Sunday, May 16, 2004
The women leaders of South Asia
Lets assume that Sonia Gandhi does become PM of India. Let's also assume that if Musharraf were to hold genuinely free and fair elections (including letting exiled politicians return), Benazir Bhutto would win, if the previous results for the PPP were any indication. Aung San Suu Kyi won the elections, but wasnt allowed to take office by the junta. Chandrika Kumaratunga is Sri Lanka's president. Begum Khaleda Zia is the PM of Bangladesh. There you have it. In a part of the world where women are generally treated like dirt, 5 out of 7 (Nepal and Bhutan being the outliers) heads of state are/were women.
Compare this, for example, with the world's oldest democracy that has gone 228 years without a woman standing a chance in a presidential election. Why is that? The closest explanation I could come up with is the prevalence of dynastic politics in South Asia. But then, why doesnt Kathleen Kennedy Townsend or Maria Shriver stand a chance of becoming president either? For that matter, there are plenty of dynastic political families around the world that havent been able to get their women representatives elected into serious political positions.
In effect, the world's most women-friendly societies seem to have an inexplicable aversion to politically powerful women (Maggie Thatcher being the notable exception). Sure, you have examples like Helen Clark, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Kim Campbell and so on. But none of them ever possessed the political power of an Indira Gandhi or even a Margaret Thatcher. Is this just a uniquely South Asian (civilizational) quirk? Maybe not. After all, Queen Hatshepsut ruled all of Egypt in the 15th century B.C. Worth a thought though.
Compare this, for example, with the world's oldest democracy that has gone 228 years without a woman standing a chance in a presidential election. Why is that? The closest explanation I could come up with is the prevalence of dynastic politics in South Asia. But then, why doesnt Kathleen Kennedy Townsend or Maria Shriver stand a chance of becoming president either? For that matter, there are plenty of dynastic political families around the world that havent been able to get their women representatives elected into serious political positions.
In effect, the world's most women-friendly societies seem to have an inexplicable aversion to politically powerful women (Maggie Thatcher being the notable exception). Sure, you have examples like Helen Clark, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Kim Campbell and so on. But none of them ever possessed the political power of an Indira Gandhi or even a Margaret Thatcher. Is this just a uniquely South Asian (civilizational) quirk? Maybe not. After all, Queen Hatshepsut ruled all of Egypt in the 15th century B.C. Worth a thought though.
