Women in politics and the quota system

                                          Women in politics and the quota system



      In the world the presence of women in politics is lower than men. The difference is also noticed in other types of leadership, such as entrepreneurship.

OECD´s report (Women, Government and Policy Making in OECD Countries. Fostering Diversity for Inclusive Growth, 2014, www.oecd.org) says clearly : "Despite visible progress, women generally remain under-represented in key decision-making positions in politics..."

In order to resolve the problem, countries often present the quota system as the main solution. As we are going to conclude this idea is not fully true. Some countries have already the quota system (Portugal, Brazil, Spain, Belgium). According to the system, political parties include in their lists a minimum number of women. But the number of women´s activism in politics remains low. Why? The question is very complex. We can say its necessary to evaluate political parties and the way they include women in those lists. As OECDS´s report says "...due to the absence of placement mandates, women can be placed in unwinnable positions. This way reduce their chances of election."

 Gender equality must be considered a priority. Although the quota system introduced by law may help its not the solution or the pill that will  resolve the gender equality problem. Solution involves other specific areas of society and women´s education to activelly participate in society.

Susana M

What is sexual harassment ?

What is sexual harassment ?

A woman in the street can hear all type of comments regarding their physical characteristics and gender. Are streets danger to women, in general? Can they dress what they want to and not be molested?

Many women face horrible comments on public streets related to her own gender. Sexual and physical comments in public and private places are still common. This is sexual harassment. More than a matter of respect, education and moral, these type of comments reduce women to sexual objects and a "body for pleasure". Many women still feel they have to correspond to society´s psysical demands on body beauty. These ideas or psycological disturbs are not excuses for keeping things they way they are.

 If men don´t respect women and still see them like sexual objects, even if some women think its natural or don´t mind hearing those type of comments is important to introduce new ways for responsibility. 

After a report in Belgium "Femme de La Rue" that talked about how women are sexual molested with verbal abuse and comments on body and sexual verbal insults, Belgium decided on a new law about sexual harassment. According to this law all type of verbal abuse, sexual or physical comments on public streets against women will be criminal offences.

Belgium created a new way that must be followed by all countries. It s a matter of education, public order and women´s safety.

Susana Monteiro

Cyberstalking

What is cyberstalking ?

The first question we have to make is: what is stalking? Stalking is a form of violence characterized, for example, by repeatedly phone calls, strange messages, someone (normally a man) waiting around a woman at her work, home.... Its a large concept basically defined as all type of surveillance and violation of privacy. 

Cyberstalking is a form of stalking but using cyber tools. Normally is the persecution and violation of privacy by internet, facebook, emails...

According to a european study on violence against women ("Violence Against Women: an EU-wide survey", 2004, fra.europa.eu):

- "...in the European Union 18% of women have experienced stalking ..."; "...One in five victims of stalking (23%) has had to change her phone number or email ...".

This is violence against women. Many women don´t know the agent of the crime. So, any women despite of their ability to chose the best friends, parterns or relationships can be victims. But there are ways to help avoid, prevent and resolve the situation. 

The first step is having the information that this type of actions are violence. Then they can get all the legal support the law (criminal) can give to them. 

Are Institutions prepared to deal with these situations? Depends on the country´s laws. Many don´t have specific laws on stalking. But they have general laws that can protect women. Despite these general law is important to work on the creation of new laws addressing stalking because is a specific situation that needs a urgent respond. It can be a matter of safety not only of privacy.

Talking about cyberstalking is a way to alert women for this currently type of violence. They can try to prevent it or take measures to avoid it by , for example, starting to protect their privavy: don´t put to much information, like place of residence, school, phone, emails available for all type of personalities (that in general don´t know very well) about personal issues on facebook or other communication tools. 

Say no to stalking, to cyberstalking and demand new criminal laws on the subject, don´t waite to be a victim to do it. Start today !

Susana Monteiro

The Day Ares Lost The War

                                              The Day Ares Lost The War

In Greek mythology, Ares is the god of war, but a women is also represented as the goddess of war, courage, inspiration, wisdom, law and justice. Her name is Athena.

Imagine Ares and Athena in the 21st century. Ares even before knowing Athena pursues her in work, school and wants to control her schedules, her friends, her conversations. He begins chasing her in all things she does, places and people around her. He calls her but says nothing repeatedly.

After sending her several messages to mobile and email, he begins follow her on facebook and other communications tools.
Athena has an university degree and a job she loves.

But Athena is not the only one, Ares persecutes. He has a women in his kingdom that takes care of his children and domestic issues. Her name is Pandora. Ares controles all Pandora hours. She has to justify everything she does, the money she spends, who she talks too, type of conversations and hours she spends outside home. He gets mad and insults her, calls her bad names. He makes her feel emotional inferior. Sometimes he beats her. He beats her so hard that she thinks she can die and starts to feel she has guilt or she deserves it.

Pandora always forgives. Ares gives her roses says "I love you. You are mine. You are the only women that I want just for me". Pandora feels special and she has hope in his change.

Violence against women can assume several forms. All women are potential victims. Young, old, rich or poor.

What is violence? Buy this, I mean, what is crime ?

Insults, controls, violation of private life, physical and emotional abuse, control of clothing. In general all type of acts that makes a women feel emotional inferior.
This is typicall bad relationships based on psycological problems. Good relationships never lead to negative feelings or self-estime attacks.

Its wrong to understand violence only as physical violence. We have a notion of violence against women in the 1993 United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women. In artice 1. Its an act based on physical, sexual or psycological harm that can occurs in private or in public life.
The truth is that if they don´t get out this relationships these women can die.

Violence against women is much more than violence in a relationship. Like happened with Athena.

Like in Greek mythology women are also powerful. Ares is the god of war but Athena is much more. She is the goddess of war, wisdom, inspiration, courage, law and justice.
So, what Athena can do?
Use wisdom to do criminal complaints, protect herself, talk to people about it; use inspiration to not make a war against herself but look within her and create a good sel-estime.
She uses law to achieve justice; she uses courage to live without restrictions, not letting people tell her what to do or where she can go.
 She uses the title of goddess to say no. She says no, because she knows what love is and she wants to be free.
.. and Ares lost the war he made because he doesnt know what love is.

Susana Monteiro

Somaliland Leaders want Girls' Genital Mutilation to Continue

Per an article written by Jason Straziuso that was printed via the Associated Press in my local newspaper, "The Press Democrat" (Santa Rosa, California), genital mutilation continues.  Of a group of 30 teenagers, both boys and girls, all agreed that female genital mutilation is harmful and should be abandoned, but moments later they revealed that girls should have their genitalia cut, just not sewn shut.  In fact, all 15 girls that were sitting with the boys at the Sheik Nuur Primary school's after school club have undergone suna - the removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, and all agreed that this was the right thing to do.  The article went on to state that in Somalia, the cultural expectation is that girls undergo this process because men expect to marry a virgin, and if a girl has not undergone female genital mutilation, she is considered unclean. UNICEF faces an uphill battle in its' campaign to eradicate the tradition of suna.  Despite telling leaders in Somalia that genital mutilation is painful and can lead to death, pain, and mental issues, and that genital mutilation dates back some 6,000 years ago, long before Islam was founded, and hence is not required by Islam, the religious leaders, including the minister of religious affairs, said they cannot agree to abandon suna. The practice of female genital cutting will continue.

Although this practice seems very strange to people in the United States, there is a common theme.  In this country there are some groups who still prize women's virtue and purity, and in conservative states there are ever increasing laws being passed that limit women's access to birth control.  This includes legislation that prevents birth control from being covered under health insurance plans and legislation that prevents businesses from providing birth control at all in some parts of the country.  Legislators often claim that this is because everyone should not have to pay for women to engage in sexual relations.  However men's sexual health continues to be covered, and accessible, including prescriptions for erection enhancing drugs.  Clearly there are legislators who continue to think that it is okay for men to engage in sexual relations with women, but that they still want women to remain pure and virginal for marriage.  Certainly this is not as extreme as genital mutilation, but it does reinforce the notion that misogyny continues to exist worldwide.  There is much work to be done to eradicate the double standard that exists between men and women in the world.

Women´s History and Rights

                         Feminist Movements in Europe. Still a current need?



        The historical process of recognition of rights to women is associated with feminist groups, especially in United Kingdom and France.
         A society characterized as patriarcal does not give rights to women, like society in the 19th century.
         In the 19th century, freedom and independence were not a reality in women´s world.
         In 19th century, in UK when a group of women decided to fight for basic rights, society was not in favour of women´s rights. In the end of the 19th century, the fight began as a struggle for voting rights, freedom to decide on marriage, freedom as a human (no more recognized as property of men), reproductive and sexual rights. Important for this fight, among others, were Voltairine de Cleyne and Margaret Sanger.
          Thanks to this movement, in UK and Ireland, in 1918, women had the right to vote if they had more than 30 years old and property. In 1928, the right to vote was recognized to all women with more than 21 years old (no need for property rights).
           The second phase of the movement started in 1960. This fight meant a revolution in terms of social and political equality. Combat sexist structures aimed to recognize women´s equality.
           From this second phase of fight, became known the slogan "The Personal is Political" (Carol Hanisch).
           In France, the women´s fights for rights intensified in 1970. The newspaper "L´idiot International", published an article with the title "Combat pour la Liberation des Femmes". This document is a historical landmark in feminist struggle for right, not only in France. Literary analysis of feminist oppression was common on periodical publications. "L´écriture feminine" was crucial in the recognition and development of women´s rights.
           Today, in the 21th century women still have to deal with several problems related to rights, despite of the written law that regognized basic rights to women. But theory is diferente from real respect of the law. Problems related with inequality in salaries, discrimination at work, violence, few political participation, in developed countries are problematic for women. In developing countries, women have to deal, still with violation of basic rights (education, health, reproductive rights). Their everyday life is still discrimination and submission to men or family. Women are still the group most affected by poverty.
            This makes me wonder if there is a strong need to revive the feminist movements in the world. In this context, what would be men´s participation?
            In an equal society, work to make rights and freedoms a reality for everyone, must be a goal not only for women but also for men.

Author: Susana Monteiro