Interview with Ana Maria Ruiz Antelo, member of the Bolivian Constituent Assembly

International IDEA interviewed Maria Ruiz, a member of the Bolivian Constituent Assembly, following her visit to Nepal in September 2008.

To what extent are women represented in Bolivia’s Constitutent Assembly and what was their role?

Around one third of the members of the Bolivian Constituent Assembly are women. Although we were represented in each and every commission of the CA, women often went unnoticed, because very few of us had decision making roles.

Nevertheless, the CA in Bolivia has been the first significant political body in which you could find women from all over Bolivia: from the cities as well as the countryside; women with different backgrounds and different political views, trying hard to develop and deliver a Gender Agenda, that could go beyond the political parties’ interests and demands in the different regions.

One of the greatest achievements of the constitution building process was the recognition and incorporation of a large number of rights related to gender. In broad terms these concerned social, cultural and economical rights.

What kind of difficulties –if any- did you encounter when making the constitution and introducing a women’s agenda? 

Putting together this bloc of women was hard work but I feel, sadly that we really weren’t able to consolidate our efforts due to other influences such as political parties. We did achieve, though the formation of a nationwide grouping of more than 25,000 women from all over Bolivia called “Mujeres Presentes en la Historia” (Women Taking Part in History).

Getting the “Gender Agenda” up in the CA commissions was a very interesting process. We realized the importance of making alliances and in fostering relationships if we were to be effective. These alliances incorporated men from different political forces, together with the technical and consulting teams which provided assistance to each commission.

Do you think sharing international experience can benefit Nepal’s constitution building process?

I have always believed in the importance of finding out about the experiences of different countries that are going through similar processes. For me, just hearing how others dealt with the situation is invaluable. It allowed me to listen, know and understand what’s going on in other countries. It also allowed me to search for possible solutions by contrasting my own points of view, reality perceptions and comparisons.

Realizing that we are living in a world, where the lack of justice is a common place in many countries, and where you have to fight for their right to be recognized also opened my eyes, mind and heart. And finally, it is supremely healthy to open yourself to a world that’s constantly changing and to be able to sense how these changes are occurring. This helped me greatly.

How would you sum up your experience in Nepal?

Nepal was a very important part of my learning and gave me fundamental global knowledge. It also made me realize that a better world is now possible. As never before, women are now mobilized all around the world: we are aware of our role, and we are full of energy, full of creativity and imbued with a commitment that goes beyond our gender. 

Nepal also underlined the importance of the people having ownership of their constitution and their constitutional reform process.  For this reason, the CA must be taken everywhere: to the countryside, to little towns, to big cities, to wherever there’s a Nepali. The members of the CA must let the people get involved with the new constitution, let them write it, name it, feed it and fight for it.