Women and the political glass ceiling
Baboki Kayawe | Friday August 7, 2015 15:23
Botswana prides itself as a beacon of peace and democracy in Africa, and is ranked well relative to most nations globally. As a result, the landlocked country continues to be highly regarded by the international community.
Despite strides in developmental undertakings, as reflected through provision of universal education, promotion of maternal health, and being the first African country to reduce HIV/AIDS deaths through the rolling out of free Anti-Retroviral Drugs, women in Botswana languish at the bottom of almost every sectoral indicator.
Young women face challenges such as teenage pregnancies, which are now the leading cause of school dropouts, especially in rural areas.
In addition to that is women’s low numbers in the fields of agriculture, ICT, business and trade, as well as having to live with the ‘monster’ that is gender-based violence. Women in Botswana perform below par in terms of political representation for a country that is deemed a shining example, with very few entering Parliament through the ballot.
In addition, women lag behind in political representation. In fact, the first two female Members of Parliament, Dr Gaositwe Chiepe and Kebatshabile Disele (now late) were specially elected members.
Botswana Parliament history indicates that until the Third Botswana Parliament of 1974, the membership of the National Assembly was wholly or exclusively male.
“Following the elections of 1974, which ushered in the Third Parliament, Dr Gaositwe K. T. Chiepe and Kebatshabile Disele were specially elected as Members of Parliament.
“In the case of the former, she was immediately appointed Minister of Commerce and Industry, while the latter remained a backbencher for a while until her elevation to cabinet as Minister of Home Affairs,” reads the website. However, in 1977, Chiepe was elected as MP for Serowe South, following a by-election occasioned by the death of the incumbent.
Subsequently, Disele ceased to be an MP following the dissolution of the Parliament and the number of women legislators dropped to one. All was not lost as publisher, Clara Olsen (now late) was specially elected in 1984, restoring the number of women MPs to two.
The under representation of women from party level to Parliament continued over the years, with the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) and Botswana Congress Party (BCP) fielding just three females in the 57 constituencies up for grabs in the 2009 general elections.
Last year, history repeated itself when just four women were voted into Parliament, with another specially elected. The current Parliament has only five women out of the 61 seats available, constituting eight percent women representation.
The five women include Botlogile Tshireletso, Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi, Dorcas Makgato, Same Bathobakae and Unity Dow, who was specially elected. Another woman in the National Assembly is the speaker, Gladys Kokorwe.
Meanwhile, women outnumber men in the population. According to the 2011 census, Botswana has 1,035,608 women, compared to 989,179 men. These figures mean that for every 100 women, there are 96 men.
“Despite being considered a shining example of democracy and excellent political governance, Botswana is still lagging far behind in terms of female representation, which is odd, considering that women comprise a sizable number of the population and voters,” an Inter-Parliamentary Union report of December 2012 noted.
Kokorwe is unhappy about the status quo. “This is worrisome to say the least,” says Kokorwe. She describes the situation of having only four constituencies out of 57 represented by women as ‘bad’.
“More women representatives are needed for women’s’ voices to be heard,” she says. “The more they are in Parliament, the more they will be able to caucus, advise each other and come up with laws or amendments to the existing laws that affect women.”
Kokorwe recalls that during her days as a parliamentarian, the country did not have a Domestic Violence Act until she came up with a Private Members Bill on Domestic Violence.
“More needs to be done. Various women’s organisations have tried educating Batswana on the importance of gender equality and equity, but we still do not see any difference. Countries that have succeeded are those who came up with some form of affirmative action in their constitutions. I think Botswana should take that route.”
Publisher and gender activist, Beata Kasale concurs with Kokorwe. She says Botswana has a long way to go in reaching the 50/50 benchmark on gender parity as the constitution does not prescribe quotas or affirmative action.
“Therefore, Batswana women will always be left behind in institutional positions as well as in governance,” she says. Kasale adds the disproportional representation of women in Parliament has resulted in their voices being silenced.
For veteran gender activist, Keabonye Ntsabane the status of women in politics in Botswana is depressing. Last year, Ntsabane stood for the position of councillor, but could not make it through. “It is depressing, but the blame should be directed at women as they are the largest voters and for some reason known to them, they only choose to vote for men. They even decampaign and destroy their kind,” she says. She adds that with Parliament being where laws and policies are designed, women’s lack of adequate presentation is a real challenge, which undermines the very democracy that Botswana is globally celebrated for.
Commenting on the fact that the first two women MPs were specially elected, and years on into the democracy, women still play second fiddle to their male counterparts at polling stations, Ntsabane says this status quo will continue until both the opposition and the ruling party agree on a quota for women to stand for political office. The solution in her view lies in a quota for women as well as the review of the First-Past-The-Post election system that Botswana currently uses. Further, the country must ensure that the special nomination dispensation benefits all women regardless of political affiliation. “The time has come for women to be financially supported during campaigns. I personally experienced it as a woman who also stood for elections with limited finances, and I am now left completely broke.
“I am now starting from scratch. I am broke to the extent that I am a street vendor selling fat cakes,” she says. Ironically women are under represented in politics even though they vote more than men in elections. According to a Botswana Institute of Development Policy Analysis study, 311,265 women registered to vote in the 2004 general elections compared to 239,148 men.
In 2009, 404,238 women registered to vote compared to 321,534 men while in 2014, 456,087 females registered to vote compared to 368,347 males.
For many activists, the country’s refusal to sign the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development is a major cause of the challenges women in Botswana find themselves in.
Botswana has refused to sign the Protocol, which contains equity targets and policies, since its inception in 2008, citing “steep financial implications” to the Protocol’s implementation. Some government officials have also described the Protocol and its language as being too instructive. “As long as the Botswana government doesn’t sign the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, there will be no priority to mainstream women in governance and institutions,” says Kasale.
There are hopes that the adoption of the National Policy on Gender and Development will lead to government signing the SADC Protocol. The national policy is being debated in Parliament.