Current discussions on Seanad reform provide an opportunity to tackle Ireland's poor record on gender equality, write Eilís Ward and YvonneGalligan
There was much surprise recently when a UN report showed that Ireland lagged behind other countries in the percentage of women in national parliaments and representative positions. The UNIFEM report (published last May) showed that sub-Saharan African states such as Eritrea, Uganda and Mozambique had much higher degrees of representation of women than Ireland.
Ireland has amongst the lowest percentage of women in national parliaments in Europe (at 14 per cent) and is very far off the UN target of 30 per cent.
Much of the surprise probably came from a sense that as younger democracies, struggling with development, these states could not have outdone us, and outdone us so dramatically, when it comes to women's inclusion in political life. It profoundly questioned the assumption that such change comes slowly, according to some "natural" evolutionary process and should not be forced.
One key to explaining the differences is the issue of quotas. As a tool for redressing imbalances of any kind, quotas can be two-edged swords. They are sensitive instruments to be used with care and, importantly, alongside a series of other measures that boost the fortunes of the group being given special attention, quotas become defunct.
Ireland's very poor record on women's participation in political life can be partially explained by the failure to examine and use quotas judiciously and expertly. In 1993 the then minister for equality and law reform, Mr Mervyn Taylor, directed all State boards to appoint women to 40 per cent of their positions.
It took another major effort by the current Minister of State for Equality, Mr Willie O'Dea, almost 10 years later, to tackle boards again but recent efforts show that over all Government Departments, the percentage of women on boards is still only at 29. Within some Departments, such as Finance and Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, the record stands at an abysmal 14 per cent. Mr O'Dea, it seems, has now "threatened" to introduce legislation backing the 40 per cent rule if Government Departments do not comply with what is, after all, Government policy.
At the very least we can say that there is a problem of collective ownership of this policy. We might also guess that this could be a case of the pot calling the kettle black. While a norm of (more) equal representation is being requested of State bodies, representative institutions from local to national government are being left to their old patterns of male domination without any direction from government. This has to change.
Right now, the Irish State is looking into one historic opportunity to take a leap and begin redressing the gender imbalance in a serious and sustainable manner. Current discussions on reform of the Seanad have opened up a window to the use of quotas to produce a representative House whose members reflect the gender proportions of the population. In other words, a House which is made of equal proportions of men and women or as close to that as makes no difference.
What this means is not just a House which has rebalanced the deficit of the politics of presence, but a House in which gender and women's issues can be fully integrated into all debates and a house where women's talents, energies and (generally) less confrontational style of politics will create a more dynamic, more democratic and more powerful institution.
It is not yet clear what the new Seanad will look like - we will not know this until the committee currently examining reform produces its recommendations and they, in turn, have been approved by the Government.
But given the likely outcomes, it is relatively straightforward to argue for the application of quotas (based on 50/50 male and female or based on a minimum 40/60 female to male) in all processes, whether based on appointment, such as some version of the "Taoiseach's Eleven", or election based on panels of some sort.
Should the Seanad continue to be constituted by panels from, say, the universities and from professional and trade sectors, regardless of how the electorate is organised, a simple decree that the outcome should reflect the quota established would ensure that the selection or nomination bodies would put enough women forward. It would also ensure that when the votes were counted, the men and women with the highest number would, according to the quota, take their seats.
In the past it has also been suggested that a panel be constituted of women's interests, alongside agriculture, commerce and education, and that the National Women's Council perform the task of nominating body and its members of that particular electorate.
While the Seanad electoral system remains a sorrowful mystery to most, the nature of the House and the nature of the representative structure there lend to it the potential to perform a small but significant miracle without great effort.
State policy in some sectors in relation to gender interests has been impressive, gender State machinery is now in place in the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and in gender units in other Departments. The women's movement may not be a national, organised force such as we saw in the 1970s and 1980s in campaigns over contraception and sexual violence, but it is vibrant at a local level in hundreds of women's groups.
Many of the members of these groups are demanding a place in institutions of local governance but are finding it hard to break through old and established networks of men based on party affiliation and bonds of fraternity. All over the country policy decisions are being made and budgets are being drawn up with little or no input from half the population.
Experience from elsewhere has shown that where governments take a lead and, for instance, agree a gender quota as a step towards gender equality in public life, those old exclusive networks are replaced by more open and democratic systems.
To the sub-committee of the Committee on Procedure and Privileges of Seanad Éireann and to the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, we say: take a leap, be bold, show some initiative and help redress Ireland's embarrassing record on gender equality in public life!
- Dr Eilís Ward of the Women's Studies Centre, NUIG, and Dr Yvonne Galligan of the Centre for the Advancement of Women in Politics, QUB, recently made a submission to the Seanad reform process on the application of gender quotas in the future Seanad.