DAPHNE ANAK ELIJA (83590) Group 15

Discriminations faced by Women Political Representatives and Double Standards in Political

Culture

Women in parliament contribute to greater attention to women’s issues. Political involvement

by women is a fundamental requirement for gender equality and genuine democracy. It promotes
women's direct participation in public decision-making and ensures greater accountability to women.
Many would still prefer and should be involved in politics only men. Owning to the fact that men are
great leaders and more dominant in this field rather than women. A thesis written by Deborah J Smith
(2005) from the University of London captivated me to share this critical response when considering
women's changing roles and status in society, researchers emphasise the importance of categorising
them not only by caste, class, and religion but also by generation and familial position. In this case, it
is argued that women in this field are not treated equally and this may cause to discourage young
women who are interested in political culture. Hence why I agree on why gender equality should exist
in the workplace diversity before all else to ensure everyone that they are being treated with fairness.
According to Oshewolo and Adedire (2019), "gender balance in politics" simply refers to granting
both men and women the same possibilities inside political and governing structures. Women's
political participation in democracies influences women's representation in public leadership roles and
their freedom of inclusion in politics. It is irrelevant and pointless to show favouritism towards only
one gender. In this critical response, I will be discussing how women are treated differently and how
political culture has a double standard.

It is undeniable gender inequality is a hot issue in the workplace. Despite the official
statement of the gender equality policy appearing in the law in the workplace, there are still ignorant
people who do not care about the policy. In this political field, women do not get recognition and their
work did not get much credit and acknowledgement from other politicians as well as society. Society
plays a big part in this ground on who to vote for, lead and support the country. Women often get
misunderstood and for this reason of that is they get too emotional and irrational to become a leader. A
study done by Farzana (2015), stated that male often dominated political parties have a male
viewpoint on issues of national importance that discouraged women as their perspective is often
ignored and not reflected in the politics of their parties. Furthermore, when women are brought into
politics they are entered as mothers and wives hence why there are more male representatives in the
federal cabinets. These gender biases are a factor to hinder women’s involvement in politics. This
brings difficulties to address women’s rights from a woman’s perspective. Moreover, women are
belittled as voters as well as in leading positions, whether in elected offices, the civil service, or
academia (UN Women, 2013). A case study from International IDEA conducted and translated by
Azizah (2002), a voice that men, women, and minorities must all have their interests and opinions
considered during the decision-making process. However, women are underrepresented in political
institutions, and far from being a part of the decision-making process. Women who want to become
politicians encounter an array of obstacles. Lack of party support, family support, and the "male
model" of political life are a few examples.

Women experience many obstacles in this political field and now let’s get moving into the
double standard that exists within political culture. The analogy is so horrifying that it is humorous
when people examine the inequalities between men and women in political culture. Research done by
Tessa (2017) from Durham University found that even though the evidence for the influence of gender
stereotypes on voting behaviour is not as clear-cut as it once might have appeared, there are good
reasons to think that gender-stereotyped evaluations still take place and may have a more complex
impact on voter option and candidate reports than previously believed. The study results suggest that
voters may value competence assessments differently when choosing between a woman and a man
than when choosing between the two. For example, when a woman in parliament addresses issues and
problems faced by women, men often ignored the issues and find them amusing. In this matter, it
shows that men were leisurely and couldn’t care less about women’s rights. This had happened not
only to the Prime Minister of New Zealand but also to women’s representatives in Malaysia. With this
being said, stereotypes are based on personality traits, issue competencies, and ideology. Female
candidates are frequently thought to possess more feminine traits and social-they are viewed as being
more emotional, sensitive, and kind. Also, they are frequently regarded as being more dependable and
sincere than male applicants. Moreover, they are perceived as being less agentic, less competent, less
equipped to bear the emotional demands of a senior administration, and lacking in traditionally
masculine characteristics like "toughness." Yet, more "masculine" topics like crime, war, and
economics are viewed as the domain of men.

In conclusion, discrimination against women in political culture is a persistent problem that

almost seems infinite, and there is also a double standard in this area, which leads to women being
taken advantage of constantly. Many women are wanting to get into this field to change for the better
future of women’s rights. I believe society is developing gradually in this field, especially the young
generations. The more women fight for women’s rights, the more the culture will change. In this field,
not only women will fight for women’s rights but also gender equality to achieve everyone’s
satisfaction.
References

Ditonto, Tessa (2017). A High Bar or a Double Standard? Gender, Competence, and Information in
Political Campaigns. Politic Behaviour, 39, 301–325, Durham University. Available at
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11109-016-9357-5.

Farzana, B (2005, Nov 3). Women’s Political Participation: Issues and Challenges. Bangkok,
Thailand. Available at Women's Political Participation.Issues and Challenges. draft F.pdf.

Oshewolo, S., Adedire, S. (2019). Gender Representation in Nigeria’s National Assembly Under the
Fourth Republic. The Nigerian National Assembly. Advances in African Economic, Social
and Political Development. Springer, Cham. Available at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-
11905-8_11

Sukhani, P. (2020). Women’s Political Representation: Progressing in Malaysia? (RSIS,

Commentaries, No. 009). RSIS Commentaries. Singapore: Nanyang Technological
University. Available at https://hdl.handle.net/10356/136813

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) (2019). Women’s
Political Participation and Leadership, Social Development Policy Briefs.

Wan, A (2002). International IDEA, Women in Parliament, Stockholm Sweden. Available at

perempuan-di-parlemen-bukan-sekedar-jumlah-EN-case-study-malaysia.pdf.