MOCK PARLIAMENTS HELP TO PLACE MORE PACIFIC WOMEN IN THE HOUSE
If Youth Parliaments encourage young people to become involved in politics, why can’t a similar approach bring more women into Parliament? A Pacific Parliament finds it can.
Mr Eni Tekanene,
in South Tarawa. Mr Tekanene is the Clerk to the Parliament of Kiribati. He wrote this article in partnership with Ms Charmaine Rodrigues, the United Nations Development Programme’s Pacific Regional Democratic Institutions and Accountability Specialist, and Ms Joanne Lee Kunatuba, the Gender Officer of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Pacific Centre, in collaboration with partners at the Kiribati National Parliament and Ministry for Internal and Social Affairs, tried a novel approach to building the capacity of women candidates by running the first ever Mock Parliament for Women in the Pacific. The idea of a mock Parliament
Mr Eni Tekanene
Pacific island countries have the lowest number of female Parliamentarians in the world. Solomon Islands, Federated States of Micronesia and Nauru have no women in Parliament, and Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu, Republic of Marshall Islands and Cook Islands had at the time of writing one female Parliamentarian each. Considerable work has been done to raise awareness with policy-makers about the need for temporary special measures to promote women’s representation, but in 2011, the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS) and the
120 | The Parliamentarian | 2012: Issue Two
for Women drew on the very positive experiences reported from recent Youth Parliament fora in the region, including the Youth Parliament held in Kiribati in early 2010. The idea was first proposed in 2010, at a Forum Smaller Island States Meeting on ‘Advancing Women’s Participation in Decision Making Processes’ where delegations endorsed the convening of a mock Parliament for Women in their respective countries. Kiribati was the first country to
pilot the concept in the region. Thirteen women from Tarawa and 17 women from the outer islands of Kiribati came together at the Maneaba Ni Maungatabu
(Parliament) for a three-day parliamentary training for potential candidates in advance of the October 2011 national elections. The training was then followed by a two-day Mock Parliament for Women from 8-9 August. In his Keynote Address, the
Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Taomati Iuta, MP, told the participants: “There is no reason why women should not aspire for political positions as it has been proven that women now, in the 21st century, are quite capable of holding positions of responsibility that were once considered to be only the domain of men. In my opinion, one of the most important barriers now is actually that women do not believe in themselves and in the things they are capable of doing. This notion must be overcome and it is hoped that this training and mock Parliament will be a first step to that end.” During the three-day
preparatory training, participants were trained on key parliamentary procedures, as well as substantive policy issues of relevance to the