Which political parties really fight for women?

By Ida Indawati Khouw

JAKARTA (JP): Every day electronic and print media have been running commercials urging women to choose parties "which pay attention to women".

The commercials have become so incessant that political campaigners were "forced" to pledge that women's issues would be given greater attention if their party won the elections. However, these campaigners usually failed to elaborate on how they would do this.

The leaders of political parties should not have let pass the opportunity to attract women voters, who, according to surveys, make up 57 percent of all voters.

However, most of the 48 political parties contesting the polls have interpreted giving greater attention to women to mean merely naming women as legislative candidates.

According to Tati Krisnawaty, executive director of Women's Solidarity, a non-governmental organization, promoting women's interests goes beyond female representation in legislative bodies and the question of whether the president can be a woman.

"We feel very disappointed that in general there are no political parties which have adequate awareness of women's issues," Tati, one of dozens of activists in the Coalition of Indonesian Women for Democracy and Justice, the organization behind all those television and print ads, said.

The ads are an attempt to heighten the awareness of political parties of the need to address women's issues, a particularly difficult task given that most people are simply concerned about whether the elections will be free and fair.

One such ad from the coalition portrays a woman and the text: "There should no longer be physical abuse by your husband ... no more harrasment from your employer ..."

Tati said protection against spousal abuse was one of many issues considered by most to be a private, domestic matter, but which political parties should address.

The problems will not go away even if democracy is achieved, she said, disputing the claim made by a number of party leaders and campaigners -- including Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Tati said political parties could be said to have an adequate understanding of women's issues if they took up matters considered to be private and dealt with them through public policy.

Survey

Tati pointed to information gathered from political parties about their programs for women. Women's Solidarity hosted a series of shows from March 26 to June 30 involving representatives of political parties in 10 large cities across the country. During the shows, the representatives were asked questions regarding their programs for women.

Parties participating in the shows were Golkar Party, the United Development Party (PPP), the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the National Awakening Party (PKB), the Crescent Star Party (PBB), the Indonesian Democratic Union Party (PUDI), the Democratic People's Party (PRD), the Justice Party (PK), the Indonesian National Party led by Supeni (PNI-Supeni), the Justice and Unity Party (PKP), the Love the Nation Democratic Party, the National Labor Party (PBN) and the Islamic Community Party (PUI).

One of the shows' organizers, Yuniyanti Chuzaifah, said only three of the participating parties had promising programs for the promotion of women's issues. These were the National Awakening Party, the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the Democratic People's Party (PRD).

The three parties platforms were clearly antidiscrimination and reflected high gender awareness, she said.

However, Yuniyanti said that even the representatives of these three parties failed to elaborate on their proposed programs.

Yuniyanti said most of the party platforms only contained normative statements related to women. For example, that the party would struggle to improve their condition.

"They always think that by saying they have named women legislative candidates the problem is over. That's wrong," Yuniyanti said.

"The problem is that for women, democratization does not only concern issues 'outside the house,'" Tati said, adding that history has proven that women are always left behind after people consider democratization has been achieved.

She cited, as an example, founding president Sukarno's pledge, made during the struggle for independence, to accommodate women's demands on education rights for women and eradicate polygamy once independence was gained.

"But women were left behind after independence was achieved. Sukarno never fulfilled his promises. He instead practiced polygamy," she said.

If none of today's political parties fight for women's rights, why is the coalition continuing to run the ads?

"It has at least awakened political parties to the need to take women into consideration," Tati said.