See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/361420552

Gender and Comparative Politics: Political Representation in Asia

Article · June 2022

CITATIONS READS

0 661

2 authors:

Chetna Sharma Pushpa Singh

Kamla Nehru Post Graduate College Miranda House, University of Delhi
9 PUBLICATIONS 4 CITATIONS 31 PUBLICATIONS 16 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Politics of Knowledge in Development View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Pushpa Singh on 20 June 2022.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 23
Journal of Polity & Society (2021) 13, 23 - 38

Gender and Comparative Politics:

Political Representation in Asia

CHETNA SHARMA
Kamala Nehru College

PUSHPA SINGH
Miranda House College

This article aims to understand the trend of ubiquitous gender exclusion

in politics in the Asian context by analysing women’s political
representation and exploring the possibility of employing it as a frame
for gendering the discipline of comparative politics. Political
representation is a significant marker of women’s empowerment or the
lack of it, and gender crosscutting all dimensions of political inquiry
provides an efficient framework of analysis. Gender-based analysis of
women’s political representation from Asia offers a new perspective
emerging from the specificities of its context. The discussions highlight
how, despite adopting specific provisions of gender quotas in politics,
Asian societies have not witnessed substantial gains in overall women’s
empowerment as participatory exclusion continues to remain a norm.

Keywords: gender, comparative politics, women’s political

representation, gender quota, Asia

It has been very recent that the study of gender and politics has become a pertinent
subject of scholarly engagements in the field of Comparative Politics. For a very
long time, gender as an independent category remained mostly absent from the
broader framework of comparative political analysis. However, in contemporary
times there has been increased realization of the centrality of gender in politics and
of why it needs to be bolstered as a dependent as well as an independent category of
analysis. Merely adding women to legislatures and public offices will not be enough,
rather a deeper transformation at the level of practice of politics as well as its
academic study is required, as gender inequalities are embedded in both these realms
(Waylen, Celis, Kantola & Weldon, 2013). These efforts will not only rectify the
profound gender blindness in political spaces but would also make the discipline
gender equitable. However, gender is not to be understood as exclusively referring
to women; rather it includes the construction of masculinities and femininities, the
relationship between men and women and how these shape politics and political
outcomes. This article employs women’s political representation as the frame to
explore the possibility of gendering comparative politics to see to what extent this
frame enables an overall gain in women’s status and empowerment. Alongside, it
also attempts to study and comparatively analyse the nature, scope, and challenges
of women’s political representation with a special focus on the countries of Asia.
24 Gender and Comparative Politics

The objective of gendering comparative politics is to establish gender as a central

analytical category in the study of the discipline. The aim is not just to foreground
gender issues and perspectives, but also to examine those dimensions of politics
that may have been obscured by the male, heterosexist bias in the discipline (Weldon,
2006). It seeks to provide a critical account of the perpetuating gender inequality
in different countries and contexts and demonstrate how ideas about masculinity
and femininity shape behaviours, and construct relations and privileges, establishing
them as the norm. These imbued gender norms permeate all political spaces based
on which organisations institutionalise “definitions of feminity and masculinity and
perpetuate gender hierarchies” (Connell, 2005, p. 18). As political parties, electoral
institutions and political behaviour are informed by these gender constructs and
barriers, women’s political representation has not been able to translate into overall
visible political gains for them. In the specific contexts of Asian societies with firmly
ascribed gender hierarchies, this task becomes even more challenging due to the
coupling of several other factors. Scholars of ‘Gender and Politics’ hold these reasons
responsible for perpetuating gender exclusion in both politics and the political
science discipline. Therefore, positioning gender as a crucial category of inquiry
equal in weight to other categories like class, race, ethnicity, and religion is pertinent
in gendering the discipline and would also foster meaningful political representation
beyond the institutional boundaries (Tripp, 2010). Though the status of research
on gender in comparative politics considers it just as another subset of the subject,
the constant pushing of the boundary would gradually unsettle existing explanations
and recast the understanding of ‘political’, deeply informed by and inclusive of gender
(Schwindt-Bayer, 2010).
The article is structured into three parts: the first part situates the idea of gendering
comparative politics theoretically for making the discipline more inclusive and
equitable; the second part attempts to map this very idea through the analytical
frames of women’s political representation, and the last part outlines the challenges
in this process. Political representation is the most significant indicator of women’s
political empowerment or the lack of it and is central to feminist politics as well as
democratic systems; hence is used to serve as the frame of analysis for the subject
matter. It is the edifice of the modern democracy and foundational political values
that every society desires to attain. Political representation and strategies to bring
more women into politics such as gender quotas serve as decisive yardsticks to
examine the gendering of political spaces. This paper is greatly indebted to the
already existing body of literature on the subject matter however, further work is
required to delineate the different political outcomes from various regions. As it
can be seen from Table 1, Asia fares poorly compared to other regions of the world
despite specific provisions like gender quota. In this light, this article aims to explore
different dimensions and challenges to women’s political representation in the region
raising pertinent questions such as, why the provision of reverse discrimination in
form of gender quota in many Asian countries did not translate into a substantial
rise in women’s political participation and representation overall? Why did the
marginal increase in women’s political representation in these societies not
necessarily result in policy gains for women as a group, leading to their
empowerment? After occupying the political office, are women able to make a
difference? The discussions on these dimensions and challenges to women’s political
representation in Asia add a new perspective to already existing debates in this
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 25

domain. The article foregrounds the inter-connections and mutual reinforcement

of politics as an academic discipline and politics as it is practised and employs
women’s political representation as a tool of inquiry.

FIGURE 1. Data for Region-wise Women’s Representation in

Parliament

Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) data for all houses combined, figures of 1995
and 2021 respectively.

Gendering Comparative Politics

This work builds on a wide range of scholarship available in gendering comparative
politics and women’s political representation in Asian countries. While Waylen,
Celis, Kantola & Weldon (2013) demonstrate the gendered nature of politics as
practices and political science as an academic discipline, Baldez (2010) draws
attention to the ‘gender lacuna’ in comparative politics research. Chappell (2006),
Beckwith (2010) and Tripp (2010) demonstrate how gender operates as a process
within institutions and define comparative politics of gender as an attempt to
broaden, extend and correct our analysis. These scholars suggest a multidirectional
research agenda that employs vertical and horizontal comparisons that would widen
our understanding across spaces and times. Schwindt-Bayer (2010) suggests that
this discourse should move from “gender and comparative politics” to “comparative
politics of gender” with significant comparison and integration in the literature.
While Nelson and Choudhary (1994) produced the first cross-national analysis of
women’s political participation, Tremblay’s (2007) study of women’s political
representation in democracies highlights remarkable differences between
established democracies and new democracies using feminist-informed statistical
analysis. Dahlerup (2006) and Krook (2009) critically engage with a comparative
study of gender quotas to build a common theoretical framework explaining the
considerable variation worldwide in the origins and impact of such reforms. On the
other hand, Kazuki (2008), Burghoorn, Iwanga, Milwertz and Wang (2008), Derichs
26 Gender and Comparative Politics

and Thompson (2013) Chao and Ha (2020) discuss the specificities of women and
political processes in Asia.

Bringing Gender in the Centrality of the Discourse of

Comparative Politics
The field of gendering comparative politics started taking shape in the past three
decades. However, an attempt of women scholars to engage with gender-based
analysis inside the discipline collectively started much earlier. In 1969, a women’s
caucus was created within the American Political Science Association, followed by
the emergence of the Study Group on Sex Roles and Politics under the International
Political Science Association in 1976. The European Consortium of Political Research
constituted the Standing Groups on Women and Politics in 1986. In the beginning,
studies focusing on women remained primarily confined to the feminist circles; the
reason being that the investigations were still in their infancy and overtly
concentrated on counting the number of women in the political arena, while the
larger scholar community shied away from engaging with core feminist issues
(Waylen, Celis, Kantola & Weldon, 2013). However, the discourse required focusing
on the “organisation of political life to highlight how social norms, laws, practices
and institutions advantage certain groups and forms of life and disadvantage others”
systematically (Weldon, 2006; p.235). The understanding that the institutions are
gendered structures and operate in gendered ways required further analysis of
gender inequality reproduced through institutions and policies. ( Krook 2010; 2013)
A comparative gender analysis outlines crucial gender questions to investigate
them across cultures and regions to find the patterns of similarities and differences
in gender omissions. With this objective, many works started emerging on the subject
of gender and politics, thereby making it a meticulous field of engagement. The
publication of three seminal peer-reviewed journals such as Politics and Gender,
International Feminist Journal of Politics and The Journal of Women, Politics and
Policies have served as outliners in this regard. As a consequence of these studies,
the subject of women/gender started finding a prime place in top mainstream journals
like American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science and
Journal of Politics. These works began contesting, deconstructing, and
reconstructing gendered concepts of power, equality and difference, justice, and
democracy (Chappell, 2010). However, mainstream research on ‘politics’ and
‘gender and politics’ seems to exist in separate silos as the general study in politics
frequently excludes the gender analysis; unless the subject of research itself
mandates it. Also, there is visible ambivalence towards assigning gender a precise
place and position in the studies of politics. This perplexity emanates from the
dilemma that while there is a rising scholarship in the field, gender does not figure in
the centrality of political studies. Though scholars working in this area occupy the
places in top colleges and universities globally, this field of inquiry remains marginal
primarily.
1. A further limitation of this field has been the unavailability of data and lack of
funds to support such research and surveys. Additionally, available limited studies 2.
have been heavily Eurocentric as they focused on comparisons of institutions of the
West and had not developed the categories to capture the perspectives of developing
societies. These studies revolved around the advanced democracies of Europe and
North America, where there exist the most robust data on gender (Tripp, 2010).
LIMITATIONS TO THE FIELD OF COMPARATIVE GENDER STUDIES
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 27

These challenges have marred the development of comparative gender studies.

Though, a wide-angle study of how gender operates within institutions in different
societies is highly desirable and would widen the understanding of its implications
in terms of policy outcomes. Such an exercise within and between very different
political contexts involving complex conceptual and resource issues would be
daunting yet required. Comparative gender studies must be mindful of the
heterogeneity of women as a category, for they are marked by the differences in
terms of race, religion, nationality, language and their situatedness in the political
economy of a particular country. While these categories autonomously affect women,
they also tend to produce compounded impact through the intersectionality of
these concepts. Comparative studies in gender should be able to capture this
intersectionality that creates multiple barriers for women in politics and public
policy.1 The discipline can broaden its canvas by simultaneously making space for
large n and region-specific studies on gender. Whereas extensive n studies would
generate comprehensive data on different conditions required for general theory
building, the small n or region-specific studies would provide humongous
information on detailed nuances for a thorough understanding of the dynamics of
gender exclusions.
Now that the concept of gendering comparative politics has been theoretically
contextualised, the next section will explore politics as it is practised by using
political representation as a tool of analysis and seeing how it helps map women’s
status and empowerment. The discourse of politics as a body of knowledge and an
academic discipline inherently shapes politics as it is practised on the ground. Hence,
it is useful also to highlight their interlinkages and interdependence. The diverse
historical, political and cultural legacies influence the political settings of different
societies, making them adopt divergent pathways that may enable or restrict space
for women’s agency and power struggles. Gender hierarchies embed both: the study
of the discipline of politics and its practice on the ground, and both these categories
coproduce gender exclusions.

Mapping Women’s Political Representation:

Some Reflections from Asia
Of late, there have been tremendous efforts to advance women’s political
representation, a ubiquitous indicator of women’s status in society. However, they
remain underrepresented in national parliaments and top public offices. The
explanation partially lies in the correlation of the societal, cultural and religious
attitudes that have an apparent bearing on women’s political participation. On the
other hand, the type of the electoral system and voting pattern also influence the
nature and scale of women’s political representation (Norris 2006). For example,
proportional representation provides greater scope for women’s participation than
majoritarian systems. Understanding factors determining women’s political
representation needs a multifaceted analysis approach (Tremblay, 2007). As the
inherent patriarchal bias shapes political institutions, structures and the prevailing

1
Intersectionality refers to the fact of overlapping of different aspects of social and political
discrimination along with the gender bias. This term was used by Black feminist
scholars to show the intermeshed and multi-layered discrimination based upon class,
race and sexuality.
28 Gender and Comparative Politics

norms that govern the civic spaces, women’s political representation becomes an
uphill task. These patriarchal norms and prejudices are then replicated in the political
attitudes and actions, resulting in gendered outcomes in institutions, programmes
and policies (Singh & Sharma, 2019). Legislatures, judiciary, political parties, and
bureaucracy- none of them has been immune from the patriarchal biases as women
remain underrepresented in them and all top tiers of government across the
countries.

Political Institutions and Gendered Norms

The nature of political space is highly gendered, reflected in the masculine nature of
the state, institutions, administration, and the policy process. All political institutions
are gender regimes with distinctive ideologies of how women and men should act,
think, and feel making gender hierarchies stratified and unquestionable (Kronsell,
2005; Lovenduski, 2005). Gender is imprinted upon the institutions in various
ways: through the behaviour, work norms, dressing, role in the family and so on. All
these parameters potentially influence the political opportunities and constraints
facing feminist actors: it can assist in determining when and which institutions will
be more open or closed to gender equality demands (Chappel, 2006). When women
enter a male-dominated institution, they face structural barriers that prevent them
from wielding influence in the legislative process. Even when women win a place in
a gendered institution, they remain outsiders. For example, a research study of the
Indian Parliament shows that when women politicians first entered parliament, it
was not deemed appropriate for them to congregate with men beyond official
engagements in the Central Hall. Hence, a separate ladies’ room was created as a
convention, though, in the later years, women did not prefer it for the sake of greater
visibility and more opportunities for networking (Rai, 2015). Legislatures are
informed by the work norms defined by the parameters of males by practising
irregular hours of work that are unwelcoming to women with more than their share
of family responsibilities (Kittilson & Schwindt-Bayer, 2012). For instance, a study
on work norms in politics in China highlights that most women Mayors find the late
meeting arrangements and dining and drinking practices inconvenient with their
family responsibilities (Qi, 2008). The role of most women occupying political offices
in Asia remains limited due to substantial domestic duties, societal prejudices, and
power asymmetries, making it more challenging for them to compete and actively
contribute to politics.
Women’s access to leadership posts and powerful committee appointments in
the legislature are also restricted. They are often allocated soft or lower profile
portfolios depicting that they do not wield equitable political power (Tan, 2020).
The specific requirements of women are never factored in the legislature, and an
uproar is created when women demand them. For example, a women legislator
from the State of Assam in India, Angoorlata Deka, missed out on lots of debate
while shuffling between her nearby quarter and the legislature to feed her baby. The
speaker of the House responded that the MLA’s quarter was not far away, and the
“legislator could easily see her baby whenever she wanted” (Gupta 2007). Such
demands of female legislators are seen as an exception rather than a natural practice
of creating equal physical space for both the sexes.
Women’s acceptability in politics in Asia depends on various non-political factors
such as their dressing, behaviour, moral code of conduct, role in the family as wives
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 29

and mothers, etc. In most countries globally, but more so in the Asian context,
women politicians are expected to dress up conventionally. For example, in India,
the institutional politics of the parliament desires women to be dressed traditionally
in sari or salwar kameez, as reflected in the dressing of politicians like Indira Gandhi,
Sushma Swaraj and Sonia Gandhi; however, for men, dressing is not an issue of
concern (Rai, 2015). Likewise, the first Filipino politician wore traditional dress to
appear as a non-militant and non-aggressive woman, and the pattern has continued
since then. However, some women politicians like Philippines president Dr Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo and Indonesian president Megawati Sukarnoputri also adopted
Western women’s power suit to project themselves as modern leaders with whom
the West will engage seriously (Taylor, 2008). At the same time, these women chose
to dress conservatively while visiting rural or predominantly Muslim regions. For
women in China, dressing style has been a dilemma between adopting old socialist
gender-neutral clothes that can make them appear more like men hiding their
feminity or adopting a personalised style (Qi, 2008). Most of these women, on some
occasions, wear gender-neutral clothes, while on other occasions, they prefer
expressing their personal choices. Still, this constant shift between gender identities
and official image has not been easy for them. These norms act as a gender trap
because women politicians are required to be warm and behave aggressively only
occasionally: displaying a blend of masculine as well as feminine qualities.

Women Leaders in Asian Politics

The countries of Asia have witnessed many influential women leaders in politics
who received global attention. However, their rise signifies specific patterns of their
relationship to dynastic politics and familial ties. This feature of Asian politics
unequivocally leads to the crucial question: how did these women politicians covet
the top political offices in a society marked by recalcitrant patriarchal hierarchies?
To what extent have family connections been crucial in their ascendance, and if
their presence in these offices results in substantial gains for women’s enhanced
status in society in general? These questions serve as the outliers when
comparatively analysing the nature of women’s political representation in Asia vis-
à-vis older democracies of the West. In Asia, particularly in South Asia, some early
women political leaders attained high office by inheriting them from their male
relatives as widows, wives or daughters (Jahan, 1987). They often carried inherited
charisma and served the practical purposes of nipping the internal factionalism
within the party. The ascendance of women leaders like Bandaranaike and
Kumaratunga in Sri Lanka, Indira Gandhi in India, Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, Khaleda
Zia, and Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh, and Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar was
legitimised because of the political legacy of their male family members. Likewise,
Corazon Aquino in the Philippines, Megawati Sukarnoputri in Indonesia, and
Yingluck Shinawatra in Thailand could establish themselves in the highest offices,
courtesy of their family ties with male politicians. Some women politicians like Soong
Ching Ling in China and Tanaka Makiko in Japan did not occupy the top offices. They
still managed to remain influential in politics due to their husband and father’s legacy.
The special political virtue of ‘moral capital’ used strategically by female dynastic
leaders also becomes a reason for their downfall. They are often held to high moral
standards when facing charges of corruption, scandals and controversies. (Chao &
Louisa, 2020).

These women are there in politics because of

their family members
 30 Gender and Comparative Politics

TABLE 1. Women Head of the State in Asia

Name of Political Leader Country Serving period

Sukhbaataryn Yanjmaa Mongolia 1953-1954
Sirimavo Bandaranaike Sri Lanka (1960-65, 1970-77, 1994-2000)
Indira Gandhi India 1966-77, 1980-84
Soong Ching-Ling China 1968-1972
Golda Meir Israel 1969 to 1974
Corazon Aquino Philippines 1986-1992
Benazir Bhutto Pakistan 1988-90, 1993-96
Khalida Zia Bangladesh 1991-96, 2001-2006
Chandrika Bandaranaike Sri Lanka 1994-2005
Kumaratunga
Sheikh Hasina Bangladesh 1996-2001, 2009-till date
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Philippines 2001-2010
Megawati Sukarnoputri Indonesia 2001 to 2004
Pratibha Patil India 2007-2012
Roza Otunbayeva Kyrgyzstan April 2010 to December 2011
Yingluck Shinawatra Thailand 2011-2014
Park Geun Hye South Korea 2013- 2017
Bidhya Devi Bhandari Nepal 2015-till date
Aung San Suu Kyi Myanmar 2016 till 2021
Tsai Ing-Wen Taiwan 2016 till date
Halimah Yacob Singapore 2017-till date
Source: Created by authors
Another prevalent pattern in women’s political representation in some countries
of Asia is women’s ‘partaking inclusion’ but ‘participatory exclusion’. While women
have actively contributed to anti-colonial struggles and democratic transition
against dictatorial regimes, their causes are rendered insignificant in the post-
transition periods signifying exclusion. This demonstrates a participation paradox
which does not result in the formal share in political power, institution building and
decision making (Razavi,2001; Waylen, 2010). For example, despite their
tremendous role in the Indian independence movement, neither any effort has been
made to independently document the nature and achievement of women’s political
participation, nor this could ensure women any formal seat in the political system
(Kumar, 1993). Likewise, many women leaders have led democratic uprisings against
dictatorship: Corazon Aquino in the Philippines, Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, Khaleda
Zia, Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh, Megawati Sukarnoputri in Indonesia, Aung Sang
Suu Kyi in Myanmar, and Wan Azizah Wan Ismail in Malaysia. Nonetheless, there

Women have contributed to freedom movements but after that

they have not been included in formal institutions by the virtue
of reservations and all
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 31

has been a marginal increase in overall women’s political participation in these

societies compared to other regions, as reflected in Figure 1.
The above discussion depicts that women’s political representation in Asia suffers
many structural, systemic, and ideological impediments. Even after reaching the
highest echelons of power, women political leaders have to struggle as institutional
changes and legislative reforms do not necessarily spur shifts in social, cultural and
gender norms. The working pattern and behaviour of legislatures remain a challenge
for female legislators in Asian countries (Ahmed, 2020). In Bangladesh, Indonesia,
Malaysia and Pakistan, Islamic principles have been invoked by conservative Muslim
leaders to limit the participation and rise of women leaders (Thompson, 2002). The
high parameters set for women leaders also incite strong reactions leading to cases
of assassination, for example, Indira Gandhi in India and Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan.
Women leaders have to be cautious in public space regarding their reputation, and
therefore they avoid working closely and mingling with their male colleagues beyond
a point. This fact was reported by some women Mayors from China in their interviews
while expressing their discomfort with the overall patriarchal social and political
settings (Qi, 2008). At times, women parliamentarians are subjected to harassment
and violence in the form of sexist remarks, online sexist attacks, and psychological
harassment prevalent across nations, as discussed in Inter-Parliamentary Union
studies (2016).
Gender Quota
One of the ways to bring a feminised transformation in politics could be by raising
the proportion of women legislators, which can be achieved through quotas for
women (Lovenduski, 2005). Hence, to address the underrepresentation of women,
many countries have adopted different provisions like quotas, laws or policies
requiring candidate lists or representative bodies to include women, racial, ethnic,
or religious minorities. There are two ways to ensure equal representation of women
in politics: ‘the incremental track’ and ‘the fast track’ (Dahlerup & Freidenvall, 2005).
The incremental track reflects a gradualist approach, which assumes that the number
of women in parliaments will gradually rise with the overall development of the
society. This approach is followed in politics of many post-industrial democracies,
for example, Nordic countries, where voluntary adoption of gender quotas by one
party leads to a contagion effect resulting in subsequent adoption by other parties
for electoral considerations, thereby consolidating women’s representation by ripple
effect (Matland & Studler, 1996). On the other hand, the fast track approach creates
institutional provisions like mandatory gender quotas through constitutional
changes at the policy level. It is adopted by those societies where gender parity in
politics is a greater challenge to achieve, for example, in many semi-democratic or
non-democratic states of Asia (Moon, Chun, Kim & Kim, 2008).
Three main varieties of quotas are party quotas, legislative candidate quotas,
and reserved parliamentary seats. Some Asian countries, such as Pakistan,
introduced gender quotas in the 1950s and Bangladesh in the 1970s, setting the
earliest examples of gender justice in politics (Kazuki, 2008). Singapore, Thailand,
Malaysia, and the Philippines have political party quotas to ensure a specific
proportion of women’s representation. In contrast, Timor-Leste and Indonesia have
legislative candidate quotas that ensure the representation of female candidates on
the party list. India adopted the system of reserved seats at the local self-government
level, whereas China presents a combination of party quota and reserved seats for
32 Gender and Comparative Politics

women. South Korea legislated candidate quotas and Taiwan has both legislated
candidate quotas and reserved seats to ensure women’s representation. Although
these quotas are not mandatory in all countries, those implementing them generally
do better in women’s political representation than those who do not, namely Japan
and Sri Lanka.
The various forms of gender quotas, either in national parliaments, local
government or party laws in different countries like Afghanistan, Jordan, Cambodia,
India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nepal, Kyrgyzstan, and Timor-Leste indicate an increase
in women’s representation (Table 2). In South Korea, only sixteen women served in
cabinet positions between 1948 and February 1998 (Kyung-Ae, 1999). However,
with the introduction of the gender quota, the number of elected women increased,
reaching 57 in 2020, the highest ever since its democratisation in 1987 (Mobrand,
2019). In Singapore, there were no women in parliament from 1970 to 1984 (Chew,
2008), hence the voluntary party quota of 30 per cent was introduced to increase
women’s representation (Tan, 2016). Similar trends were visible in Indonesia, a
majority-Muslim country, after the inclusion of a 30 per cent quota for women. The
country returned to democracy in 1999 following three decades of authoritarian
rule and brought law reforms in 2004 and 2009, resulting in improved women’s
representation in the 2009 elections (Hillman, 2017).

TABLE 2. Gender Quota Database of Asian Countries

Country Quota Type Percentage of Women in

Parliament on the basis of
Last Elections

Afghanistan Legislative Quota for the 27%

lower House and at the
subnational level
Legislative Quota for the 22.7%
Armenia
lower House and at the
subnational level
Bangladesh Legislative Quota for the 20.9%
lower House and at the
subnational level
China Legislative Quota for the 24.9%
lower House and at the
subnational level
Georgia Legislative Quota for the 20.7%
lower House and at the
subnational level
India Legislative Quota at the 14.4%
subnational level
Indonesia Legislative Quota for the 21%
lower House and at the
subnational level
Iraq Legislative Quota for the 26.4%
lower House and at the
subnational level
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 33

Israel Legislative Quota at the sub national 24.2%

level and voluntary quota adopted by
political parties
Jordan Legislative Quota for the lower House 11.5%
and at the subnational level

Republic Of Korea Legislative Quota for the lower House 19%

and at the subnational level and
voluntary quota adopted by political
parties

Kyrgyzstan Legislative Quota at the subnational 17.1%

level
Malaysia Voluntary Quota adopted by Political 14.9%
Parties

Mongolia Legislative Quota for the lower House 17.3%

and at the subnational level
Nepal Legislative Quota for the lower house, 32.7%
upper house and at the subnational
level
Pakistan Legislative Quota for the lower house, 20.2%
upper house and at the subnational
level
Philippines Legislative Quota at the sub national 28%
level and voluntary quota adopted by
political parties
Saudi Arabia ( No Legislative Quota for the lower House 19.9%
Direct Elections) and at the sub national level
Sri Lanka Legislative Quota at the sub national 5.4%
level
State Of Palestine Legislative Quota for the lower House 12.9%
and at the sub national level
Taiwan Legislative Quota for the lower House 41.6%
and at the sub national level

Thailand Legislative Quota at the sub national 15.7%

level and voluntary quota adopted by
political parties
Timor-Leste Legislative Quota for the lower House 38.5%
and at the sub national level
Turkey Voluntary Quota adopted by Political 17.3%
Parties

United Arab Legislative Quota for the lower House 50%

Emirates
Uzbekistan Legislative Quota for the lower house, 32.7%
upper house and at the subnational
level
Vietnam 24.4%
Source: Gender Quotas Data Base, International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
34 Gender and Comparative Politics

Some countries eagerly incorporate women while others do not; for example,
female legislators occupy 42 per cent of the seats in Taiwan’s legislature (Table 2).
China also displays a higher share of women’s representation, attributable to gender
quota through its Communist Party. On the other hand, women occupy only 10 per
cent of the seats in economically advanced Japan. The assessment of women’s
political representation worldwide also does not appear optimistic, as highlighted
by World Economic Forum’s Report on Gender Gap 2021. It shows that women
represent only 26.1 per cent of 35,500 parliament seats and just 22.6% of over
3,400 ministers worldwide; with 81 countries that never had any women as head of
the state, it would take 145 years to achieve gender parity in politics (Global Gender
Gap Report, WEF, 2021).

Mapping the Trajectory

The discussions in the preceding section have addressed the crucial questions
raised in the research design of this article. However, the specific explanations can
be located in the complexities of Asian societies and politics. Gender quota intersects
with the party system, institutionalisation, electoral competition, legal enforcement
and social attitudes towards women in its effect on shaping the representation of
women. The framework of party affiliations often dissuades women from proposing
women-centric policies in a male-dominated political system. Many women are
found to be giving their seats to men to fulfil party discipline. As men hold decision-
making power in parties, women do not want to offend them and endanger their
careers. It has been observed that when the party performs poorly, or the male
political lead is caught up in a scandalous situation, women may get the leadership
opportunity. Women and their issues remain fragile and on the margins in the party
with limited funding for women-centric projects. Male legislators’ backlash against
the increasing numbers of women legislators also acts as a deterrence. In all political
parties, across the spectrum of ideologies, women struggle hard to get into the
crucial positions, and they hardly get access to top leadership posts. ( Kazuki, 2008,
Moon, Chun, Kim & Kim, 2008).
Studies reveal that quota alone is insufficient to ensure the gendering of the
political space and rarely challenges men’s majority dominance of legislatures
(Hughes, 2011). The approach of just ‘adding women’ to the existing structures and
processes may not bring substantial changes without factoring in the complete
account of the obstacles confronting the women. For example, in Nepal, where
women were elected in 40.9 per cent of seats after the 2017 local elections, many of
them indicated that they had financial and management challenges and needed more
training for political governance. Japanese women are reluctant to run for office
due to socially expected gender roles in families (Kage & Tanaka, 2019). Koizumi
Junichiro of the Liberal Democratic Party in 2005 and Ozawa Ichiro of the
Democratic Party of Japan in 2009 promoted many female candidates for strategic
reasons. Though the number of women candidates and MPs in the 2009 election
was the highest ever in Japan, they were considered subjects to the party boss,
being labelled as “Koizumi’s female children” or “the Ozawa girls.” (Kubo & Lee,
2017). In South Korea, women beneficiaries of the gender quotas are expected to
vote along party lines to pay back the party for the favour (Oh Jin, 2016). Moreover,
more than half of female PR members who served between 2008 and 2012 left
politics after their term was over, compared to 30 per cent of their male counterparts
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 35

(Huang, 2019). In India, women representatives in local self-government elected

based on quotas were referred to as ‘proxy women’, whereas the actual
administration was performed by their spouses, colloquially known as Panchayat
Pati, as in many cases, women fought election from the reserved seat as a substitute
for their husbands (Rai & Sharma, 2000). Many women councillors from Pakistan
complained that they do not receive invitations to council meetings, and many
times they are not even consulted on policy matters (Rai 2005).
The numeric increase of women in politics in China and the presence of women in
the highest political positions in Bangladesh have not resulted in women-centric
policies producing larger societal gains for women. A diverse group of women
legislators who join politics due to quotas may not be keen on pursuing women’s
issues (Krook, 2010). Even those countries with higher participation, like China, are
balanced only at the middle level while not having any women either in the topmost
positions because of the ‘glass ceiling effect’ or more women at the very grassroots
due to lack of sufficient initiatives (Zeng, 2014). The women leaders get opportunities
primarily for symbolising gender stereotype values of docility, family virtues, moral
characters, and portrayal as mothers or sisters of the suffering nation. They are
mostly given deputy positions and softer portfolios like women’s affairs, family and
child affairs, health, education and culture. Also, incidents such as impeachment or
charges of abuse of power, as in the case of women leaders like Park Geun-Hye in
South Korea and Yingluck Shinawatra in Thailand, respectively, were projected as
women’s inefficiency in politics, negatively influencing their larger participation.

Conclusion
Based on region-specific studies, this paper illustrates how particularities of a region
influence women’s political participation and helps understand why women’s
political engagements have failed to bring any substantial change in Asian societies.
Gender analysis of political practices discussed in the paper demonstrates how the
domain of politics is shaped by the masculine discourse, denying space and
recognition to women by excluding them from the corridors of power. Gender quotas
adopted to increase women’s representation in Asian countries have produced
complex and varied outcomes. Comparative gender analysis requires more studies
to compare regions to identify the general trends and specificities underpinning
gender exclusions. Bringing such regional gender-based analysis into the centrality
will not only democratise comparative politics but will also create spaces for non-
Western countries to be part of the larger discourse of the discipline.
Specific reflections from Asian countries show that though quotas can
considerably impact women’s agency and may catalyse the transformation of politics
at the grassroots, participatory exclusion remains the norm for women
(Chattopadhyay & Duflo, 2004; Ahmed, 2020). Even when they participate, their
engagements seldom translate into their empowerment. The significant reasons
include cultural attitudes, multiple identity structures, patriarchal family norms,
socioeconomic status, and religious constructs that have a tremendous impact on
gender exclusions in politics and may thwart any effort toward women’s political
empowerment. These categories mutually reinforce each other and coproduce an
overall exclusion of women in politics and society. Therefore, gender quotas and
efforts towards gendering political spaces have limited outreach. Hence, to achieve
an overall gain in women’s status and empowerment in such societies, coupling
36 Gender and Comparative Politics

these policies with other structural and ideological changes is necessitated.

Comparative politics require more gender-specific case studies from different regions
that can speak to each other to develop a generalised understanding while maintaining
the particularities of regional experiences. However, it remains a challenge to fully
incorporate such gender-based analysis and see how it could make the discipline
more representative distinctively. In this way, the article suggests that comparative
gender mapping of women’s political representation can create a better canvas for
the narrative of comparative politics as a discipline and politics as it is practised.

References
Ahmed, N. (2020). Parliament in South Asia India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Routledge.
Baldez, L. (2010). The Gender Lacuna in Comparative Politics. Perspective on Politics.
8(1), 199-205.
Beckwith, K. (2010). Comparative Politics and Logics of a Comparative Politics of Gender.
Perspectives on Politics, 8(1), 159- 168.
Burghoorn W., Iwanga, K., Milwertz, C. & Wang, Q. (2008) Gender Politics in Asia: Women
Maneuvering within Dominant Gender Orders. Nordic Institute of Asian Studies Press.
Chappell, L. (2010). Comparative Gender and Institutions: Directions For research.
Perspectives on Politics, 8 (1), 183-189.
Chappell, L. (2006). Comparing Political Institutions: Revealing the Gendered “Logic of
Appropriateness. Politics and Gender, 2, 223-235.
Chattopadhyay, R. & Duflo, E., (2004). Women as Policy Maker: Evidence from a
Randomized Policy Experiment in India. Econometrica, 72 (5), 1409-1443.
Chao, C. & Louisa, H., (2020). Asian Women Leadership: A cross-national and cross-sector
Comparison. Routledge.
Chew, P. (2008). “No Fire in the Belly’: Women’s Political Role in Singapore”. In W.
Burghoorn et al. (Eds.), Gender Politics in Asia: Women Maneuvering within Dominant
Gender Order [p. 185-216]. Nordic Institute of Asian Studies Press.
Cho, Y., Ghosh, R., Sun, J. Y., & McLean, G. N. (Eds.). (2017). Current perspectives on
Asian women in leadership: A cross-cultural analysis. Springer International PU.
Connell, R. (2005). Advancing Gender Reform in large Scale Organisations: A new
Approach for Practitioners and Researchers. Policy and Society, 24 (4), 5-24.
Dahlerup, D. & Freidenvall, L., (2005). Quotas as a “Fast Track” to Equal Representation
for Women: Why Scandinavia is no longer the model. International Feminist Journal of
Politics, 7(1), 26-48.
Dahlerup, D. (Ed). (2006). Women, Quotas, and Politics. Routledge.
Derichs, C. & Thompson, M., (2013). Dynasties and Female Political Leaders in Asia: Gender,
Power and Pedigree. LIT Verlag Munster.
Eto, M. (2008). “Community Based Movements of Japanese Women: How Mothers
infiltrate the Political Sphere From Below”. In W. Lundström-Burghoorn (Ed.), Gender
politics in Asia: Women manoeuvring within dominant gender orders (pp. 43–67). essay,
NIAS Press.
Fleschenberg & Derichs, C. (2011). Women and Politics in Asia: A Springboard for
Democracy?. LIT Verlag Munster.
Folke, O. & Johanna, R. (2016). All the Single Ladies: Job Promotions and the Durability
of Marriage. IFN Working Paper No. 1146. Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
https://www.ifn.se/wfiles/wp/wp1146.pdf.
 CHETNA SHARMA AND PUSHPA SINGH 37

Fubing, S. (2006). Gender Inequality in Chinese Politics: An Empirical Analysis of

Provincial Elites. Politics & Gender, 2, 143–163.
Huang, C. (2019). Gender Quotas and Women’s Increasing Political Competitiveness.
Taiwan Journal of Democracy, 15 (1), 25–40.
Hughes, M. (2011). Intersectionality, Quotas and Minority Women’s Political
Representation Worldwide. American Political science Review, 105 (3), 604-620.
Hillman, B. (2017). Increasing Women’s Parliamentary Representation in Asia and the
Pacific: The Indonesian Experience. Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, 4 (1), 38-49.
Iwanga, K. (2008). Women and politics in Asia: A Comparative Perspective (Introduction).
In I. Kazuki (ed.), Women’s Political Participation and Representation in Asia: Obstacle
and Challenges. Nordic Institute of Asian Studies.
Inter-Parliamentary Union. (2016) Sexism, harassment and violence against women
Parliamentarians. https://www.ipu.org/resources/publications/issue-briefs/2016-10/
sexism-harassment-and-violence-against-women-parliamentarians.
Jahan, R. (1987). Women in South Asian Politics. Third World Quarterly. 9(3), 848–870.
Kage, R., Rosenbluth, F. M. C., & Tanaka, S. (2017). What explains low female political
representation? evidence from survey experiments in Japan. SSRN Electronic Journal.
https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2961748
Kashyap, S. G. (2017, September 10). Why an assam MLA wants feeding room for baby in
Assembly. The Indian Express. https://indianexpress.com/article/india/why-an-
assam mla-wants-feeding-room-for-baby-in-assembly-4836511/
Kittilson, M., & Schwintbayer L. (2012). The Gendered Effects of Electoral Institutions:
Political Engagements and Participation. Oxford University Press.
Shin, K.-young. (2016). Women’s mobilizations for political representation in patriarchal
states: Models from Japan and South Korea. Gender and Power, 344–365. https://
doi.org/10.1057/9781137514165_21
Kronsell, A. (2005). Gendered practices in institutions of hegemonic masculinity:
Reflections from a Feminist Standpoint Theory. International Feminist Journal of
Politics, 7(2), 280–298. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616740500065170
Krook, M. L. (2010). Studying political representation: A comparative-gendered
approach. Perspectives on Politics, 8(1), 233–240. https://doi.org/10.1017/
s1537592709992817
Kubo, M., & Lee, A.-R. (2017). Electing women to the Japanese lower house : The impact
of the electoral system. Asian Women, 33(2), 69–99. https://doi.org/10.14431/
aw.2017.06.33.2.69
Kumar, R. (2019). The history of doing: An illustrated account of movements for women’s
rights and feminism in India, 1800-1990. Zuban.
Park, K.-A. (1999). Political representation and South Korean women. The Journal of
Asian Studies, 58(2), 432–448. https://doi.org/10.2307/2659403
Lovenduski, J. (2005). Feminizing politics. Polity.
Matland, R. E., & Studlar, D. T. (1996). The contagion of women candidates in single-
member district and Proportional Representation Electoral Systems: Canada and
Norway. The Journal of Politics, 58(3), 707–733. https://doi.org/10.2307/2960439
Mobrand, E. (2018). On parties’ terms: Gender quota politics in South Korea’s mixed
electoral system. Asian Studies Review, 43(1), 114–131. https://doi.org/10.1080/
10357823.2018.1512554
Moon, K., Chun, K. Kim, M & Kim, E. (2008). A Comparative Study of Electoral Gender
Quotas in Sweden, Germany, and South Korea: Focusing on the Interplay of the Main
Actors in the Processes of the Implementation of Quota Policies. Asian Women, 24 (1),
75-100.
 38 Gender and Comparative Politics

Nelson, B. J., & Caudhurî, N. (1999). Women and Politics Worldwide. Oxford University
Press.
Norris, P. (2006). The Impact of Electoral Reform on Women’s Representation. Acta Polit,
41,197–213.
Oh, K. J. (2016). Women’s political participation in South Korea and activist
organizations. Asian Journal of Women’s Studies, 22(3), 338–345. https://doi.org/
10.1080/12259276.2016.1205382
Park, K.-A. (1999). Political representation and South Korean women. The Journal of
Asian Studies, 58(2), 432–448. https://doi.org/10.2307/2659403
Rai, S. M. (2014). Political performance: A framework for analysing Democratic
politics. Political Studies, 63(5), 1179–1197. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-
9248.12154
Rai , S. M., & Sharma, K. (2000). Democratising the Indian Parliament: the “Reservation
for Women” Debate. In S.M. Rai (ed.), International Perspectives on gender and
democratisation (pp. 149–165). essay, Macmillan.
Rai, S.M. (2005). “Reserved Seats in South Asia: A Regional Perspective”. In J. Billington
and A. Karam (eds.) Women in Parliament: Beyond Numbers. IDEA.
Razavi, S. (2001). Women in contemporary democratization. International Journal of
Politics, Culture and Society, 15(1), 201-224.
Schwindt-Bayer, L. A. (2010). Comparison and Integration: A Path towards a
Comparative Politics of Gender.” Perspective on Politics, 8(1), 177-182.
Shim, J. (2021). Gender and Politics in Northeast Asia: Legislative Patterns and
Substantive Representation in Korea and Taiwan. Journal of Women, Politics &
Policy, 42(2), 138-155.
Singh P., & Sharma C., (eds.). Introduction to Comparative Politics. Sage.
Tan, N. (2020). “Women and Politics in East and Southeast Asia”. In S. Maisel (ed.)
Oxford Bibliographies in Political Science. Oxford University Press.
Tan, N. (2016). Gender Reforms, Electoral Quotas, and Women’s Political Representation
in Taiwan, South Korea, and Singapore. Pacific Affairs, 89(2), 309-323.
IIAS. (2008). Transnational Flow and the Politics of Dress in Asia. https://www.iias.asia/
sites/iias/files/theNewsletter/2019-06/IIAS_NL46_FULL.pdf.
Thompson, M. (2002). Female Leadership of Democratic Transition in Asia. Pacific Affairs,
75(4), 535-555.
Tremblay, M. (2007). Democracy, representation and women: A Comparative Analysis.
Democratization, 14 (4), 533-553.
Tripp, A. M. (2010) Towards a comparative Politics of Gender research in which women
matter.” Perspective on Politics, 8(1), 191-197.
Kazuki, I. (ed.). (2008) Women’s political participation and Representation in Asia: Obstacles
and Challenges. Nordic Institute of Asian Studies.
Waylen, G., Celis, K., Kantola, J. & Weldon, S.L. (Eds). (2013) The Oxford Handbook of
Gender and Politics. Oxford University Press.
Waylen, G. (2007) Engendering Transitions. Women’s mobilisation, Institutions and Gender
outcomes. Oxford University Press.
Weldon, L. S. (2006). The structure of Intersectionality: A Comparative Politics of Gender.
Politics and Gender, 2(2), 235-248.
Zeng, B. (2014). Women’s Political Participation in China: Improved or Not?. Journal of
International Women’s Studies, 15(1), 136-150.

View publication stats