One of the most acute challenges nowadays is the imbalance of power between men and women, as well as between dominating decision-makers and other marginalized groups, including youth, members of racial and ethnic minorities, and rural populations. Programs to promote democracy try to eliminate structural barriers to equality and power disparities, but people tackling these problems frequently do not regard them as connected or complementary. Indeed, successful institutions depend on the leadership of women, and election quotas have been utilized to provide more women access to positions of political power. Indeed, a robust democratic society and political system are necessary for the advancement of women’s rights and political engagement. This essay’s main goal is to draw attention to the crucial concerns and connections between women’s rights and the advancement of democracy.
Traditional methods of democratization have discovered a high correlation between democratic progress and economic growth or the presence of a sizable middle class. Later, the gender factor was brought into consideration since unless women were granted the right to equal representation, no government could call itself democratic. However, many modern analysts and politicians discuss and write about democratization barriers, as well as how to establish and extend democracy, without taking into consideration women’s and gender concerns (Kim, 2019). Many observers feel that democracy benefits women, but history demonstrates that this is not always the case. Democratic change does not always result in women’s involvement and rights. Making democracy work for women, therefore, presents a challenge while also acknowledging that democracy without women’s political engagement is a subpar version of democracy (Cole, 2020). Women’s involvement has played a significant role in many successful political changes. Their interests may be served by these outcomes, and women’s political engagement reflects and supports the democratic construction process.
A democracy whose parties tend to align with sectarian interests may be said to have a restricted concept of democracy that centers on the allocation of political resources or power through competitive elections. The significance of the institutions and constitutional rights protections that are represented in other legal systems and upheld by the courts is obscured by an overemphasis on democratic elections. As much as it is about political parties, regular elections, and checks and balances, democracy is also about citizenship, engagement, and inclusion (Cole, 2020). The degree of citizen involvement in the political process, including the participation of various social groups in political parties and decision-making bodies, determines the quality of democracy in addition to the structure of current political institutions and the regularity of elections. These social groupings should not be restricted to ethnic groups with a predominance of men, particularly in areas where sectarian inclinations might cause division or war (Kim, 2019). It is conceivable that increasing the number of women in elected positions might reduce factional rivalry.
The condition of democracy is profoundly linked with the empowerment of women, both because women’s absence from decision-making indicates a weak democracy and because women’s involvement benefits democracy. The condition of democracy is also profoundly dependent on the empowerment of women, both because women’s absence from decision-making indicates a weak democracy and because women’s involvement benefits democracy. Women’s involvement in political affairs benefits democracy in a number of ways. This entails improving sensitivity to public demands and fostering cross-party and cross-ethnic collaboration (Cole, 2020). The breadth of subjects discussed, and the kinds of answers put forth are influenced by the genuine engagement of women in politics. Women often operate in a less hierarchical, more participative, and more collaborative way, in addition to adding their personal experiences to the policy-making process (Arzimatova, 2021). For instance, people tend to view female lawmakers as being more trustworthy and receptive than their male colleagues, traits that increase institutional trust. This reflects how women’s rights are crucial for the development of a democratic government.
Democracy’s gender component is important since women’s interests, experiences, values, and expertise differ from men’s, mostly due to women’s status in society. So, women should be the ones who represent women. The argument made by women’s rights activists that gender itself is a place and source of power, acting to give preference to men over women and masculine traits, roles, and values to women’s equivalents in most social areas should be taken into consideration (Kim, 2019). Here, power should be viewed structurally as a by-product of social connections and inseparable from them rather than as an individual quality.
When a democratic process is institutionally weak or is not based on equality and rights for all citizens, women may be underprivileged. This is because it may allow a political party that adheres to patriarchal norms to come to power and swiftly enact laws that marginalize women (Arzimatova, 2021). Strong and vibrant civil societies, which comprise municipal governments, political parties, trade unions, professional groups, and other NGOs dedicated to protecting civil rights, are the foundation of successful democracies. This opens the door for the codification and extension of the rights of women, minorities, and other socially excluded actors through the use of a rights-based approach to constructing nations.
Women’s involvement and rights support democracy for a variety of reasons. There is proof that women, more specifically working women, have distinct political preferences than males, with a propensity to vote more to the left, especially in favor of public services, with ramifications for the structure of contemporary welfare states. It is also possible to link the development of stable and peaceful societies and the continued engagement of a critical mass of women in political decision-making (Cole, 2020). For instance, the Scandinavian model, which places a high value on women’s involvement and rights, is associated with stable, peaceful, and successful communities.
It is evident that democracy depends on gender equality and the empowerment of women. As much as it is about political parties, elections, and checks and balances, democracy is also about citizenship, participation, and inclusion. The degree to which diverse social groups participate in these institutions affects the quality of democracy in addition to how these institutions are structured (Arzimatova, 2021). The gender component of democracy is crucial in this regard. Women’s rights and gender equality are reinforced by democracy’s attempts to develop into an inclusive, representative, and long-lasting form of governance.
In conclusion, it can be seen that women’s rights protection and gender equality are not merely a result of democratization. It is a component of a more general cultural shift that is reshaping many areas of industrialized cultures and fostering the growth of democratic institutions. A growing body of research indicates that expanding women’s political engagement increases collaboration across party and ethnic divides and increases the likelihood that peace negotiations will succeed. Additionally, including them enhances the likelihood that concerns like public health, reproductive health rights, and unemployment will be addressed effectively. Greater domestic security, lower levels of hostility toward other nations, and a country’s overall relative peace are all strongly correlated with gender equality. Therefore, empowering women, holding those responsible for violence against women and girls accountable, and bridging the political and economic gender gap should be the main goals of initiatives to improve democracy and human rights. Similar to this, more inclusive societies must be given special consideration in attempts to promote gender equality and women’s rights.
References
Arzimatova, I. M. (2021). Women’s rights in government of a democratic society. Eurasian Scientific Herald, 2(1), 23-27.
Cole, W. M. (2020). Working to protect rights: Women’s civil liberties in cross-cultural perspective. Social Science Research, 91(2), 102461.
Kim, J. H. (2019). Direct democracy and women’s political engagement. American Journal of Political Science, 63(3), 594-610.