Voices

Violence Against Women in Politics means ignoring women’s participation in political affairs, creating obstacles against women’s political activities and killing woman politicians. It is important to dig out the root causes hindering women’s political participation.
-Ms. Mahfuza Folad
Judge, Afghanistan

Violence Against Women in Politics will not end unless the political parties take necessary steps to empower women in politics and prevent violence against women’s political participation.
-Ms. Kohinoor Begam
Advocate, National Women Lawyers Association, Bangladesh

In India like in other parts of South Asia there is an inherent structural violence that prevents women from actively participating in leadership roles in politics. The association of money, power and corruption with politics makes it an extremely difficult terrain and many women with excellent leadership skills would feel intimidated from playing an active role in politics. Reservation is a necessary first step but it may not be enough in itself.
-Dr. Sumona Das Gupta
Director, WISCOM, India

Democracy is not only the freedom of expression or the freedom to organize; it means equal or active opportunity to participate in decision-making level. In Nepal, the population of women is more than 50% but their role or participation in politics is very negligible.
-Mr. Sabin Shrestha
Executive Director, Forum for Women, Law and Development (FWLD), Nepal

Democracy is taken as one of the most popular phenomenon and system of government by the political scientists to resolve the problems they are facing in today’s era. There can be no democracy without independent judiciary and without the full participation of females in national politics. Unless and until they raise a strong judiciary, female participation cannot be ensured in politics and in other fields as well.
-Ms. Rabbiya Bajwa
Advocate, Pakistan

Sri Lanka has unfortunately a history of several decades of increasing violence in politics since independence. Sri Lanka has had a long runner of internal conflict, which has been going on for 25 years. It had very violent and brutal youth insurrections in 1970s and 1990s. This has contributed to a very violent political culture, militarization of the country and the existences of paramilitary group, sub group that have their own processes of violence. All these have contributed to extreme violence which is obviously deterrent to many people but mostly largely to women to enter politics. Moreover, political processes are also marked by corruption and public perception of lack of integrity, treachery, leading to physical assaults and assignations. Therefore, politics has a negative connotation in the public mind and those who choose to enter into politics are often tainted by this perception, and this is not an incentive to women to enter into politics
-Ms. Camena Guneratne
Senior Lecturer, The Open University of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka