January 29, 2009
To: Editor, Cape Argus
From: Christina E. Mitchell, Intern, SAMGI
The Democratic Alliance announced on Tuesday, January 27, their candidate lists for Parliament and Cape legislature. Of the 33 candidates listed for the provincial legislature, only 8 are women with only 3 having a chance at occupying a seat. Of the 34 candidates listed for the national assembly, only 8 are women. The DA commented on the obvious minority of women candidates stating that there simply “were not enough women” who applied for the open positions finding this an appropriate response to public inquiry. As a party whose mission promotes diversity and disparages a closed, patronage society, it has the obligation to challenge its reliance on open application processes as its primary means of garnering participation from its female ranks.
According to Stats South Africa (www.statssa.gov.za), the mid-year population projections for 2008 (the most recent stats available) lie between 5,18 and 5,30 million people in the Western Cape. Within the prime vocational ages, meaning ages 20 – 29 during which individuals are actively pursuing their job or career skills and choices, women consistently comprise a majority of the population. In the ages 30 – 39, ages at which careers have been established and progress, women remain the majority of Western Cape population. Clearly there are enough women to fill the party’s candidate lists.
Developing an active participation and voting base is the survival mainstay of every political party. However, the DA with its liberal ideology should investigate why women are not actively pursuing political office, why member women do not apply to higher candidate positions, and why women are not meeting candidacy qualifications. Next, the DA must make efforts to correct the situation. The DA must recruit and involve the voters of the Western Cape on a platform in which party affiliation affirms that diversity underscores the political abilities of and relevance for women. The DA must actively mentor and promote the women within its ranks. If women do not feel that they share the successful opportunities of their male contemporaries, if women do not see relevant numbers of role models, they will not see the importance of entering political service. The voices of women in the Western Cape will thus continue to be underrepresented and, therefore, silenced.
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