Expert: women must embrace political leadership
For many people, political equality in the Caribbean happened in the 1950’s when women were empowered with the same voting rights as men. But as News Five’s Janelle Chanona reports, Belizean women and their regional sisters are still struggling for recognition of their contributions to society.
Janelle Chanona, Reporting
This morning one hundred and twenty women from across the country…and the political spectrum…gathered in Belize City for an event designed to reverse society’s stereotypes about the female sex and politics.
Professor Eudine Barriteau, Facilitator
“What is required is valuing of women’s political contribution and converting that into women’s political leadership. At the heart of women’s political leadership is the exercise of power; in all leadership at the heart of it is exercise of power.”
Facilitator of the forum was Dr. Eudine Barriteau, head of the University of the West Indies Centre for Gender and Development Studies. During the sessions, Barriteau shared strategies on how to increase women’s involvement in political leadership.
Professor Eudine Barriteau
“In forums like this, with public education, with discussing, people have things inside them and perhaps one of the outcomes of today is a woman would reflect and say, you know what I now understand this process and I have to take that step. But we have been encouraged for so long, politically, to take a back seat that I am not disappointed when women don’t just bubble forth and want to political leaders, because it’s a serious responsibility. And you have to want to, you’re serving others, political leadership is serving others. And if they feel that call then they should answer that but they won’t come in droves, there’ll be a few here, and a few there and gradually when more women, more young women like yourself become more comfortable they might decide well I have something to say, I can make a difference, I have an understanding of where I’d like to see Belizean society so I’ll take that plunge, but it’s not easy.”
Janelle Chanona
“Part of that “not easy part” I think is the fact that a lot of men take a powerful woman as a threat. What do you say to the men?”
Professor Eudine Barriteau
“That they exist with women all around them and the fact that women have political power should not be seen as a threat, should not be seen as women want to overthrow men but here again we are asking what should we say to the men, what should the women say to themselves. If you have something to do, you have to do it. And I think that when women are powerful politically and they make great leaders, not only do women benefit, the entire society benefit and men benefit. And as I said in there today, Caribbean women, Belizean women, Barbadian women, Grenadian women, care about their men. I don’t think there’s any region in the world where women care what happens to men from the intimate personal level, all the way up. So men don’t have to fear, because we are there for them and we want to be there for them and we want them to be there for us.”
The experts argue that as in other Caribbean countries, Belizean women are the backbone of political parties but that fact has yet to be reflected in leadership positions.
Deborah McMillan, U.D.P. Senator
“The disparity between especially when you look the demographics of the population of women and represented, not only in political parties but represented in positions of power, we are very much underrepresented.”
“Once you get into politics, it is about authority, it is about power and we should be comfortable, as women we should not shy away from that, we should embrace that and accept that.”
Merilyn Young, United Women’s Movement, P.U.P.
“Some of us right can be campaigners, some of us can be supporters, some of us need to get involved. It’s like what you say, you have the king and the follower and the leader. But I think also, some of the men need to change their ideology about the women, you know. And I think they need to start to embrace us more and accept us for who we are, not only as campaigners but as people that can help them look at things differently as well and be that partner that they need in order to win elections.”
Today’s discussions was organized by the National Women’s Commission which hopes that the list of recommendations complied by participants will bring about change in the corridors of power.
Dolores Balderamos Garcia, National Women’s Commission
“I do believe that the political parties will be able to take the recommendations and if we really mean business, we’ll be able to use them to bring more women involved into the political life of the country and involved in active politics.”
“I think we have to take the responsibility to bring women into the mainstream of political life very seriously and this is a good, important first step.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Janelle Chanona.
With financing from the Inter-American Development Bank, in 1998 the National Women’s Commission carried out a study to determine the reasons for a lack of female political leadership. One of the conclusions of that study was the absence of the public’s demand for changing the status quo.
