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Women in the Parliaments of the World: 1997
Consie Larmour
Social Policy Group
Proportion of Women in Single or Lower House(1): Selected Countries
%
1991 1993 1995 1997
Australia 6.7 9.5 9.5 15.5
Austria 21.8 21.3 23.5 26.8
Bangladesh 10.3 10.3 10.6 9.1
Belgium 8.5 9.4 12.0 12.0
Canada 13.2 13.2 18.0 18.0
Chile 5.8 5.8 7.5 7.5
China 21.3 21.0 21.0 21.0
Cuba 33.9 22.8 22.8 22.8
Czechoslovakia/Czech 8.7 10.0 10.0 15.0
Republic
Denmark 33.0 33.0 33.0 33.0
El Salvador 8.3 8.3 10.7 10.7
Finland 38.5 39.0 33.5 33.5
France 5.7 6.1 6.4 6.4
Germany 20.4 20.5 26.2 26.2
Greece 5.3 5.3 6.0 6.3
Hungary 7.0 7.3 11.4 11.4
Iceland 23.8 23.8 25.4 25.4
India 7.1 7.3 8.0 7.2
Indonesia 12.4 12.2 12.2 12.6
Iraq 10.8 10.8 10.8 n.a.
Iran 1.5 3.4 3.5 4.0
Ireland 7.8 12.1 13.3 13.9
Israel 6.7 9.2 9.2 7.5
Italy 12.8 8.1 15.1 11.1
Japan 2.3 2.3 2.7 4.6
Jordan 0.0 0.0 1.3 1.3
Malaysia 5.0 5.0 7.8 7.8
Netherlands 21.3 29.3 31.3 31.3
New Zealand 16.5 16.5 21.2 29.2
Nicaragua 16.3 16.3 16.3 10.8
Norway 35.8 35.8 39.4 39.4
Papua New Guinea 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Philippines 9.0 10.6 8.8 10.8
Poland 13.5 9.6 13.0 13.0
Rep. of Macedonia . . 4.2 3.3 3.3
(former Yugoslav)
Romania 3.6 3.5 4.1 7.0
Rwanda 17.1 17.1 4.3 17.1
Seychelles 16.0 45.8 27.3 27.3
Singapore 4.9 3.7 3.7 2.5
South Africa 2.6 2.8 25.0 25.0
Spain 14.6 16.0 16.0 24.6
Sri Lanka 4.9 4.9 5.3 5.3
Sweden 38.1 33.5 40.4 40.4
Switzerland 14.0 17.5 18.0 21.0
Syrian Arab Republic 8.4 8.4 9.6 9.6
Thailand 3.8 4.2 6.1 5.6
Turkey 1.3 1.8 1.8 2.4
USA 6.4 10.8 10.9 11.7
Uganda 12.2 12.6 17.4 18.1
United Arab Emirates 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
United Kingdom 6.3 9.2 9.5 9.5
USSR 15.3
Vietnam 17.7 18.5 18.5 18.5
Yugoslavia 17.7 3.0 2.9 n.a.
The objective of achieving parity of political representation for women
has received a great deal of attention internationally, including by the
United Nations and Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
IPU studies of women in the parliaments of the world in 1991, 1993,
1995 and 1997 vividly demonstrate their under-representation. In its 1991
study the IPU surveyed only the composition of the single or lower chamber
of the national parliament of each country. At 30 June 1991 women made
up 11% of the world's national parliamentarians. By 30 June 1993 this
figure for women's participation had dropped to 10.1%, but in 1997 women
represented 12% of the parliamentarians in the single or lower chamber.
The highest world average was in 1988 when 14.8% of MPs were women. In
Australia women now make up 15.5% of the members of the House of Representatives,
a jump from the 1993 election figure of 9.5%. In the upper house or Senate,
Australia is one of the very few countries where women have a greater
percentage representation than in the lower house (30.3% of Australian
Senators in 1997 are women compared with 9.8 percent of upper houses world
wide).
Parliaments in which, in 1997, about a third of the representatives
are women are those of Sweden (40.4%), Norway (39.4%), Finland (33.5%),
Denmark (33.0%), and Netherlands (31.3% of the lower house). In 1993 the
Seychelles reached near parity of representation, with 45.8% of members
of its unicameral parliament being women, but this dropped to 27.3% by
1995. It has been claimed that the 'critical mass', the percentage required
for women to significantly affect policies and procedures, is about 33%.
Some countries have shown marked changes in the representation of women
in their parliaments during the 1991-1995 period of the IPU surveys. In
South Africa, for example, with the advent of multiracial democracy, the
female membership of the National Assembly increased from 2.8% in 1993
to 25% after the 1994 elections(2) while there has been a general decline
in the representation of women in some of the countries that were formerly
part of the USSR.
At least 10 countries (Comoros, Djibouti, Federated States of Micronesia,
Kiribati, Kuwait, Papua New Guinea, Palau, Saint Lucia, Tonga and the
United Arab Emirates) have no women in their national Assemblies.
In Kuwait women still do not have the vote nor may they be elected to
parliament.
Positive action to achieve greater equality for women has been adopted
in a number of countries. Practical courses of action which parliaments
can adopt to assist the progress towards full equality for women are likely
to centre on the ratification and implementation of the Convention on
the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and adoption of
the Inter-Parliamentary Union Plan of Action to correct present imbalances
in the participation of men and women in political life and of the
Fourth UN Conference on Women Platform for Action.
A number of countries, or political parties in a number of countries,
have already adopted quota systems to improve the representation of women
in parliament. In only six countries - Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, DPR
of Korea, Nepal and Philippines - the law stipulates that the national
Parliament must include a minimum percentage of women. In none of these,
however, has anywhere near parity representation been achieved.(3)
Women may also sometimes sit in Parliament as a result of a system of
reserved seats (in Bangladesh, Eritrea and the United Republic of Tanzania,
for example). Appointment of women to Parliament has occurred in countries
such as Dominica and Saint Lucia (upper house).
Voting systems appear to play an important part in the election of women
to parliament. Countries with the highest percentage of elected women
have proportional or mixed voting systems with closed lists. Countries
with no women elected to parliament all have majority voting systems.(4)
Australia has different voting systems for its two houses and the proportional
system for the Senate has always returned a higher percentage of women
representatives. A marked increase in the number of women elected appeared
to follow the change to a mixed member proportional (MMP) representation
system in New Zealand in 1996.
In Australia, it is widely understood that the problem of gender
imbalance in political life must be addressed by the major political parties,
particularly through reform of preselection processes. The Liberal Party
has established a Liberal Women's Candidates Forum to attract female candidates
for Parliament: strategies focus on the provision of training, support
and community education to encourage women candidates and potential candidates.
The Australian Labor Party is committed to having women candidates in
35% of its 'winnable' seats by 2002. The National Party at present has
only one women in Federal Parliament. The Democrats and Greens have to
date had at least equal representation of women and men in Federal Parliament.
Some strategies proposed to increase the representation and effectiveness
of women in parliament(5)
Increase women members of political parties; increase number
of women candidates preparing and presenting for party office and
pre-selection; and reform of pre-selection processes
This would involve equal numbers of women on selection panels,
and an equal share of safe seats, together with more woman candidates
so that lone women candidates do not stand against numbers of male
candidates.
Reform of parliamentary procedures and sitting hours
The lack of creches in parliaments, family-unfriendly sitting
hours and patterns and the 'masculine', confrontationist or antagonistic
style of parliamentary debate can be disincentives to women.
Supporting organisations
Organisations such as WEL in Australia and the 300 Group in the
UK or an 'Emily's List' (as in US, UK and now Australia) provide
financial and other support to women candidates.
Support by women in parliament for each other
Keeping the debate on the issues rather than on personalities
increases respect and does not invite denigration of women.
Within Parliament, the need for a 'critical mass' of women
Parliamentarians from Scandinavian countries suggest that a 'critical
mass' of women in Parliament is about one third of the total. At
this stage it becomes easier for women to be pre-selected and elected
and to influence the parliamentary agenda.
Proportional voting systems or multi-member electorates
In Norway and other countries multi-member electorates have resulted
in higher numbers of women than in countries with different electoral
systems.
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- IPU Women in Parliament maps of 30 June 1991, 30 June 1993,
June 1995 and 1 January 1997.
- Inter-Parliamentary Union, Women in Parliaments 1945-1995, A World
Statistical Survey, Geneva, 1995. Note that a woman became the Speaker
of the new South African National Assembly.
- IPU, Men and Women in Politics, Democracy Still in the Making,
A World Comparative Study, Geneva, 1997.
- IPU, Men and Women in Politics, op. cit., p. 136.
- Some ideas which emerged from the Women, Power and Politics Conference,
Adelaide, October 1994.
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