Gender Issues in Women as Representatives

i. Introduction:
“No Nation can rise to height of glory unless your women are not side by side with
you”.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Father of Nation

In accordance with the advice of the Quaid e Azam, the presence of women
representatives in legislative assemblies of Pakistan is extremely important for
good governance, poverty alleviation and even human resource development.
Therefore concerted and collaborated efforts have been made in this regard by
creating women quotas in national and provincial legislative assemblies. However,
making women representatives of people is not enough if they don’t have equal
status to men in decision-making. Despite being representatives and having equal
legal status women representatives are treated as secondary class participants.

ii. Issued faced by Women Representatives in Legislative assemblies of Pakistan:

1. Lack of Support from Political Leadership:

It is often observed in Pakistani politics that male political leadership usually
take women representatives on board only for organizing and running election
campaigns and canvassing. They are rarely been consulted in important
matters like deciding party policy or agenda. Women’s ability to approach
female populace is amply utilized. They are also generally required to be fully
competent while same is not expected from their male counterparts.

2. Lack of support from male counterparts

It is also observed that male representatives are not always supportive of
female representatives in their political endeavors. If a female representative
have to present some bill in assembly, she must have to offer something in
return to gain male representatives’ support. Male parliamentarian are also
very selective in supporting their women counterparts and their support
depends upon peculiar demand of the situation and political skill of particular
women representatives.

3. Gendered attitude of Government Officials

Women representatives are also seems to have lower level of confidence in
dealing with bureaucrats and government officials. This is because of gendered
attitude of senior government officials. They do not take women’ opinions
seriously. Government should regulate the institutionalized engagement of
female politicians with government officials by making them members of
relevant committees.
 4. Wrong portrayal by media:
Additionally , women representatives face challenges in that their private lives
seems to be focused more than their political careers. They have feelings that
their exposure to media could be risky as possible misreporting or misquoting
of their statements could cause more damage than benefit.

5. Lack of decision-making positions:

Even once elected , women representatives tend to hold lesser valued cabinet
ministries or similar positions. These positions are described as “soft
industries” and include health, education and welfare. Rarely do women (like
HINA RABBANI KHAR as Foreign Minister) hold executive decision-making
authority in more powerful domains or those that are associated with
traditional notions of masculinity.

6. Inability to work on reserved seats

Although to have women participation in political domain of country, the
constitution of Pakistan provides reserved seats for women in all national and
provincial legislative houses of Pakistan, still women who came parliament on
reserved seats have little say in policy making of the government. They are not
treated as equals to those who came of general seats. Furthermore many
women who attain reserved seats came on the basis of either nepotism or
financial support to party.

iii. Conclusion:
Despite having women’ quota in all legislative assemblies, women failed to get
considerable momentum in political domain. The main reasons behind this are the
(i) patriarchal mindsets (ii) secondary class status women in eyes of male
leadership, male representatives and seniors government officials and (iii) lack of
women on decision making positions. Moreover, Article 34 of the constitution of
Pakistan 1973 guarantees that “Steps shall be taken to ensure full participation of
women in all spheres of national life” but still subsequent governments failed to
take concrete measures. The biggest problem is not the absence of laws but their
lenient implementation.