WANTED: more women to get involved in politics and national decision making.
Minister of Family, Youth and Sport Stephen Lashley issued that call yesterday at a Press conference at the close of the Ninth Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
Lashley said he thought it was also the role of organisations who embraced women in power as well as existing politicians to encourage women to become involved in elective politics.
“We have to find ways for females to see politics as a way to improve not only themselves but the country and [show them] that we need a collective approach by both sexes to deal with the issues we have.”
Lashley, who chaired the meeting attended by delegations from 32 countries, added: “We have women comfortable in making suggestions but now we want women to be decision makers and sit side by side with men to help plan strategies.
“We do have a number of women who have taken that plunge, but not enough saying ‘I am prepared to be a part of the political decision-making process’, and this is something which has to be addressed.”
Lashley said there were no legal impairments barring women from getting into politics and ways had to be found to encourage them to become leaders and contest elections.
“Politics is free for anyone to get involved, there are no impediments. But it is a rough and tumble world and even many men don’t get involved. It is not an easy task,” he stated.
Deputy Secretary General of the Commonwealth Secretariat, Ransford Smith, said there were more issues than legality which barred women from politics.
“We recognise while there are sometimes no legal constraints, there are in fact cultural and socio-economic considerations which often impact on women’s capacity to participate in the dual role of caregiver and politician.
“We believe we have to identify and disseminate best practices across the globe in terms of raising the numbers of female participants in political life,” he said.
Minister of Gender in Kenya, Esther Mathenge, said women needed to be economically empowered and on the level where they could make decisions in order to make it into the world of politics.
“There is a perception that politics is dirty and for men, and a lot of women don’t want that kind of exposure, so we need the Commonwealth and other bodies to build confidence so women can come in their numbers. A lot of women feel it is not worth the trouble,” she said. (CA)
