Now, anyone who has ever written a blog will tell you that there are two major problems one faces while doing so - inspiration and inclination. With the latter sorted out, my mind now turned to the first. Drawing blanks but determined to put up an entry today, I turned to the newspaper, where the headline was controversial enough to 'inspire' a post. So here we are then.
The headline in question basically exclaimed that the stage is set for a 33% reservation for women in all Parliament and Assembly seats across the country. On further scrutiny of the article that followed, I realised that this proposal has been hanging in the balance for 14 years now but the road is finally clear for it to go ahead. This raised a lot of questions in my head as to the political motivations behind such a proposal and whether it would actually benefit anyone at all.
Women are the reason men do most things and it is an accepted (although seldomly admitted) fact that without them, humankind would be nowhere (which raises the question of where we are today but I'll leave that for another day) It's also fair to say that in India, they've been given a raw deal since the beginning of time itself. So if the people-in-charge want to do something for them, I think they deserve some credit.
The questions that I have concern both quality and quantity. Right now, women constitute 11% of the Lok Sabha and an even lower proportion of the state assemblies. From where are we going to produce the other 22% required to complete the stipulated one-third of the House? That comes up to about 125 women in the Lok Sabha - that's about six score more women who will be in charge of running our country. And this translates into the second bit of this question. Such a large influx of people into the highest decision-making body of the country at one time will lead to dilution of quality, if they are NOT the first choice of the people. The fact that there are only 59 women currently warming the benches of the Lower House indicates that is in indeed true. The people have NOT voted for women so far. Whatever the reason for this might be, forcing them to do so will dilute quality, especially if this move is carried out in one phase.
When you look at the larger picture though, things seem to make more sense. This move will lead to a higher demand for women in politics and that's not a bad thing at all. Right from the grassroot levels, the female population of society will become more involved with the running of the country and it is telling that before the general elections, the two most powerful people belonged to womankind. In the long run, the move seems like a good one.
I finally concluded that the success of this move depends on it's implementation. If it is carried out in phases, everyone wins. That gives society time to produce good women politicians. I don't for a minute doubt that there are talented women waiting for a chance; I think time is needed to convert raw talent into a more complete skill set. The finer details of this step will be a little messy for the Election Commission, but that's a bridge they'll have to cross once they get to it.
Isn't woman-on-top a decision that should stay in bedrooms and between a couple? Have you ever wondered if the phrase loses meaning for lesbians? :P
ReplyDeleteOk, issue - You do make sense when you ask where the other 22% are going to come from... If they aren't already there, do we want them now?
Good point.
Artistically - I don't know if it's conscious, but this one's written in the same style "Freakonomics" was written in. It suits you.
I agree with your ideas on how step-by-step implementation of this 33% reservation will prevent dilution of quality.
ReplyDeleteA part of me screams out, "Why do we need reservation at all?"
But it withdraws when it sees the percentage of women in the Lok Sabha - a measly 11% - not a true representation of the Indian population, by any means.
India has a long way to go in terms of women empowerment, in politics as well as other spheres.
The issue of women's reservation from grass-root level up gets quite messy. I mean, well, look at the grass-root level then why don't we? Gram panchayats have reservations for women. But there, they are just the puppets of their husbands, fathers, brothers et cetera.
ReplyDeleteNow that's an entire mindset you're aiming to change, and that, will take time. You're right in having doubts about the implementation of the 33% reservation, but it's not that there aren't women qualified enough to fill in that 22%, it's just that in present-day society, they aren't going to get themselves noticed yet.
And even if they are, moving up the political ladder itself would be a challenge. If, say the reservation was implemented, and a select few women on the bottom rung of the ladder got the confidence required to take a step forward, wouldn't that be a good thing? And if we do end up with a few puppets, it wouldn't be that much of a change now would it?
I'd prefer a full on implementation than a step by step, but I don't think now's the time, anyway...
Hey, I somehow worked my way back to your blog, courtesy my blog counter.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, thanks for putting up the link, and the compliment! :)
Second, as to the issue of women reservation. So long as it's implemented right, I think it is a necessary move to push through a lot of pro-women legislation.
On a concluding note, I'm wondering how you came across my blog, and whether I've met you sometime recently?
Thanks again,
SK
Your discounting the fact that one of the reasons we don't have enough women in the parliament right now is that women can't step forward to contest elections. While i disapprove of reservations in general i think this is one of the better options to increase the share of power in female hands. Also it's not like people in India vote for the individual, we vote for parties. The people are mostly incidental.
ReplyDelete@ Shruti
ReplyDeleteSometimes, the people make the biggest difference - especially if the people are well known in that particular area. And when you say 'women can't step forward to contest elections', what do you mean?
Nishit, nice article.. Liked it.. Every succeeding paragraph mentioned what I thought you had failed to mention.. Haha.
ReplyDeleteThe move will definitely help in empowering women and will benefit the country as well in the long run.. It's a win-win situation.. Although the thought I have been pondering over is that why is getting the 'go-ahead' after 14 years?
You know, it's only after you live in a foreign country that you get to realise the true condition of your own. I guess it serves as a better basis for comparison.. After seeing the infrastructure in the Philippines(which as we all know, is a 3rd world country) I was astounded. Having interacted with an umpteen number of locals since I shifted here, I can confidently say that an average Indian is probably thrice as smart as an average filipino. But, one has to give them credit for the job they have done in a few places, particularly Makati(in the heart of Manila). It's like a mini Manhattan but the people are much nicer and much more hospitable and kind =P Yes, the other areas are like India, but definitely better. The driving sense for instance is far superior. As far as women empowerment goes, the current president is a woman(the elections are being held, and a woman isn't going to be the next president for sure). With regard to employment, the female workforce is actually LARGER than the male workforce over here.
So, we've got a long way to cover. Well I guess we have made a small start after 14 years but there are many things we have to learn, even from a country like Philippines. The people over here take great pride in their country while in our country we have people like Raj Thackeray and the like, who want to throw out citizens of OUR country from DIFFERENT states. Wow.