The delay in adopting measures to support the participation of women in the political life served as a reason for staging a new protest in front of the Parliament Building. The protesters, who represented civil society, condemned the Moldovan political class’ disinterest in ensuring the participation and balanced representation of women and men in decision making.
Ecaterina Mardarovici and Alexei Buzu, the leaders of the NGOs that mounted the protest, said there were submitted three legislative proposals that can contribute to ensuring equal chances for men and women in the decision-making process, if they are adopted. Even if the legislative initiatives were drafted with the participation of civil society and were substantiated by studies and analyses in 2011-2012, they weren’t passed owing to the lack of political will.
“We underline that the situation concerning the participation and balanced representation of women and men in decision making and in the political life hasn’t improved over the last few years. In the parliamentary elections of 2005, the women candidates represented 29%, while in 2010 – 28.1%. As many as 163 women were elected mayors in 2007, as opposed to 166 in 2011,” said Alexei Buzu, executive director of the Partnership for Development Center.
Executive director of the Women’s Political Club 50/50 Ecaterina Mardarovici said that representatives of civil society will weekly picket the buildings of the Government and Parliament when they have meetings. The protests will close on February 28, when 101 women and men will come together at the National Opera House and will go to Parliament to hand over to the MPs their demand to adopt the law regarding the minimum quota on women representation in elections.
