Editorial
It’s not all about the numbers
By Vidar Helgesen, Secretary-General
Michelle Bachelet in Chile. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf in Liberia. Angela Merkel in Germany. Maria do Carmo Silveira in São Tomé and Principe. Luisa Diogo in Mozambique. Tarja Halonen in Finland. Helen Clark in New Zealand. These presidents and prime ministers are not the first women to lead countries, but they share a trait with the world’s first democratically elected female president, Vigdis Finnbogadottir of Iceland: they were elected on their own merits.
Since its founding in 1995, International IDEA has understood that women’s participation in politics was, and remains, central to democratic governance.
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What we're up to
“IDEA Celebrates International Women’s Day 2006”
See the dedicated Web page featuring the launch of the revised version of IDEA’s Handbook Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers.
New "Knowledge Network" will assist women in politics
IDEA is launching an electronic “knowledge network” for women in politics with the National Democratic Institute, the United Nations Development Fund for Women, the United Nations Development Programme, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. The goal is to assist female politicians and aspirants by sharing information on issues such as deciding to run for election, developing campaign strategies and being an effective policy-maker.
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IDEA trains female candidates for the upcoming elections in Peru
With Peru’s presidential and congressional elections less than two months away, IDEA has launched a project to promote women’s political participation and ensure that gender issues find a place on the public agenda.
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Improving the "picture-perfect" Mauritian model
The promise of electoral reforms was a key selling point of Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam’s manifesto during the run-up to the Mauritian general elections in July 2005. But seven months after he won, the question of electoral reforms appears to be sidelined by the economic pressures that the country is experiencing. This is why IDEA, together with EISA and the Institute of Social Development and Peace, organized a regional seminar on “Electoral Reform in Mauritius: Moving Towards an Inclusive Democracy” on 17-18 February in Port Louis, Mauritius. The seminar sought to resume the debate on the need for electoral reforms and put it back high on the political agenda.
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Political parties discuss fighting poverty and inequality in the Andean region
A seminar held on 2-3 February in Quito, Ecuador, brought together more than 35 top-level political party leaders and analysts from the five Andean countries — Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia and Peru — to examine ways to reinforce political parties’ efforts to fight poverty and strengthen social cohesion in the region. The issue is particularly urgent for the Andean nations, where poverty rates are as high as 50 percent and where voters in all five countries are going to the polls within a 12-month period to elect new leaders. Attending the seminar were two former presidents, Osvaldo Hurtado of Ecuador and Andrés Pastrana of Colombia.
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National dialogues focus on political parties in Nigeria, Mali and India
Political parties are said to be vital to democracy. On the other hand, they are among the least trusted institutions in countries all over the world. Why is this? What can be done to ensure that political parties fulfil their role in democratic societies?
In January, IDEA and its partners organized regional workshops in Nigeria and Mali for all major political parties to discuss party reform and learn from each other on their roles in democracy and democratization. In February, a national dialogue workshop with political parties was held in India. These activities are part of IDEA’s global investigation into the external regulation and internal functioning of political parties. The goal is to see if recommendations can be made on where reforms are needed.
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Coming up
Meeting the needs of today’s electoral administrators
Is a blank vote a voter’s right? How does a municipality or government budget for an election? How reliable are electronic voting machines? These are some of the questions that election practitioners will soon be able to ask directly to the ACE Project: The Electoral Knowledge Network, to be launched by IDEA and its six partners on 4 May in Ottawa, Canada.
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New Products
Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers
This edition of Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers Handbook covers women's access to the legislature in three steps: it looks into the obstacles women confront when entering parliament; it presents solutions to overcoming these obstacles, such as changing electoral systems and introducing quotas; and it details strategies for women to influence politics once they are elected to parliament, an institution which is traditionally male-dominated.
The Implementation of Quotas: The European Experiences
The report examines women’s political representation in Europe and looks into the use of gender quotas as an important policy measure for boosting women’s access to decision-making bodies.
La concepción del poder desde las mujeres (The Concept of Power: Women’s Perspectives)
This publication, co-published by IDEA and the Hannah Arendt Institute, draws on the November 2004 Forum of Latin American Women Political Leaders. The book covers subjects like the concept of power, political party financing and the media’s role and impact on politics. The publication will be presented 9 March in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at an event that will also kick off of the newly created “Foro Social de Mujeres de Argentina”, an interparty women’s forum aimed at increasing coordination, dialogue and consensus among women from different parties and political orientations. IDEA will be represented at the event by Beatriz Llanos, coordinator for training and dialogues for the Andean subregional office.
Did you know?
- IDEA contributed to the recently published book Women, Quotas and Politics, edited by Professor Drude Dahlerup of Stockholm University, which features the latest developments in the application of quotas.
- IDEA’s findings regarding the use of women’s quotas provided substantial input to the December 2005 UN Secretary General report: “Equal participation of women and men in decision-making processes at all levels” for the 50th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, 27 February to 10 March 2006.
- On 19-24 February IDEA Board Chairperson Lena Hjelm-Wallén traveled to South Africa, Namibia and Botswana - three IDEA member states in Southern Africa - to discuss IDEA’s work in the subregion. She also explained the types of services IDEA provides to member states with such officials as Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba, Botswanian President Festus Mogae and South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad.
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Contact information
Editors: Bénédicte Walter, Monika Ericson
Head of external relations: Ingrid Wetterqvist
International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
Strömsborg
SE-103 34 Stockholm, Sweden
Tel.: +46-8 698 37 00
Fax.: +46-8-20 24 22
E-mail: news@idea.int
Web: www.idea.int
