From the Margins to the Mainstream - Women in Political Decision-making in  Thailand

Despite enjoying equal rights as men to vote and stand for political office, Thai  women are relatively marginalized from political decision-making. They constitute 10.4% and 10.5% of the lower and upper houses of Parliament. Few have occupied cabinet positions, and barring a few exceptions, are usually relegated to soft portfolios. At local level, in 2002, 1.8% and 2.9% of sub-district and village heads respectively, were women. While women constitute two thirds of the civil service at lower levels, they form only 20% of senior staff in grades 9-11.

Absence of a critical mass of women in decision-making transgresses women's constitutional right to equality. It falls short of States Party obligations under global human rights frameworks - the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Beijing Platform for Action and the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs). A critical mass of elected women with a gender sensitive human rights orientation can better integrate women's concerns and perspectives into the formulation and implementation of development policies, plans, programmes, to ensure women's rights and entitlements. Such an inclusive approach promotes sustainable human development.

Mainstreaming women into decision-making positions is no easy task. It involves multi-pronged interventions that generate enabling policy, institutional and social environments. These include awareness raising challenging discriminatory social stereotypes that relegate women to the privacy of domesticity, and thrust men into highly valued public leadership roles; encouraging women, families and communities to believe in and support women as resourceful leaders, decision-makers and managers; developing a culture of shared domestic responsibility between men and women in the family, and/or providing adequate child care and household services to free women to participate politically; training women on political structures and processes, and the mechanics of contesting elections successfully; transforming the culture of political parties to provide quotas, ensure women's representation at decision-making levels in parties and place women high on party lists in winnable seats; providing adequate funds to women candidates to contest elections.

But women's participation in decision-making per se, does not necessarily guarantee a transformational agenda for women. Consciousness raising for elected officials -  men and women - on gender responsive good governance is critical. This includes instilling clarity on a gender sensitive rights perspective; operationalizing this through policies, plans and programmes to address women's concerns; training to govern in a transparent, inclusive, honest, participatory manner. Finally, we need to build enlightened constituencies, catalyze institutional mechanisms to ensure public support to women leaders with a transformational agenda and to hold to account  duty bearers who renege on their commitments to gender equality and women's empowerment.

Though the task seems daunting, the signs of progress are many. Thailand's MDG+ target for Goal 3 on gender equality is to double the proportion of women in Parliament-indicative of government commitment to women's political participation. The Women Parliamentarian Caucus consisting of women MPs from both government and opposition parties, and Thai NGOs and have been providing 'women in politics' training to women to contest elections - especially at local level. NGOs have called for amendments to local government legislation to provide seats equally for a male and female in the sub-district administration organization. Some political parties have introduced quotas for women in their executive committees, drawing women into higher levels of intra-party decision making. NGOs continue to advocate with political parties to place women high on party lists. The Women Parliamentarian Caucus has been organizing multi-stakeholder national workshops to promote women's political participation at national and local levels. It has been advocating for gender sensitive legislation and has organized public hearings regionally on the draft domestic violence and reproductive health bills, with recommendations for change. Finally in the run up to the tambon elections of 2005, NGOs organized platforms facilitating dialogue between political parties and civil society on party plans to address women's concerns. These are indeed critical milestones to draw women from the margins to the center of political decision-making, to transform the mainstream in the direction of gender equality and women's empowerment.

Dr. Jean DÇunha

Regional Programme Director, UNIFEM (UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENTFUND FOR WOMEN) East and Southeast Asia Regional Office, Bangkok 

Updated: 09 March 2006 10:27 +0700 -