Graphic 6. Women and Men Should Have Same Opportunities in Politics
1% 5% 10%
10% Strongly Agree Agree Disagree
74%
Strongly Disagree No Response
S What Possibilities Await Women for Winning Seats in The House of Representatives in 2014?
The greater participation of women in politics brings with it the hope that more women will win seats in the national and regional legislative bodies. In order that women be able to compete with men it will be necessary to map the opportunities for women to achieve seats in the House of Representatives. When asked why vote for a woman for a seat in the House, 47% of the WRI survey respondents indicated that women were perceived as more likely to advocate for the aspirations of the people, while another 18% said that women were capable of approaching the public and campaigning effectively. These results can be construed as capable of motivating more women to participate in politics in Indonesia.
Based on the points set out above, it can be assumed that the people of Indonesia support the participation of women in politics, with some actively advocating for that. The public’s disappointment with the problems emerging from the long-standing paradigm of male domination has motivated fresh momentum and more opportunity for women to participate in politics as candidates for the legislature in the 2014 election.
Graphic 7. Reasons Women Can Win Votes for Seats in the House of Representatives
Have good financial capability Have family/friendship ties with political figures: father, mother, child, sibling, etc.
17%
The participation of women in politics, including membership in the House of Representatives, is very important because their presence in the legislature can improve women’s welfare through representation, as well as through the initiation and influence of Graphic 1. agendas and the making of policy within the deveNumber of Women in House of Representatives lopment process. in the Interest of Women
Results from the WRI survey (Graphic 1) indicate that as many as 58% of the respondents agreed with further increasing the number of women representatives in the House of Representatives, while 6% said they strongly agreed. However, 23% disagreed.
1%
6% 12%
Strongly Agree Agree
23%
Disagree
58%
Strongly Disagree
If we take a look at Table 1 it then becomes clear that most of the dissenting responses were from
2%
Table 1. Number of Women in the House in the Interest of Women
5% 12%
Men
Women
1%
4%
5%
Agree
26%
32%
58%
Disagree
15%
7%
22%
Strongly Disagree
1%
1%
2%
No Response
7%
6%
13%
50%
50%
100%
Answer Strongly Agree
Have capacity to approach the public and campaign effectively
18%
More likely to advocate for the aspirations and needs of the public 0%
Why Is It Important for Women To Participate in Politics?
No Response
No Response Other
ince the onset of the reformation period in Indonesia participation in politics by women, especially the representation of women in decision-making processes has been an important part of the government and legislative agendas. A number of efforts have been made to establish gender affirmative policy. In an inclusive democracy, the public functions as one of the core pillars playing an important role in achieving more and more meaningful participation in politic by women.
47% 10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Total
Jalan Kalibata Utara II No. 78, Jakarta 12740 - INDONESIA Tel. (62-21) 7918.7149, 798.7345 Fax. (62-21) 798.7345 Email. office@wri.or.id Website. www.wri.or.id
Total
men. This could indicate two things that have given rise to debates in the world of politics: Men perceive women as lacking the competence to act as members of the House of Representatives; or they believe that women’s issues can be handled by the men sitting in the House.
Graphic 2. Women Have Same Level of Competence in Politics as Men
No Response
Strongly Disagree
Graphic 4. Policy for Facilitation of the Participation of Women in Politics (30% Quota)
5% 3% 0%
0%
8%
32%
Agree 5%
26% 25% 4%
Strongly Agree 3% 5%
10%
15%
20%
Women
Political Capacity of Women; Can They Compete with Men? The following WRI survey results (Graphic 2) show that 62% of respondents agree that women have a level of political competence on a par with that of men, 8 % strongly agreeing, while just 24% disagreed that women have the same level of competence in politics as men. The patriarchal culture long entrenched in Indonesian society carries with it a number of negative stereotypes that are detrimental to women who want to actively pursue careers in politics or leadership positions. Some of these stereotypes follow the reasoning that women are not suitable leaders overall, including in the political arena. Graphic 3 indicates that women
25%
30%
0%
35%
5%
10%
Men
are perceived as not having the capacity to take up leadership positions in politics because : 1) religion prohibits women from becoming leaders (34%); 2) women are not suitable for leadership roles (47%); 3) women are more emotional than men (9%); 4) men have better educations than women(2%); and 5) other reasons (8%).
15%
When the survey asked whether it was necessary to establish an affirmative policy supportive of a 30% quota for seats in the House of Representatives for women, 51% of respondents agreed, with 7% strongly agreeing, while only 23% disagreed.
In Graphic 5, 34% of the respondents agreed with the provision of opportunities for women to participate more in politics, while 5% agreed that women should be motivated to participate in politics, and as many as 54% of the respondents indicated that they believed that a quota was necessary in order to balance the political representation between men and women.
Emotional Prohibited by Religion
34% 47%
Not Suitable for Leadership Role Men have Better Education than Women
25%
30%
35%
Men
What Are the Possibilities for Women in the 2014 Political Arena? Indonesia’s democracy is currently moving in more positive directions. Besides pinpointing the establishment and strengthening of affirmation policies to raise the level of women’s participation in politics, the WRI survey results also indicate that the people of Indonesia support allowing women equal footing with men in politics. This can be seen in the fact that 74% of respondents said they agreed, with 10% responding that they strongly agreed.
The WRI survey results also indicate that
Graphic 5. Reason for Agreeing with The 30% Quota Policy
the people of Indonesia
9%
20%
Women
Policies that Facilitate the Participation of Women in Politics
Graphic 3. Reasons for Not Agreeing That Women Have Same Political Leadership Capacity as Men
8%
14%
Agree
30%
Strongly Agree 3%
2%
9%
Disagree
13%
0%
8%
Strongly Disagree 0%
1%
Disagree
11%
No Response
5%
7%
Balance number of men and women
support allowing women equal
34%
54%
footing with
Provide more opportunities for women in politics Motivate women to become involved in politics
men in politics
Other
Other
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January 2014 Fact Sheet
Fact Sheet January 2014
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