With women representing over 50% of the electorate, their votes are crucial to victory at the May 11 general elections but questions have been raised about the treatment of women by the two main political groupings, with some opining that much remains to be done.
It is evident that a large gap exists in terms of truly including women in the decision-making process, Amerindian rights activist Laura George told Stabroek News. She said that she was not satisfied that women are valued and respected and asserted that the political parties should not exploit women’s vote but commit to truly empower them.
Social activist Dr Dawn Stewart, of the Guyana Women’s Roundtable (GWR), says that she too is not satisfied that the parties are doing enough to empower women. There is a lot of work that needs to be done and it must be ensured that girls are included as well, she said.
Both the PPP/C and APNU in recent times have come under the spotlight for their treatment of women. The most glaring example was that involving then Health Minister Bheri Ramsaran, who last month verbally abused rights activist Sherlina Nageer and after blaming her in an “apology” for “provoking” him, later made disparaging remarks her. He was subsequently fired by President Donald Ramotar.
Ramotar had come under tremendous pressure following Ramsaran’s abusive remarks, in which he threatened to have Nageer stripped and slapped and called her a “piece of shit” and an “idiot.” Numerous local organisations as well as the representatives of the US, Britain and Canada all publicly condemned the former minister’s remarks.
Late last year, there had also been calls for Attorney-General Anil Nandlall to be removed from office following the release of a recording between him and a Kaieteur News reporter. In the 19-minute conversation, Nandlall can be heard speaking about his knowledge of criminal activity and his use of government funds for personal expenditure. He could also be heard making sexual references to a female reporter.
However, in spite of the damning statements made by Nandlall in the recording, the government has insisted that it is standing by him, while questioning how the recording was made.
The PPP has also been under the spotlight as it relates to the treatment meted out by former president Bharrat Jagdeo to his common law wife Varshanie Singh and more recently, what is seen as the party’s muzzling of PPP/C Prime Ministerial candidate Elisabeth Harper, who was not allowed to speak at a press conference at which her candidacy was announced.
Meanwhile, as it relates to APNU, its former parliamentarian Africo Selman listed constant verbal abuse by Chief Whip Amna Ally as a main reason for parting ways with the coalition but Ally vehemently denied this, saying that she was shocked by the allegation from someone who once called her a “role model.” Selman subsequently jointed the PPP/C.
The coalition’s treatment of its former parliamentarian Vanessa Kissoon also came under the spotlight. Kissoon had alleged that she was assaulted by Oscar Clarke, General Secretary of the PNCR, which is APNU’s largest constituent. The altercation was fuelled by differences over the use of the PNCR office in Linden, where locks on the facility were apparently changed. Kissoon was suspended by the coalition but no action was taken against Clarke. Kissoon was subsequently left off the APNU+AFC list of candidates but has said she is still committed to the party.
In addition, the APNU+AFC alliance’s list of candidates submitted on Nomination Day was embarrassingly short of the constitutional requirement that at least one-third of the nominees be women. That oversight had to be corrected before the APNU+AFC list was finally cleared by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) but the elementary error raised questions about the management of the campaign and its emphasis on improving the lot of women.
APNU Executive Dr Rupert Roopnaraine subsequently told Stabroek News that a miscalculation resulted in the blunder and that “there was no shortage of women candidates” available to the alliance.
Large gap in
involvement of women
Yesterday, George told Stabroek News that it has been the case for the parties, that there is a struggle to adhere to the constitutional requirement that one-third of the persons on the parties’ lists be women. She pointed out that there are few women in leadership positions. “I’m concerned that there is still a large gap” when it comes to involving women in decision-making, she said.
She also noted the high profile incidents involving women and party officials, including Jagdeo, Ramsaran and Nandlall and said that this was troubling. The issue with Kissoon and Clarke also created a lot of doubt, George said.
Both parties are not doing enough, she added. The activist said that in relation to Ramsaran, the issue was shocking and his firing, particularly at the time it came, was too late. She pointed out that there have been reports of other cabinet members being involved in reprehensible activities against women but until this case, “nobody was disciplined, nobody was fired.”
She emphasised that there is a great need for political parties to reach out to women as she questioned how else they would really understand women and their issues.
She said that there needs to be a greater focus on getting women involved and not only from a political standpoint. “The way we treat women, it should not leave lingering doubts,” George declared.
The activist added that there is a need for women who are not afraid to speak out and they need to be independent and not exercise double standards as has happened when allegations of domestic abuse are made against high ranking personalities within the parties. She said the parties still need to truly demonstrate that women will be respected and protected in Guyana and they are committed to empowering women. Political parties should not exploit women’s votes but truly commit to empowering women and involve them in decision-making, she stressed.
Obstacles
Meanwhile, Dr Stewart said women have a critical role to play in the electoral process. In both major political parties, there are several obstacles that prevent women from truly participating in the electoral process, she said, while noting that some of the issues have to do with cultural factors, such as a deficit in understanding of civic duty and having the time to allocate themselves in that role. She said there are also practical obstacles, such as family responsibilities and the fear that women on the campaign trail can be subjected to verbal abuse. Economic obstacles and a high level of ignorance also hinder women from participating, she said.
Dr Stewart also questioned whether women are adequately allowed to play a role in making significant decisions.
She said that women have the power to be able to negotiate and build peace and have to understand that the process works from the bottom up and people can make requests and ask the candidates to do things. She noted that as it is now, the electoral system does not allow persons to directly choose their representative.
As it relates to the parties’ plans and policies articulated, Dr Stewart said that while manifestos are nice, there is a need to hear from both parties through debates or an issues forum to quiz them about their manifestos. She pointed out that the people of Guyana are hiring the politicians and so ought to be able to question them.
The people cannot make a good judgement as to whether the candidates are really prepared to do the things that they say they are going to do as they have not been engaged and asked questions the people want to ask, she said.
Now that the manifestos are out, Guyanese have more questions, Dr, Stewart said. “We’re told what they are gonna do but are they going to be questioned?” she asked.
She pointed out that people who are hiring someone usually have tough questions before they hire the person and thus there is a need for the candidates to be questioned.
She also noted that there remains concerns about the lack of respect for women, lack of encouragement of women to participate without fear, or verbal or physical abuse. Leadership and tolerance and understanding must be shown, the activist stressed.
She added that she was happy to see women’s groups talking about the inappropriate behaviour of Ramsaran and noted that as a leader, he was held to higher standards because he represented the country in the issues that have to do with health.
