Beijing +20: Progress and way forward

NAIROBI: The Beijing Declaration of 1995 brought about a Platform for Action that was intended to advance the rights of women across the world.

 

Indeed, there has been some progress in most jurisdictions with regard to this noble cause. This year marks 20 years since the Platform for Action was declared, and therefore calls for a stock take. From the political dimension, there are still numerous Socio-cultural, structural, and religious barriers that have continued to limit the role of women in societal affairs, and in particular, politics.

However, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, The concept of democracy will only assume true and dynamic significance when political policies and national legislation are decided upon jointly by men and women with equitable regard for the interests and aptitudes of both halves of the population.

The aim of the Beijing Platform of Action required governments to infuse gender balance within government bodies and committees (as well as in the judiciary and in public administration).

The Plan of Action by the Inter-Parliamentary Union envisaged that this strategy was to be achieved by using target figures coupled by other forms of affirmative action. Regrettably, some countries have selectively implemented some programmes while completely disregarding the specific quota system.

It is instructive to note that in March 1994, the Inter-Parliamentary Union arrived at a consensus on a Plan of Action that could properly fit into the larger goal of promoting representative democracy, and it formed the basis of the Beijing governmental Declaration and Platform for Action.

The distinguishing feature of the Plan of Action was that it was able to define gender partnership as the bedrock of democracy and the trajectory towards sustained development.

In Kenya, the access of women to political parties and their influence on vital positions of procedure, policy, or party platforms generally, is partly weak. Historically, the parliamentary presence of women has been the lowest in the region at a paltry 9.8 per cent, despite the fact that women have been actively participating at the political party level.

Notably, the country still trails countries such as Rwanda (56.3 per cent), South Africa (42.3 per cent), Tanzania (36 per cent), and Uganda (35 per cent). To effectively achieve the goals of the Beijing Platform of Action, there have to be practical ways of furthering women's political and electoral training.

In particular, the issue of specific quotas has to be extensively used to expedite the representation of women in parliaments and other administrative bodies. The implementation of the new Constitution and the Bill of Rights in 2010 was a milestone in rectifying some of the legislative bottlenecks that had long inhibited the quest for equal representation. Inherent in this Constitution is an entrenched quota of at least one third female representation in appointive and legislative positions, and one of two senators representing youth and disability issues must be female.

More generally, section 27(3) of the constitution codifies the right of "women and men to equal treatment, including the right to equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres".

Moreover, Section 100(a) mandates that Parliament shall enact legislation "to promote the representation in Parliament of women." A Constitutional reform that was adopted in 2012 reserved some 47 seats to women (out of 350) in the National Assembly and 16 (out of 68) in the Senate.

Consequently, the 2013 elections saw the number of women double in the lower house (to 18.6 per cent) while the percentage reached 26.5 per cent in the upper house.

The reforms ushered in the election of a Peris Tobiko, the first woman to enter Parliament, and also five senators (out of the current 18) of ages 24 and 33. Regrettably, there was no woman elected to more than half of Kenya's sub-national assemblies despite there being a provision that prohibited more than two-thirds membership from either sex.

Political organisations and parties ought to undertake public information campaigns on the importance of women's participation in political life as part of the process of strengthening democracy.

For instance, in places with existential women branches, they should be encouraged to play an effective role. Through analysing electoral results, political parties can assess the merits of choosing women candidates as well as their male counterparts who are very active in the promotion of women's participation.

Moreover, women should be encouraged to be more involved in trade unions as they act as informal levers for political ascendancy. Not-for-profit organisations could undertake public information campaigns on the importance of women's participation in political life as a vital process of strengthening democracy. The campaigns should emphasise on encouraging populations, especially women, to vote.

The organisations should provide training courses for women in communication, public speaking, elocution, leadership, negotiating techniques and strategy as well as  public affairs management.

The media can equally play a very significant role in promoting awareness, by instilling the idea of women participation in politics to the public.

It should also resist any acts that may be demeaning to the images of women, and instead focus on stressing the importance of women's role in social and economic life.