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DOI: https://doi.
org/10.
38035/jlph.
https://creativecommons.
org/licenses/by/4.
An Analysis of Women's Representation in Parliament: A Comparative Study of Indonesia and Other Countries Around the World Makmun1*.
Yandi2 Universitas Pertiba Pangkalpinang Bangka Belitung.
Indonesia, makmun628@gmail.
Universitas Pertiba Pangkalpinang Bangka Belitung.
Indonesia, yandipertiba67@gmail.
Coresponding Author: makmun628@gmail.
Abstract: This study aims to analyze the factors influencing women's representation in parliament and to compare descriptive and substantive representation of women in Indonesia.
Finland, and Timor-Leste.
The key factors examined include the electoral system, nomination patterns, parliamentary thresholds, and the internal dynamics of political parties.
This research employs a comparative study with a qualitative approach through document analysis and observation of women's political practices in the three countries.
The findings reveal that countries with proportional electoral systems and the implementation of party quotas, such as Finland, have a higher proportion of women in parliament.
Finland excels in descriptive representation due to strong gender equality and high levels of women's political participation.
Timor-Leste has also succeeded in enhancing womenAos representation through the effective implementation of gender quotas, while Indonesia faces challenges under its open-list system, which is less supportive of female candidates.
In terms of substantive representation, women parliamentarians in Finland and Timor-Leste actively engage with civil society through umbrella organizations and women's caucuses.
In contrast, the role of the womenAos caucus in IndonesiaAos House of Representatives (DPR RI) remains limited.
This study recommends enhancing women's political participation through the implementation of legislative quotas, improvements in candidate list ranking quotas, and strengthening communication between women parliamentarians and civil society, as well as empowering the role of the womenAos caucus in the DPR RI.
Comprehensive political education for women is also considered a crucial step in optimizing women's representation in Indonesia's parliament.
Keywords: Women's Representation.
Electoral System.
Legislative Quotas.
Parliament.
Political Communication.
INTRODUCTION
WomenAos representation in parliament is a crucial indicator in achieving gender equality within a countryAos political system, as it has the potential to reshape social and political structures that have long perpetuated the subordination of women (UN Women, 2.
Several studies have found that a higher proportion of women in parliament correlates with greater 4620 | Page https://dinastires.
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attention to womenAos issues (Asiedu, 2.
The involvement of women in the legislative process is a strategic step toward ensuring that legal products align with the principles of gender equality (Rahmanto, 2.
To promote such representation, many countries have adopted affirmative action policies in the form of gender quotas.
In Indonesia, the implementation of gender quotas is reflected in the requirement for political parties to include at least 30% women in their central executive board, as mandated by Law Number 2 of 2008 on Political Parties.
Furthermore, political parties are also required to include at least 30% women in their list of legislative candidates.
Nevertheless, women's representation in the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) has yet to reach the 30% benchmark.
The failure to meet this quota threshold is evident in the limited presence of women across various parliamentary commissions in the DPR RI.
In response to this reality, female legislators established the Indonesian Parliamentary WomenAos Caucus (KPP RI), which aims to address policy issues that impact women.
However, the effectiveness of the KPP RI in enhancing public participationAiespecially among women in the policymaking process remains suboptimal (Prihatini, 2.
This situation contrasts with that of Timor-Leste, where in 2022, women held 40% of parliamentary seats (Inter-Parliamentary Union, 2.
In that country, the womenAos parliamentary caucus has proven successful in supporting the passage of regulations that guarantee the fulfillment of women's rights and protection (Hidayahtulloh, 2.
, even though the quota system applied in Timor-Leste is relatively similar to that of Indonesia.
Finland presents another noteworthy example.
Despite lacking a formal quota regulation, following the 2019 parliamentary elections, womenAos representation in the Finnish parliament reached 47% (Freidenvall, 2.
This achievement has supported the development of genderresponsive policies, such as the restoration of legal rights for parents to access public child care services for children under the age of seven (Kudel, 2.
Based on these circumstances, this study seeks to compare the womenAos electoral quota policies in Indonesia.
Timor-Leste, and Finland.
The comparison is conducted through an examination of IndonesiaAos Law Number 2 of 2008 on Political Parties and its amendments.
Law Number 7 of 2017 on General Elections.
Lei n.
A 6/2006 de 28 de dezembro (Electoral Law for the National Parliamen.
and its amendments in Timor-Leste, and the Finnish Vaalilaki (Election Ac.
This study does not solely focus on the substance of gender quota regulations, but also explores various factors that influence their effectiveness, including the electoral system, nomination mechanisms, parliamentary thresholds, and the internal structure of political To analyze the effectiveness of these provisions, this paper refers to the concept of representation as formulated by Hanna Fenichel Pitkin.
According to Pitkin .
, representation is not limited to the physical presence of a representative .
, but also includes whether the representative actively advocates for the interests of their constituents .
This study specifically employs both descriptive and substantive forms of Descriptive representation is relevant, as the primary focus is on gender quotas aimed at increasing the proportion of women in legislative institutions.
This concept refers to the alignment between the composition of parliament members and the demographics of the society they represent (Pitkin, 1.
Meanwhile, substantive representation is used to formulate strategies to optimize the role of women in parliament, not only in terms of quantity, but also in terms of their effectiveness in articulating and advocating for womenAos interests through legislative policy (Garboni, 2.
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METHOD
This study employs a juridical-normative approach using library research methods, focusing on the analysis of legislation, international legal documents, scholarly journal articles, and relevant literature concerning womenAos representation in parliament, both in Indonesia and in other countries.
This method is chosen because the issues examined are normative and comparative in nature, relying on the evaluation of legal systems and affirmative action policies across different jurisdictions.
According to Soerjono Soekanto, juridical-normative research aims to "examine law as a set of norms that apply within society, both written and unwritten, and to trace the legal principles that underlie the formation and implementation of laws and regulations.
" This approach enables the researcher to critically examine the legal substance governing women's representation and to assess the extent to which its implementation reflects the values of justice and gender equality.
The primary data sources in this study consist of national regulations such as Law Number 7 of 2017 on General Elections, as well as several regulations issued by the General Elections Commission (PKPU), including PKPU Number 10 of 2023 on the Nomination of Members of the House of Representatives (DPR).
Provincial Legislative Council (DPRD Provins.
, and Regional Legislative Council (DPRD Kabupaten/Kot.
In addition, international documents such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) serve as relevant normative foundations in promoting womenAos political participation.
Secondary data sources are obtained from books, scholarly journal articles, reports by international institutions such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), and relevant previous The researcher also refers to various statistical data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), as well as policy documents from political parties in the comparative case study countries, such as Finland and Spain.
The data analysis technique used is descriptive-qualitative, by systematically presenting and interpreting data to answer the research questions.
As explained by Marzuki.
Aynormative legal research does not aim to empirically test hypotheses but to explain and examine the content of norms and legal principles as they apply in specific social contexts.
Ay In this context, the analysis is carried out by comparing legal norms in Indonesia with policies in other countries to evaluate the effectiveness of gender quota systems for womenAos representation in RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Comparison of Women's Quota Regulations in General Elections in Indonesia.
TimorLeste, and Finland The study of women's quota regulations in elections cannot be separated from the broader electoral systems in each country.
Affirmative policies such as electoral gender quotas are not standalone measures but are inherently tied to the electoral mechanisms used.
therefore, their effectiveness is strongly influenced by those mechanisms.
Electoral System Indonesia.
Timor-Leste, and Finland all employ proportional systems for parliamentary elections.
In this system, political parties submit lists of legislative candidates for each electoral district.
The proportional system allows for more than one candidate from a party list to be elected (Karam, 1999: .
Although all three countries use proportional representation, differences lie in the list structure: Indonesia and Finland apply open-list systems, whereas Timor-Leste uses a closed-list system.
In open lists, voters can vote 4622 | Page https://dinastires.
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directly for individual candidates.
In contrast, closed lists require voters to choose only a political party, with candidate order determined by the party.
Several studies suggest a significant correlation between electoral systems and the likelihood of women being elected to parliament.
Generally, proportional systems are more supportive of women's representation than majoritarian systems because they account for all votes and offer more seats (Rahayu, 2014: 23Ae.
Conversely, majoritarian systems follow a "winner-takes-all" principle, where only the highest vote-getters win seats.
The number of seats available also affects the opportunity for political parties to gain For example, in Indonesia, 575 seats in the DPR RI are allocated across 80 electoral districts (Law No.
7/2017.
Article 414.
Timor-Leste allocates 65 seats in a single national district (Lei n.
A 6/2006 de 28 de dezembr.
Finland has 200 seats across 15 electoral districts (Vaalilaki.
Articles 5Ae.
, with one seat permanently designated for the yIland Islands.
Timor-Leste's electoral threshold is very low, requiring only 1.
14% of total valid votes to gain a seat (Rahayu, 2014: .
In contrast.
Indonesia's average of 7 seats per district presents greater challenges for broader representation, including for women.
The greater the chances for parties to win seats, the higher the potential for women's Parties are thus encouraged to compile candidate lists that reflect diversity, including gender representation, to attract specific voter segments.
Gender imbalance in candidate lists can negatively influence voter perceptions (Karam, 1999: 70Ae.
Nomination Patterns Nomination patterns also affect the chances of women being elected to parliament.
When parties place women in strategic .
positions on candidate lists, their chances increase (Rahayu, 2014: .
All three countries use numbered lists, but Indonesia and Timor-Leste have affirmative rules: for every three candidates, one must be a woman.
Lists that do not comply are returned for correction or rejected (Lei n.
A 9/2017 de 5 de mai.
Finland does not enforce such requirements.
However, women can still be placed in top positions because the order in combined lists is determined by random draw conducted by election committees, not by parties or constituent associations (Vaalilaki.
Article .
Thus, candidate order is randomized and not a result of affirmative policy.
Indonesia is more progressive in this regard, requiring a minimum of 30% women in legislative candidate lists (Law No.
7/2017.
Article .
This requirement does not exist in Timor-Leste or Finland.
Following its implementation in 2008, women's representation in Indonesia's DPR RI increased from 61 to 101 members after the 2009 elections (Kurniawan, 2014: .
Parliamentary Threshold Both Indonesia and Timor-Leste apply a 4% parliamentary threshold.
Only parties that receive at least 4% of the national vote may gain parliamentary seats (Law No.
7/2017,
Article 414.
Timor-Leste Parliamentary Election Law.
Article 13.
Finland has no threshold, allowing all electoral participants to compete for seats.
According to Surbakti.
Supriyanto, and Asy'ari, parliamentary thresholds can benefit They argue that the higher the threshold, the fewer parties enter parliament, which leads to more seats per party, thus increasing the chances for female candidates (Surbakti, 2011: .
However, it is important to note that electoral participation in Timor-Leste and Finland includes not only political parties.
Timor-Leste allows coalitions to submit candidate lists, while Finland recognizes the role of constituent associations, their alliances, and party coalitions in nominations.
Therefore, the theory citing "political parties" as the primary 4623 | Page https://dinastires.
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actors does not apply literally in these two countries.
In Finland, the concept is even less relevant due to the use of combined lists that do not represent a single party's power.
Role of Political Parties Women's representation in parliament is also shaped by internal party policies, particularly regarding quotas and recruitment patterns.
Political parties play a crucial role in nominating female legislative candidates (Rahayu, 2014: .
Nominations can be based on capability, track record, or personal ties to party elites (Zaetun, 2020: .
In this context, male-dominated parties are prone to biased nominations, favoring men with close party To counter this imbalance, affirmative policies mandating women's representation from party formation are needed.
In Indonesia, the law requires at least 30% women in the central executive board at the time of a party's founding (Law No.
2/2008.
Article 2.
Table 1.
Comparison of Electoral Systems in Indonesia.
Timor-Leste, and Finland Comparison Aspect Indonesia TimorLeste Finland Electoral System Proportional, open-list Number of MPs Proportional, closedlist Electoral Districts Electoral Threshold 4% of valid national Political parties Proportional, openlist 200 .
1 from yIlan.
None Electoral Participants 4% of total vote Political parties Political parties and candidates from None 1 woman for every 3 A Minimum 30% A 1 woman for every candidates 3 candidates Seat Allocation Method Webster/Sainte-Laguy Modified d'Hondt Modified d'Hondt Gender Quota in Political None A Minimum 30% at Not regulated, but Parties internal quota possible A Minimum 30% to contest elections A (Optiona.
internal Other Provisions Encouragement for Female replacements None 30% women in must be female election commissions Source: Election Laws (Indonesi.
Political Party Law (Indonesi.
National Parliamentary Election Law (Timor-Lest.
, and Election Act (Finlan.
Gender Quota in Candidate Lists In terms of success in achieving descriptive representation.
Finland ranks highest among the three.
In 2019, the year of the parliamentary election, women made up 50.
of Finland's population (Statistics Times, 2.
, and women held 47% of seats in its national In 2018, during Timor-Leste's parliamentary election, women comprised 49.
of the population (World Bank.
Timor-Lest.
, with 40% representation in parliament.
Indonesia in 2019, with a population of 270,625,567, of which 49.
6% were women (World Bank.
Indonesi.
, had only 21.
4% female representation in the DPR RI.
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These data indicate that the smallest disparity between the proportion of women in the population and their representation in parliament is in Finland .
67%), followed by TimorLeste .
7%), and Indonesia .
2%).
Indonesia's disparity even exceeds its actual percentage of women in parliament.
One key factor in Finland's success is the high level of women's political participation.
Notably, seven of the nine parties represented in parliament implement party quotas to enhance women's representation.
The following are gender quota provisions adopted by major political parties in Finland:
The Centre Party mandates a minimum 40% representation of each gender at all levels of decision-making bodies, including the party assembly, council, and committees.
The Swedish People's Party requires at least 40% representation of both men and women in its assembly and council structures.
The Social Democratic Party applies a similar rule, with a minimum 40% gender representation in its party assembly and council.
The Green Party enforces a maximum 60% representation for either gender, accommodating non-binary gender identities in leadership.
The Christian Democrats require a minimum 40% representation for both men and women in the party assembly.
The Left Alliance stipulates at least 40% gender representation within its party council.
The Finns Party mandates that of its three vice-chair positions, at least one must be held by someone of a different gender, ensuring gender diversity at the leadership level.
These policies reflect each party's commitment to internalizing gender equality principles within their organizational structures as part of more representative democratic practices (Suutari.
Kanner, & Juhola, 2.
The adoption of gender quotas in party structures has become a vital instrument for ensuring active participation of women in political decision-making.
These policies provide equal opportunities for women to run for office and gain support from fellow women voters, helping balance the number of male and female candidates.
In contrast, male dominance in Indonesian party structures remains a major obstacle.
In the 2019 general election, there were 4,774 male legislative candidates compared to 3,194 female candidates.
Moreover, only two political parties were led by women: the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) by Grace Natalie and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) by Megawati Soekarnoputri .
org, 2.
Although Indonesian law promotes a minimum 30% women's representation in party executive boards, the effective implementation of gender quotas remains weak.
Consequently, the selection of female legislative candidates is often controlled by male party elites, hindering substantive representation.
By comparison.
Finland has shown significant success in implementing gender According to Suutari.
Kanner, and Juhola, seven of the nine parties in Finland enforce a minimum 40% gender quota in their leadership structures.
This contributes to high levels of female political participation and the "women vote for women" phenomenon, where the majority of female voters choose female legislative candidates.
In Timor-Leste, although only one party.
FRETILIN, applies a 30% gender quota, support from NGOs providing training for female legislative candidates plays an important However, patriarchal cultural dominance remains a challenge in improving women's representation in parliament .
com, 2.
In terms of electoral systems.
Indonesia faces challenges in implementing gender quotas due to its open-list proportional system, where voters choose individual candidates.
This contrasts with Timor-Leste's closed-list system, where voters choose parties and seats 4625 | Page https://dinastires.
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are allocated based on list order.
As a result, even if women are placed in strategic list positions, their election depends on the number of personal votes they receive.
Overall.
Finland has demonstrated notable success in enhancing the descriptive representation of women through the implementation of gender quotas and the active participation of female voters.
Timor-Leste has also shown progress, supported by the involvement of non-governmental organizations, although it continues to face cultural In contrast.
Indonesia needs to reinforce the implementation of gender quotas and address the male dominance within political party structures in order to significantly improve women's representation.
Substantive Representation as a Means of Advancing Women's Protection Policies Substantive representation refers to the tangible efforts made by political representatives to advocate for the interests of the groups they represent.
In this context.
Karen Celis explains that substantive representation does not stop at symbolic or numerical presence but emphasizes actions that yield concrete benefits for the represented group.
This concept comprises three essential criteria: .
the presence of representative action.
the outcomes of such actions benefit the represented group.
the responsiveness of representatives to the needs of those they represent.
As Celis states:
AuSubstantive representation focuses on the actions taken by representatives, the outcomes of these actions for the represented, and the responsiveness of representatives to those they represent.
Ay The implementation of substantive representation by women can be observed in the performance of the Grupo das Mulheres Parlamentares de Timor-Leste (GMPTL), a parliamentary caucus that serves as a platform for women members of parliament in TimorLeste.
GMPTL has played a vital role in drafting and advocating for gender-sensitive policies.
A prominent example is the enactment of legislation on domestic violence and electoral regulations that incorporate affirmative action provisions for women.
Moreover.
GMPTL has been involved in revising the Health Law aimed at reducing maternal mortality rates and promoting optimal breastfeeding practices.
They have also advocated for the establishment of childcare centers within government institutions.
These initiatives represent concrete forms of responsiveness to womenAos needs and reinforce the argument that substantive representation goes beyond the mere presence of women in parliamentAiit must be realized through policies that address womenAos interests.
A similar phenomenon is evident in Finland through The Network of Finnish Women Members of Parliament (TNFWMP) and the organization Naisjyrjestyt yhteistyyssy ry (NYTKIS).
These platforms enable female parliamentarians to coordinate and amplify issues related to womenAos rights.
Through such collaborations, they have been able to introduce new gender-oriented policies and advocate effectively within the broader legislative framework.
Unfortunately, in Indonesia, the efforts to achieve substantive representation of women have not yet yielded optimal results.
This is evident from the legislative process surrounding Law No.
12 of 2022 on Sexual Violence Crimes (Tindak Pidana Kekerasan Seksual, or TPKS).
Despite the long-standing efforts of civil society and the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempua.
to propose the Sexual Violence Eradication Bill (RUU PKS), their participation was not adequately facilitated by the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia (DPR RI) (Ginting and Rahmawati, 2.
The DPR failed to provide sufficient space for civil society to express their views directly.
In fact, the Task Force for Deliberation of the RUU PKS formed by the DPR significantly altered the substance of the draft proposed by civil society, resulting in a TPKS Law that does not fully reflect public 4626 | Page https://dinastires.
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This situation illustrates that the substantive role of female representatives in IndonesiaAos parliament remains limited.
The Kaukus Perempuan Parlemen Republik Indonesia (KPP RI) should serve as a key driver in formulating and safeguarding gender-sensitive legislative To achieve comprehensive substantive representation, synergy is needed between female parliamentarians and external actors such as civil society organizations and womenAos interest groups.
As demonstrated by the experiences of Timor-Leste and Finland, such collaboration has proven effective in producing more responsive, inclusive, and genderoriented policies.
Strategies to Maximize WomenAos Representation in the Indonesian Parliament: Lessons from Timor-Leste and Finland Enhancing WomenAos Political Participation WomenAos participation in politics is a fundamental prerequisite for increasing their representation in parliament.
Without equal access within political parties, women face difficulties competing in legislative elections.
In Finland, the implementation of party quotas mandates womenAos involvement in decision-making structures.
If party quotas are considered challenging to implement in Indonesia, the adoption of legislative quotas requiring political parties to include at least 30% women in their candidate lists may be an However, the implementation of legislative quotas in Indonesia since 2008 has not been optimal, as political party structures remain male-dominated, leading to strategic decisions that tend to disadvantage women.
Therefore, policies mandating womenAos inclusion in all decision-making bodies within parties are necessary.
"WomenAos participation in politics is a fundamental prerequisite for increasing their representation in parliament (The Indonesian Institute, 2.
Reforming the Implementation of WomenAos Electoral Quotas Indonesia needs to evaluate its majoritarian electoral system, which adopts a highestvote system, as it conflicts with affirmative policies that assign women to specific candidate list positions.
Timor-Leste utilizes a closed-list proportional system where seat allocation is based on party votes rather than individuals, making womenAos quotas more effective.
However, the adoption of a closed-list system in Indonesia raises concerns about reinforcing party elite dominance in selecting legislative candidates.
Hence, democratic pre-nomination mechanisms within parties are essential to ensure that female candidates genuinely represent womenAos interests.
"A closed-list proportional system is used, where seat allocation is based on party votes, not individuals, thus making womenAos quotas more effective (Antara Jateng, 2.
Opening Communication Channels between Women Parliamentarians and Civil Society Women parliamentarians need to build intensive communication with civil society to ensure that resulting policies reflect womenAos needs and aspirations.
In Timor-Leste, female parliamentarians within the GMPTL actively involve civil society in the legislative process.
In Finland.
NYTKIS serves as a bridge between parliament and civil society to advocate gender issues.
Indonesian women parliamentarians can adopt similar practices by holding regular discussions with civil society and involving them in policy-making processes.
"Women parliamentarians need to build intensive communication with civil society to ensure that policies reflect womenAos needs and aspirations (Tatoli, 2.
Strengthening the Role of the WomenAos Parliamentary Caucus The WomenAos Parliamentary Caucus of the Republic of Indonesia (KPP RI) should expand its role from merely bridging commissions to becoming an active actor in promoting 4627 | Page https://dinastires.
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gender perspectives in all parliamentary policies.
In Finland, the TNFWMP actively provides gender analyses in a variety of policies, not limited to womenAos issues.
In TimorLeste, the GMPTL acts as a liaison between parliament and civil society to champion womenAos interests.
The KPP RI can adopt similar roles to ensure policies are genderresponsive.
"KPP RI needs to expand its role from merely bridging commissions to becoming an active actor in promoting gender perspectives in all parliamentary policies .
Providing Political Education for Women Political education for women is crucial to raise awareness of the importance of womenAos political participation and equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary for political engagement.
In Timor-Leste, political education has helped women parliamentarians better understand gender issues and advocate for womenAos interests in In Finland, political education has encouraged womenAos active political engagement and fostered solidarity among them.
In Indonesia, comprehensive political education programs for women nationwide are necessary.
"Political education for women is crucial to raise awareness of the importance of womenAos political participation and to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary for political engagement (BBC News Indonesia, 2.
CONCLUSION
Based on the results of the conducted study, it can be concluded that the level of womenAos representation in parliament is influenced by several factors, including the electoral system, nomination patterns, parliamentary threshold, and the internal conditions of political parties.
Countries that implement proportional electoral systems generally demonstrate a higher proportion of womenAos representation.
Furthermore, countries that position female candidates in the top ranks of legislative candidate lists and that exhibit high levels of womenAos participation within political parties tend to have a greater number of female parliamentarians.
Regarding the parliamentary threshold, its presence does not necessarily guarantee an increase in the number of women in parliament.
However, when there are many candidate lists available for voters but only a few successfully enter parliament, the chances of increasing womenAos representation become greater.
In the context of descriptive representation.
Finland holds a leading position compared to Indonesia and Timor-Leste.
This is mainly due to FinlandAos relatively high level of gender equality, which fosters two important phenomena: high womenAos political participation and the tendency of female voters to choose female candidates.
WomenAos political participation in Finland is further reinforced by the policies of most political parties implementing party quotas to ensure womenAos involvement in party decision-making processes.
Timor-Leste ranks second, surpassing Indonesia, primarily because of the effective implementation of womenAos quotas through the placement of women in prioritized candidate list positions.
Conversely.
Indonesia faces challenges with its highest-vote system.
From the perspective of substantive representation, the condition of womenAos representation in the parliaments of Timor-Leste and Finland is considered highly effective.
Female parliamentarians in both countries actively communicate with civil society.
This communication occurs through umbrella organizations such as NYTKIS in Finland and parliamentary womenAos caucuses like TNFWMP in Finland and GMPTL in Timor-Leste.
Through such communication, women parliamentarians are able to formulate womenAos interests, voice their aspirations, and broaden relevant political agendas.
Meanwhile, in Indonesia, this kind of communication appears underdeveloped.
The WomenAos Parliamentary 4628 | Page https://dinastires.
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Caucus in the Indonesian House of Representatives (KPP RI) plays a limited role, primarily functioning as a bridge between commissions without significant substantive contributions.
To enhance womenAos descriptive representation in the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI), several strategic steps need to be taken, namely:
Increasing womenAos political participation by encouraging the implementation of party quotas by political parties in Indonesia, or even revising this policy into legislative quotas formally regulated within the Political Parties Law.
Reforming the application of womenAos electoral quotas, specifically the placement of womenAos names on legislative candidate lists.
Meanwhile, to improve womenAos substantive representation in the DPR RI, some measures that need to be pursued include:
Expanding communication channels between women parliamentarians and civil society, either through the regular scheduling of discussions by women parliamentarians or through initiating umbrella organizations like NYTKIS in Finland, which are led by civil society Strengthening the role of the womenAos parliamentary caucus in the DPR RI so that it can perform a more substantive function.
Finally, for the optimization of both descriptive and substantive womenAos representation in the DPR RI, it is crucial to organize comprehensive political education programs for women across all regions of Indonesia.
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