INSIDE ISSUES
CONTINUING THE JOURNEY TO INSPIRE CHANGE
The Editor’s note
I have been fortunate to have grown up in an era that celebrates and promotes women across every arena. From entrepreneurs and humanitarians to writers and political leaders, there is no shortage when it comes to finding a female role model that inspires women to want to effect positive change. Such then is fitting that the theme
of this year’s International Women’s Day (8 March) focused around the issue of Inspiring Change. Women from all backgrounds and nationalities came together to celebrate women’s social, political and economic achievements, while still focusing their attention on areas requiring action. While the number of females
entering the political field is still lacking, the number of current high- profile female leaders is encouraging and a constant reminder of what can be achieved. Non-Commonwealth examples include the Burmese pro- democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, who has campaigned tirelessly for independence, and subsequently suffered for her beliefs, and Dilma Rousseff, the first female President of Brazil. During her inauguration speech, Rousseff made a special mention to help women, stating “I would like for fathers and mothers to look into their daughters’ eyes and tell them ‘Yes, women can.’” Additionally she promised her country that nine
out of her 37 Ministers would be women, a positive record for the country.
Looking back within the Commonwealth community, and the picture is indeed a healthy one. Rwanda, the Seychelles and South Africa top the leader board given their impressive percentages of female Parliamentarians. The Commonwealth is certainly not short of inspiring female Parliamentarians – both living and deceased. Deceased female leaders include Indira Gandhi (India); Margaret Thatcher (United Kingdom); and Janet Jagan (Guyana), while living inspiring examples include former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard; Luisa Diogo (Mozambique) and the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Hon. Kamla Persad-Bissessar, SC, MP, who leads this issue with her article on encouraging more women into leadership roles. Having been awarded the Political Consultants Democracy Award alongside Jamaican Prime Minister, Hon. Portia Simpson-Miller in 2013, the Prime Minister is going from strength to strength in her work to empowering women. From hosting regional colloquiums in the Caribbean to co-hosting a side event in the United Nations General Assembly, her efforts to increase women’s participation in representative politics
4 | The Parliamentarian | 2014: Issue One
shows no sign of slowing down. Keeping in line with the theme
of inspiring change, a Member from Bougainville, Hon. Elizabeth Burain, MP, provides an overview of the struggle to encourage women into Parliament in the Pacific. With one of the lowest rates in the world, the issue of reserved seats for women has been implemented into many Parliaments to try and encourage more women into political participation. However, despite its worthwhile intentions, she argues reserved seating may in fact be having the opposite effect, leaving female Members being regarded as second class citizens. Despite women constituting
half the world’s population, they are disproportionately under-represented in governance and decision-making according to the Parliamentary Advisor to the United Nations, Mr Charles Chauvel. He writes about the various projects and forums supported by his organization to not only help strengthen Parliaments but also to help them exceed the 30 per cent global target of women’s representation. The Conference of Speakers and
Presiding Officers that took place in Wellington, New Zealand in January 2014, aimed to:
• Maintain, foster, and encourage
impartiality and fairness on the part of Speakers and Presiding Officers of Parliaments; • Promote knowledge and under- standing of parliamentary democracy in its various forms; and • Develop parliamentary institutions.
Both articles from Hon. Niki
Rattle from the Cook Islands and Hon. Randolph Horton, JP, MP, from Bermuda, are based on their speeches given at the conference, providing an overview of the challenges and obstacles faced from their respective small Parliaments. Ethics and transparency have
become a core value of political life, and an integral role in the efforts to regain the public’s trust. Subsequently, some Parliaments and Legislatures have taken to implementing Codes of Conduct to assist Members in conducting themselves appropriately. The President of the National Assembly of Quebec, Hon. Jacques Chagnon, MNA, writes about the framework used in his Parliament, and the reasons behind its emergence. Hon. Dr Ken Coghill from
Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, tackles the issue of Codes of Conduct in Parliament from another perspective, that is, understanding the various types of codes, its effectiveness, and ultimately their importance in helping to achieve
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