Minister laments discrimination

Minister laments discrimination

KUPANG: State Minister of Women's Empowerment Sri Rejeki Sumaryoto expressed concern on Wednesday over political discrimination against women.

Discussing the House of Representatives, Sri Rejeki said that of the 500 legislators only 45 of them were women.

Female voters accounted for 51 percent of the people who cast ballots in the last general election.

The state minister also questioned government policies that discriminated against women, such as limiting the number of female employees and their salaries.

She expressed hope that the number of female legislators after the 2004 elections would reach 30 percent, to allow them to take part in the decision-making process. --JP