Khupe Supports push for 50/50 gender parity

Deputy Prime Minister, Thokozani Khupe has added her voice to the campaign for a 50/50 gender representation between men and women in positions of power. Zimbabwe has a huge deficit in women representation in the Executive and Parliament. Many years have passed since the adoption of various protocols to ensure gender equality but not much is being done for women to enjoy their rights fully. Zimbabwe currently only has a 16% representation of women in the House of Assembly and 24% representation in the Senate. There is need for Zimbabwe to emulate other countries like South Africa, Mozambique and Tanzania which have managed to high representation of women in positions of power.

Name: Khupe supports push for 50/50 gender parity

Name of publication: News Day

Name of publisher: Veneranda Langa

Date: 8 August 2011

Country: Zimbabwe

Theme: Gender Equality, Politics

Skills: Accuracy

Genre: News

Gem classification: Gender Aware

Description

Deputy Prime Minister, Thokozani Khupe has added her voice to the campaign for a 50/50 gender representation between men and women in positions of power.

Zimbabwe has a huge deficit in women representation in the Executive and Parliament. Many years have passed since the adoption of various protocols to ensure gender equality but not much is being done for women to enjoy their rights fully. Zimbabwe currently only has a 16% representation of women in the House of Assembly and 24% representation in the Senate.

There is need for Zimbabwe to emulate other countries like South Africa, Mozambique and Tanzania which have managed to high representation of women in positions of power.

Headlines

The headline of the article is very captivating. It is vividly clear (in bold wording). There is a direct correlation of the contents of the article to the headline (Khupe supports push for 50/50 gender parity). The introductory remarks shows that there is political support for affirmative action to be taken to redress the gender imbalances that exist in a society where more than 50% of the population is women.

Sources

There is a presence of both men and women’s views and attitudes towards the issue on the 50/50 gender parity at political level. These comments come from very influential political figures in the form of the Deputy Prime Minister (Thokozani Khupe) and the Prime Minister (Morgan Tsvangirai). It was however imperative for the author to seek clarity on the notion from other political parties i.e. ZANU-PF. The views in this story are only emanating from the Movement of Democratic Change (MDC).

Language

The language used in the story is very informative. It portrays the gender imbalances that are existing in the current political system, whose status quo has remained the same the attainment of independence in 1980 as shown by the figures presented. However, in light of the statistical data, there was need for comparative data so that readers could appreciate the enormity of this issue. Readers need to know whether there had been an increase or decline in women representation since the last election. The language highlights the plea and push by the women in politics to have constitutional and electoral reforms so that there is more inclusion of women in decision-making positions. There is a sense of injustice to women as they feel they are somewhat discriminated against. This is noted where the minister reiterates that À…if political parties supported the 50/50 gender representation it would make it easier for women to then get into ParliamentÀ. In my opinion this is some form of subtle stereotyping as it is clear that political parties are reluctant to recognise the role of women in political decision-making positions. The very fact that there is a Women’s Parliamentary caucus further cements the notion of subtle stereotyping. The very fact that this organ exists shows the need for affirmative action. Such issues should be discussed in Parliament with both male and female representation. It also allows for both sides to view firsthand the emotion that these women portray when bringing forward their issues, rather than for the notion to presented as a report to Parliament. It defeats the cause to recognise the importance of equal representation. By and large the message was succinct. There is need for equal gender representation.

Visual Images

The article shows the image of a role model in the form of Deputy Prime Minister Thokozani Khupe’s determination to achieve the gender parity.

Story angle

The article predominantly illustrates the views of the women in politics. Women clearly want a transformation in the electoral system so that it caters for more representation of women in parliament. This is vividly illustrated by the phrase “…they no longer favoured the first-past-the-post electoral system…. it made it hard for women to garner parliamentary seatsÀ. Instead women are clamouring for the “hybridÀ system as it allowed many voices in parliament. Regardless of the fact that the story is dominated by women’s views, their male counterparts have some contribution toward the 50/50 gender parity issue. In essence men’s contribution realises the need to quash the traditional and parochial nature where women’s representation in political decision-making positions has been few and far fetched. This is particularly buttressed by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai who recognises that gender inequalities must be redressed. To be precise he is quoted as saying “It is fact that 30 years after overcoming racial inequalities…….gender inequalities still remainÀ. Consequently, there is a need to redress the parochial gender imbalances by recognising the importance of women in decision-making positions.

Placement and positioning

The story is on the 3^rd page in the news column and bolded making it easier to be noticed by readers. This places importance on the need for transformation in regards to gender. It is bringing awareness to all and sundry on the need to attain gender justice and equality.

Training exercises

1. What mechanisms should be put in place so that we push the gender parity issue politically and socially?

2. How do we combat gender stereotyping?

3. To what extent does legislation fully encompass the issue on gender representation?

Other training resources

Gender and Media Progress Study.<->