You were recently to Tunisia with IPU? What has this organization done for women?
IPU sensibilizes members of Parliaments – particularly women – to their function regarding the implementation of Cedaw. It is also involved in contexts of transition, when a country drafts a new Constitution and adopt new electoral laws regarding gender. That is how I participated in a mission between 2001 and 2003 which has contributed to the introduction of the concept of parity in the Constitution of Rwanda and the application of international conventions and Cedaw in national legislation. Today Rwanda is the first country in the world, in front of Finland and Sweden, in number of elected women in the Parliament, with 56% in 2010.
What Tunisians want today?
The current time is outstanding, there is a strong sense of freedom and liberation. But activists are tired and worried. Everyone is concerned with the economic situation of the country and among other things with a strong lowering of Tourism. Therefore it is essential for this country to get out of transition and create democratic institutions.
What is the purpose of your mission in Tunisia?
A Constituent Assembly should be elected on June 24th. We were four people: one from Sweden, specialist in elections and electoral quota, a former Egyptian member of the Parliament, President of the IPU Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians, one delegate of the IPU mission and myself. We were called by the transition government to sensibilize actors of the Revolution towards the effects of different electoral systems in the representation of social diversity, mainly of women. We met with Tunisian women who are members of civil society organizations, youth movements and national and international organizations. We had a work meeting with the sub-Commission in charge of developing the project for the Electoral Law. Therefore, discussions were focused on procedures most favorable towards a balanced representation of women and men in the Assembly to be.
What were your recommendations to the type of ballot that should be adopted in Tunisia?
We were remembered that proportional representation is nowadays considered to be the most favorable vote counting system for women, as long as it happens in large electoral areas and that gender parity in electoral lists is an obligation together with gender alternation. This was the voting system finally chosen. Tunisian women can celebrate, as this was not guaranteed before. Single voting, that was seen as the option for many members of the superior institution in charge of the electoral law, would have been catastrophic for women. To see this, one should just have to look at the last district election in France. This is a voting system that is most favorable for those candidates who are most known. It has the advantage of creating a relation of closeness between electors and the elected, but women are left out.
You are favorable of another type of electoral system, one that does not exists today, and that should be more egalitarian. Please make it more clear to us.
Actually, it is possible to conciliate district voting system and parity. But in this case it is necessary that it is not a single-winner system but a two-winner system. Instead of one candidate, each party should choose two candidates for a district – a woman and a man, or a man and a woman. The ballots who are top voted in the first round are kept for the second round. Then those who prevail will be two elected candidates – a woman and a man. Therefore, the Assembly will have absolutely parity. Compared to a single-winner system, this system needs larger electoral districts (actually by joining two districts) in order to duplicate the number of elected people. This can have the effect of a more diverse representation than the single-winner system, in the cases that parties make the effort of choosing not only candidates of different gender, but also of different age, in order to better represent the reality of society.
In the framework of last summer’s discussions on territorial reform, a sub-amendment was proposed by Michèle André (*) with this type of system.
Translated from French to Portuguese by Rachel Moreno and originally published at the Women Observatory.
Translated to english by André Baião, WSF office
(*) Michèle André is the president of the French Senatorial delegation on rights of women and equality of opportunity between men and women.
[eo]Françoise Gaspard, former member of the French Parliament and expert of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (Cedaw) conceded an interview to Ciranda when she returned to Tunisia. She spent the end of March in a mission of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Created in 1889 with 155 members, the IPU works for peace and cooperation among peoples and for the strengthening of representative democracy. It is especially active in the defense of women representation.
You were recently to Tunisia with IPU? What has this organization done for women?
IPU sensibilizes members of Parliaments – particularly women – to their function regarding the implementation of Cedaw. It is also involved in contexts of transition, when a country drafts a new Constitution and adopt new electoral laws regarding gender. That is how I participated in a mission between 2001 and 2003 which has contributed to the introduction of the concept of parity in the Constitution of Rwanda and the application of international conventions and Cedaw in national legislation. Today Rwanda is the first country in the world, in front of Finland and Sweden, in number of elected women in the Parliament, with 56% in 2010.
What Tunisians want today?
The current time is outstanding, there is a strong sense of freedom and liberation. But activists are tired and worried. Everyone is concerned with the economic situation of the country and among other things with a strong lowering of Tourism. Therefore it is essential for this country to get out of transition and create democratic institutions.
What is the purpose of your mission in Tunisia?
A Constituent Assembly should be elected on June 24th. We were four people: one from Sweden, specialist in elections and electoral quota, a former Egyptian member of the Parliament, President of the IPU Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians, one delegate of the IPU mission and myself. We were called by the transition government to sensibilize actors of the Revolution towards the effects of different electoral systems in the representation of social diversity, mainly of women. We met with Tunisian women who are members of civil society organizations, youth movements and national and international organizations. We had a work meeting with the sub-Commission in charge of developing the project for the Electoral Law. Therefore, discussions were focused on procedures most favorable towards a balanced representation of women and men in the Assembly to be.
What were your recommendations to the type of ballot that should be adopted in Tunisia?
We were remembered that proportional representation is nowadays considered to be the most favorable vote counting system for women, as long as it happens in large electoral areas and that gender parity in electoral lists is an obligation together with gender alternation. This was the voting system finally chosen. Tunisian women can celebrate, as this was not guaranteed before. Single voting, that was seen as the option for many members of the superior institution in charge of the electoral law, would have been catastrophic for women. To see this, one should just have to look at the last district election in France. This is a voting system that is most favorable for those candidates who are most known. It has the advantage of creating a relation of closeness between electors and the elected, but women are left out.
You are favorable of another type of electoral system, one that does not exists today, and that should be more egalitarian. Please make it more clear to us.
Actually, it is possible to conciliate district voting system and parity. But in this case it is necessary that it is not a single-winner system but a two-winner system. Instead of one candidate, each party should choose two candidates for a district – a woman and a man, or a man and a woman. The ballots who are top voted in the first round are kept for the second round. Then those who prevail will be two elected candidates – a woman and a man. Therefore, the Assembly will have absolutely parity. Compared to a single-winner system, this system needs larger electoral districts (actually by joining two districts) in order to duplicate the number of elected people. This can have the effect of a more diverse representation than the single-winner system, in the cases that parties make the effort of choosing not only candidates of different gender, but also of different age, in order to better represent the reality of society.
In the framework of last summer’s discussions on territorial reform, a sub-amendment was proposed by Michèle André (*) with this type of system.
By Caroline Flepp, International Ciranda of Shared Communication.
Translated from French to Portuguese by Rachel Moreno and originally published at the Women Observatory.
Translated to english by André Baião, WSF office
(*) Michèle André is the president of the French Senatorial delegation on rights of women and equality of opportunity between men and women.
[es]Françoise Gaspard, former member of the French Parliament and expert of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (Cedaw) conceded an interview to Ciranda when she returned to Tunisia. She spent the end of March in a mission of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Created in 1889 with 155 members, the IPU works for peace and cooperation among peoples and for the strengthening of representative democracy. It is especially active in the defense of women representation.
You were recently to Tunisia with IPU? What has this organization done for women?
IPU sensibilizes members of Parliaments – particularly women – to their function regarding the implementation of Cedaw. It is also involved in contexts of transition, when a country drafts a new Constitution and adopt new electoral laws regarding gender. That is how I participated in a mission between 2001 and 2003 which has contributed to the introduction of the concept of parity in the Constitution of Rwanda and the application of international conventions and Cedaw in national legislation. Today Rwanda is the first country in the world, in front of Finland and Sweden, in number of elected women in the Parliament, with 56% in 2010.
What Tunisians want today?
The current time is outstanding, there is a strong sense of freedom and liberation. But activists are tired and worried. Everyone is concerned with the economic situation of the country and among other things with a strong lowering of Tourism. Therefore it is essential for this country to get out of transition and create democratic institutions.
What is the purpose of your mission in Tunisia?
A Constituent Assembly should be elected on June 24th. We were four people: one from Sweden, specialist in elections and electoral quota, a former Egyptian member of the Parliament, President of the IPU Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians, one delegate of the IPU mission and myself. We were called by the transition government to sensibilize actors of the Revolution towards the effects of different electoral systems in the representation of social diversity, mainly of women. We met with Tunisian women who are members of civil society organizations, youth movements and national and international organizations. We had a work meeting with the sub-Commission in charge of developing the project for the Electoral Law. Therefore, discussions were focused on procedures most favorable towards a balanced representation of women and men in the Assembly to be.
What were your recommendations to the type of ballot that should be adopted in Tunisia?
We were remembered that proportional representation is nowadays considered to be the most favorable vote counting system for women, as long as it happens in large electoral areas and that gender parity in electoral lists is an obligation together with gender alternation. This was the voting system finally chosen. Tunisian women can celebrate, as this was not guaranteed before. Single voting, that was seen as the option for many members of the superior institution in charge of the electoral law, would have been catastrophic for women. To see this, one should just have to look at the last district election in France. This is a voting system that is most favorable for those candidates who are most known. It has the advantage of creating a relation of closeness between electors and the elected, but women are left out.
You are favorable of another type of electoral system, one that does not exists today, and that should be more egalitarian. Please make it more clear to us.
Actually, it is possible to conciliate district voting system and parity. But in this case it is necessary that it is not a single-winner system but a two-winner system. Instead of one candidate, each party should choose two candidates for a district – a woman and a man, or a man and a woman. The ballots who are top voted in the first round are kept for the second round. Then those who prevail will be two elected candidates – a woman and a man. Therefore, the Assembly will have absolutely parity. Compared to a single-winner system, this system needs larger electoral districts (actually by joining two districts) in order to duplicate the number of elected people. This can have the effect of a more diverse representation than the single-winner system, in the cases that parties make the effort of choosing not only candidates of different gender, but also of different age, in order to better represent the reality of society.
In the framework of last summer’s discussions on territorial reform, a sub-amendment was proposed by Michèle André (*) with this type of system.
By Caroline Flepp, International Ciranda of Shared Communication.
Translated from French to Portuguese by Rachel Moreno and originally published at the Women Observatory.
Translated to english by André Baião, WSF office
(*) Michèle André is the president of the French Senatorial delegation on rights of women and equality of opportunity between men and women.