Importance of women's political empowerement - Gurmai Zita

Importance of women's political empowerment
In the field of Gender Equality, European elections showed only a small increase in women’s
representation to 35% compared to just over 30% in the last mandate; for the S&D Group we
reached 40%.
Even though women make up more than half of the population and electorate of the EU, the
average representation of women in European parliaments is only 24%, while in national
governments as low as 23%.
A democracy which does not make enough room for 52 per cent of the population at the
decision-making table is no real democracy at all! This is true for the Member States but also
for the EU!
We have worked together with the European Women’s Lobby to run a campaign named 50/50
Campaign for Democracy. We proposed a system of nomination of Commissioners whereby
each Member State would propose a woman and a man as nominee Commissioners. The
President would then have the possibility to choose among them with a view to achieve an
equal representation of women and men in the new Commission.
Another method that is used in many places to increase women's participation in decisionmaking
is using quotas. For example, a women quota of 40% is applied in the PES.
Why am I bringing this up? Because it gives an idea of why and what challenges we have in
terms of gender equality in Europe, in the fields of political leadership.
As I said, the under-representation of women constitutes a serious democratic deficit, which
undermines the legitimacy of the contemporary democratic ideal and the establishment of an
inclusive and participatory democracy.
Besides the political decision-making bodies women are under-represented in the economic
decision-making bodies as well. Although women are increasingly highly educated, skilled and
willing to commit themselves to their careers, they remain poorly represented in high-level
management. The number of women presidents of Europe’s largest companies has fallen from
4% to 3% since 2004. This is not only about ethics and equality, it is also essential for economic
growth.
But! Despite the grim outlook, we need to stay positive because this is also precisely why we
are needed now more than ever! Together we can work towards a brighter future for women in
Europe, if we take into consideration the specific situation faced by women. This is our role; this
is the role of feminist social democrats, to tackle the blind austerity policies of the
conservatives.
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