INSPIRING CHANGE: WOMEN IN THE PACIFIC


RESERVED SEATS FOR WOMEN: ENCOURAGING FEMALE POLITICAL PARTICIPATION IN THE PACIFIC


Women’s political representation in the Pacific remains an ongoing issue for Parliaments in the Region. While some would argue that the issue of reserved seats for women has helped to increase female political participation, the Chair of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians Pacific Region Steering Committee suggests it could in fact be having the opposite effect, leaving many women to be regarded as second class citizens.


Hon Elizabeth Burain, MP Ms Burain was elected in 2010 to one of Bougainville’s three reserved women’s seats, brought in under the constitution in 2004. She is the current Chair of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians, Pacific Region Steering Committee.


have responded to challenges. I am extremely proud to be the current Chair of the CWP Pacific Region Steering Group and to have the company of many talented women MPs in the CWP.


Hon. Elizabeth Burain, MP


International Women’s Day (8 March) provides an important opportunity for all men and women Parliamentarians to reflect on how much has been achieved to increase women’s political participation and the significant work ahead. I believe that it is incumbent upon those who have achieved leadership roles to provide support, mentorship and inspiration to those young women who are emerging leaders in our communities. Coming together as the Pacific


Region Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) provides a significant platform to share experiences and to discuss how we


18 | The Parliamentarian | 2014: Issue One


Women’s political participation in the Pacific region Female parliamentary participation rates within the Pacific are amongst the lowest in the world (sitting around four to five per cent). While women’s representation within the Pacific region fluctuates, this is well behind the global average figure of around 20 per cent, and the commonly accepted target of 30 per cent. It is clear that we must make progress. The view of the Pacific Women’s Parliamentary Partnerships Submission to the Pacific Plan Review 2013 was spot on by stating that:


“There has been little positive


change in women’s political representation in the Pacific region in the past decade. Increasing women’s participation in democratic processes, at both central and local government


levels, is crucial to their democratic development and sustainability. Systemic, institutional and cultural barriers inhibiting participation must be removed if gender equality in the Pacific region is to be achieved.”


The Pacific region faces a number


of challenges: a geographically vast and isolated area, both from each other and from the rest of the world. Of the member Parliaments, only New Zealand is not a developing country. Only Papua New Guinea and New Zealand have populations over one million, some have less than 100,000, some less than 20,000. One of the goals of the Pacific


region is to lobby for the creation of a CWP group in every Parliament, even in those with no women Members of Parliament. The belief is that if the group exists in theory, even though not in reality, its presence will serve to normalise the representation of women and the expectation that women will and should be members. Another key part of this belief is that meaningful change cannot occur without the backing and recognition of male Parliamentarians.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72