International Women's Day: The Issues

International

Women's

Day

1997

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The Issues

Who's (Not) in Power: Peace and Politics

Introduction

Facts and Figures

A Report from Experts

Over the past 50 years, the most progress has been achieved in securing political rights for women -- the right to vote and to be elected. Today, there are only a few countries where women cannot vote or run for public office.

It is widely believed that increasing the number of women in decision-making positions will lead to positive changes for women and society. However, even though women can run for office in most countries, their presence in government is still very low.

One area in which women have gained very little access is at the highest levels of diplomacy and political decision-making related to peace and security. While women have been very active calling for an end to war and the arms race, they have been less visible at the negotiating table. Yet, ironically, it is women and children who suffer the most in today's wars.

Consider the following:

Only 24 women have been elected heads of state or government in this century. In 1995 there were 10 women heads of state. Although women's representation at the highest level of government is generally weakest in Asia, four of these 10 held office in this region.
Only 11.7 percent of representatives elected to Parliaments around the world are women.
The percentage of female cabinet ministers worldwide has risen from 3 in 1987 to 62 percent in 1996. In early 1995, Sweden formed the world's first cabinet to have equal numbers of men and women.
Of the 185 highest ranking diplomats to the United Nations eight are women.
Almost no women served on the military staff of UN peace keeping between 1957 and 1979. In 1993, 2 percent of the military contingent of peace-keeping were women. Throughout the history of UN peace-keeping, there have been only 2 women in top decision-making positions.

A group of experts gathered in Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic, last October to discuss precisely these issues. Two important points were made at the meeting, called by the UN's Division for the Advancement of Women and the International Peace Research Institute in Oslo.

First and foremost, full participation in the politics of peace and security is part of the human rights of women and a central part of the democratic process.

Second, it was suggested that political systems have something to gain from the participation of women. Women, it was argued, have a different approach to peace and conflict-resolution so that increasing their participation in decisions concerning these issues has the potential to move political and international systems closer to peace.

For example, research in a number of countries confirms that, compared to women, men show a 10 to 15 percent greater preference for the use of military force. They also pointed to evidence that indicates women have a more cooperative style of decision-making that is not primarily based on coercion, or the use of force.

However, the experts also cautioned against jumping to conclusions. For one thing, they said, none of the research indicates that women or men are born more aggressive or peaceful than the other. They added that often bringing one or two women into high-level political positions might not have any impact on the way decisions are made. The political style only changes if women are represented in large enough numbers -- a critical mass -- estimated at a level of about 30 to 35 percent.

Discussion Questions