve seat system a % of the seats in parliament are set aside for women. How these seats are filled varies from country to country – in some cases it is by appointment in some cases by a special election.

14. Tanzania Seats allocated to parties in proportion to constituency elections results. Parties determine how to fill the seats. These special seats are not related to constituencies but to regions Women also run for constituency seats. Number of seats in Parliament varies slightly from election to election. The size of the parliament has been increased to accommodate the number of ‘special seats’ The number of men in parliament has only declined slightly since the introduction of multiparty elections in the mid 1990s