PM Lilo said the reason was because the right approach can create a row amongst the citizens of this country.“We need to empower women right down in rural constituency and not in Honiara,” he said.“We do it here then try to go down and end up creating opportunity for the few. That is the mistake we come through since Independence. “We need to change the approach,” PM Lilo said. (Solomon Star)
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Solomon Islands' Prime Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo is stepping in the right direction, but he still entertaining the idea of having some form of women representation in government by using other means other than the "reserved seats".
Misconception and Deception
Radical feminism is a threat to democracy. Believe it or not, feminism is a radical approach to democracy, or the ideas that everyone should be treated equally without prejudice. Democracy is a system that bestows on every citizen so-called "equal opportunities". It is this principle that gave birth to the idea of "election" and "right to vote". What Feminist activists do is demonizing Democracy - branding it as a system favoring only the male gender and not female. Activists also view "the voting" process as a system created to suppress the rights of women to participate in the affairs of government. It is this notion that many proFeminist activists used to justify their call for fair representation in government.Unlike any other political systems in the world, provides all citizens equal opportunities, not equal outcomes. It gives everyone the opportunities or the "chance" and "possibility" to advance in this world.
Women and our Democracy
I wrote about this in my previous postings but I think its important to revisit it. Women leadership in Solomon Islands has been attacking our democratic electoral process for a long time; branding it as "unfair" and anti-women, but is it true? In fact, it is not true. Women leaders in our country, especially Ella Kauhue and some in government, have used international conventions and agreements (agreements that are more applicable to countries like Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia where women are clearly banned from certain rights enjoyed by our women) as their main weapons against our own system. On face value, the argument makes sense since all our MPs as are Male, but this notion doesn't hold out against our constitution. Our constitution clearly disproves this notion as our women have the same equal rights as men. According to our constitution, all women and able Solomon Islands have the right to contest, compete, vote, and participate. Suppression of these rights are prohibited under our own law.
Women in Solomon Islands have been contesting in national and provincial elections since independence. The result, however, do not always favor women, but that is more of a cultural influence than a flawed system. For instance, women voters don't consider gender at the polls, they rather vote for their fathers, uncles, brothers, and men cousins; making "family unit" the strongest voting factor in our elections. In fact, it will take make years for this indicator to disappear, but as long as voters preferred family affiliations over their own gender, election outcomes will remain as they are.
Right Move, Wrong Strategy
Prime Minister Lilo is absolutely right that becoming a Parliamentarian is not a right but a privilege; an opportunity to serve the constituents and the country. However, it is a wrong strategy to spend money to influence the electoral process in a way that favors certain class of people. It is unclear whether such funds go directly to women candidates or not, it is equally undemocratic to use taxpayer's to promote one gender (female) over the other. Money is not the reason why women don't get elected to parliament - you can have a lot of money and still lost an election.
The Right Approach?
The right approach would be a massive national public awareness as to the truth behind gender inequality in parliament. Post election family feud throughout Solomon Islands is common, why? It occurs when family members exercised their rights and vote for a candidate against the will of the patriarch (fathers) or designated family heads - usually the elder brother or uncles. Family members who chose to vote outside of family or tribal affiliations are often treated as "defiant members" who lacked family loyalty. Once every family understood so-called "individual rights", voter suppression will gradually disappeared and voters will vote according to the dictation of the conscience. This approach, in my opinion, will not only triggers women vote nationally, but also the vote for the candidates with better policies. In developed countries, family units don't determine the outcomes of elections. USA for instance: it is not rare to find conservatives and liberals in the same family, and it is common for voters to look at the candidates and their proposals before they cast their votes. That is what we Solomon Islands' voters lacking.
I pointed out in one of my earlier posts that it took decades even hundreds of year for the first females to enter Parliament or congress in Australia, NZ, Canada and United States. If it took them that long, why should Solomon Islands jump the gun and pushed for a special gender treatment? In fact, Solomon Islands beats all these countries in female leadership when Hon. Hilda Kari was elected the first female lawmaker a few years after independence.
Unless Solomon Islands understand and adopt this system, family units will continue to determine election outcomes.
Good job Lilo, but you need to do better than that.
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