Vote for policies, not gender

Although most political parties have only marginally increased the number of their women candidates in the forthcoming elections, the issue ...

Although most political parties have only marginally increased the number of their women candidates in the forthcoming elections, the issue of one-third reservations for women in Parliament and legislatures cannot be ignored. In contrast to the last elections when it had been confined to a mention in manifestoes, this time leaders are having to refer to the issue in their public speeches and commit themselves to passage of the Bill.

However, women8217;s participation in the political process goes far beyond the reservation issue. It is one thing for women across political parties to share a common view as far as increasing the numbers of women representatives in decision-making bodies is concerned.

It is quite another to assume a false unity among women on contentious political issues and to reduce the elections to the single issue of reservations. The recent appeal by the National Commission for Women to all women voters to exercise their franchise in favour of women candidates regardless of the politicalparty they represent is ahistorical and goes against both the perception and the practice of women8217;s struggles forjustice in India.

One of the strengths of women8217;s organsiations in India has been to view the different dimensions of discrimination against women in the wider context of social developments rather than within the narrow framework of male relations. Indeed, the very origins of the organised women8217;s movement in India was a part of the struggle of the Indian people for freedom.

Unlike in some of the western countries, the concept of a sisterhood based on the mere biological factor of being a woman never had much support in India. In the late Seventies and early Eighties there was such an attempt across the country by some urban women8217;s groups but they found that the concept had few takers among the women they tried to organise.

Women do not constitute a homogenous community. In the Eighties, the anti-Sikh riots following the assassination of Indira Gandhi, the developments around the MandalCommission report and later the offensive of the Hindutva platform found women of different communities being mobilised against each other. Those working among the mass of women found that they had to take positions on 8220;political8221; issues.

Those working among women also found that they had to take positions on how macro-policies were impacting on women. But critics of such struggles launched a broadside against the 8220;politicisation8221; of the activities of women8217;s organsiaitons. Their advice was that women8217;s organisations should confine their intervention to 8220;women8217;s issues8221; which they defined as the struggle against dowry, dowry deaths, sexual harassment and legal reform.

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When women activists were focussing on issues connected with domestic violence they were branded as home breakers. Now when they are working in diverse areas they are criticised as being too political 8212; a kind of heads I win, tails you lose8217; syndrome.

In any case the entire experience over the last few decades has reinforced thelessons of the early Thirties when the fledgling women8217;s organisations had drafted their charters 8212; namely, that women8217;s issues are mainstream national issues and the struggle for women8217;s rights is part of the wider struggle for social change.

The other aspect is a sort of unwarranted and unfair burden put on women in public life that all speak in the same voice. When male politicians differ it is part of democracy, when women differ it becomes an occasion to mock women8217;s inability to be united. In a system which is party-based, whether it is men or women, they will represent the viewpoint of the party. If they stand as independents they will be supported or opposed according to their platform, not their gender.

Today there are three main political platforms seeking the mandate of the people. Women voters while making their choice will have to judge which of these platforms will be closest to viewing their concerns with sympathy. They will also have to judge which of these platforms is intrinsicallyagainst women8217;s equality and vote against the candidate regardless of whether it is a man or a woman.

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The writer is general secretary, All India Democratic Women8217;s Association