Women in politics
The under-representation of women in Maltese politics and in the House of Representatives is well-known. For various reasons, most of which are not attributable to a gender bias against women candidates, Malta has one of the lowest proportions of women...
The under-representation of women in Maltese politics and in the House of Representatives is well-known. For various reasons, most of which are not attributable to a gender bias against women candidates, Malta has one of the lowest proportions of women members of parliament in western democracies.
However, the general election held on the April 12 and the subsequent casual elections have had some positive results:
The number of women candidates, 22, is one of the highest which was ever fielded by the political parties, exceeded only by the 24 candidates fielded in 1998.
Two electoral districts, the third and the fifth, had a record number of women candidates: four each. In the fifth electoral district, the Nationalist Party actually fielded a balanced list of candidates - four men and four women.
The largest number of women ever was directly elected - five in all. A sixth, Helen d'Amato, was elected in the casual election. As a result the record of six women elected in 1998 was matched.
In one electoral district, Gozo, two women candidates (40 per cent of the members of parliament) were elected.
The government has appointed two women to the Cabinet: Giovanna Debono is once again the Minister for Gozo while Dolores Cristina is parliamentary secretary in the ministry for social policy.
These positive steps cannot however mask the fact that a lot still has to be achieved in order to have a more balanced representation of the two sexes in parliament. The two major political parties have to start identifying women candidates for the next general election as soon as possible, aiming at achieving more balanced lists in all districts, without compromising the quality of the candidates fielded.
As I have stated on various occasions, people should not vote for women merely because they are women but because they consider them to be good, valid candidates who are capable of representing them on a national level. I believe there are enough potential valid candidates who happen to be female to ensure that in future elections more women will be elected to parliament.