Women in Politics
The 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day, we need to reflect on the representation of Irish women in political life. So much progress for women has been achieved since 1911, for example Irish women now benefit from improved equality legislation and protection following Ireland’s accession to the EU. However, that only 15% of the 163 seats of the next Dáil are filled with women poses many questions about real equality and representation in Ireland and Europe.
Across the EU one hundred years later, 17% of women are ranked in the poverty bracket; women earn 17.8% less than their male counterparts; only 3% of women are heading up large companies; women are concentrated in low-paid and part-time jobs; women account for the vast majority of lone parents and undertake most of the unpaid care work and a very high percentage are still subjected to domestic violence.
Irish female representation in national public office is extremely low when compared with the low EU average of 24% of women representatives across 27 national parliaments. Women in the European Parliament fare better and represent 35% of MEPs.
We need to become more excited about the values and skills that women bring to politics and business. In order for true representation to become a reality we need to invoke temporary quotas to kick-start the process of true representation. Rwanda for example with the help of quotas is the only Parliament in the world with equal representation.
Political parties have given commitments to increase female representation. The most recent result at 15% demonstrates that these commitments have not worked! NUI Graduates have however one more immediate opportunity before the end of April in the Seanad election to help elect capable representative women.
There are four women candidates out of 27 running on the NUI panel. Since the history of our State only TWO women have been elected onto this panel in the Seanad. Helena Concanon born in 1878, elected in 1933, politician, historian, author and professor of history in UCG and Gemma Hussey, born in 1938, elected in 1977 who then went onto become Minister of Education. This fact is embarrassing for a modern State.
You have an opportunity to balance the scales for women’s representation. Make your vote count!
The Lisbon Treaty For Women – The Reasons Why
Joining the European Community in 1973 was a fundamental step forward for Irish women who automatically upon membership of the EEC received rights of equality particularly in the field of employment. For example, women who married prior to 1973 were prohibited from continuing in civil service employment following their marriage under Irish law guided by the Irish Constitution.
Since our membership, workers and women have benefited from further equality based legislation and socially based legislation such as the promotion of maternity and paternity leave, rights of redundancy and protection of young persons at work in addition to rights for
part-time and agency workers and protection of health and safety.
Secondly, Irish women have been influenced Europe for many centuries. Some of them like Rosa O’ Doherty who would have come from a Brehon law system of spirited Irish women was entrepreneurial in the Irish College of Louvain while in exile established herself in practice as the first Irish Ambassador of Brussels supplying documentation for travel to all her Irish brethren.
Following in her footsteps, Anne Anderson a Tipperary woman, now Irish ambassador to the UN, was the first Irish and European woman to sit at and then lead the meetings of Coreper – a weekly meeting of each of the twenty seven ambassadors of the EU who organize meetings for the Ministers of the EU – during the Irish Presidency 2004. A second Irish woman, Dublin woman Catherine Day is the first woman Secretary General of the European Commission.
Thirdly, the European Social Fund continued to focus on those who are marginalized in society such as those who have become redundant or long-term unemployed and need to be up-skilled to adapt to the present market in addition to assisting marginalized women who wish to pursue third-level education and children of disadvantaged backgrounds
Ratification of the Lisbon Treaty is important to women and I will give you a couple of the Reasons Why.
If the Lisbon Treaty is passed, the Charter of Fundamental Rights comes into legal effect and each of the institutions when proposing and adopting law will have to pay attention to the rights therein. For example the Charter promotes human dignity such as a ban on human trafficking and a ban on the death penalty, the right to education, the right to solidarity and the rights of workers to negotiate with their employer.
Ireland cannot deal with cross-border challenges alone – challenges such as cross-border crime, climate change, global financial crisis, terrorism and s of human trafficking. We need our EU family to assist us with cross-border cooperation.
Victims of human trafficking are mostly women and children who are trafficked for sexual exploitation, forced labour and domestic servitude. The Treaty will not only prohibit human trafficking but will also make it much easier for countries to work together to combat the trafficking and sexual exploitation of women and children.
The Lisbon Treaty will assist us both with improving job creation through the promotion of green jobs, saving money and working to sustain our planet in the long-term. The Treaty encourages renewable energy and inter-connectedness of our energy supply. When Russia turned off the energy tap in the Ukraine up to 14 different countries were affected. The Lisbon Treaty aims to
improve our energy security through connecting us to European lines. Let us not forget that this inter-connector will facilitate our plug-in opportunity to supply our fellow countries with energy from our wind and wave energy making potential in the coming years.
The EU is the largest donor of development aid in the world and has proved to be the world’s most successful peace project. The Lisbon Treaty aims to put poverty eradication at the heart of its development goals and to increase its budget to improve
The EU is not about ‘them’ and ‘us’. The EU is ourselves. This is a system which has provided a framework for cooperation and peace through the pooling of sovereignty. It is our Governments and our MEPs who adopt EU legislation. This Treaty brings more democracy to you. Let’s move forward with the Lisbon Treaty which will ensure that Ireland remains at the heart of Europe.
