Women’s representation in Morocco's parliament takes a step backwards

2007-09-17

Fewer women were elected in Morocco's 2007 legislative elections than in 2002, leading many to question the state of women's participation in the nation's politics.

By Sarah Touahri for Magharebia in Rabat – 17/09/2007

[Sarah Touahri] Many women themselves feel that political leadership is a man's domain.

The issue of women in Parliament has returned to centre stage in Morocco following the country's recent legislative elections. In 2002, women were elected to 35 of the lower house of the Moroccan legislature's 325 seats; on September 7th, 2007, only 34 were selected. Only four women managed to transcend the local lists: Yasmina Baddou of the Istiqlal party, Latifa Jbabdi of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces, independent candidate Fatiha Layadi, and Fatna Lkhail of the Popular Movement.

Fatna Lkhail, who successfully ran for a second term, told Magharebia the electoral battle was difficult in the face of the machismo which still reigns in Morocco. She said many Moroccans, even women, continue to believe that political leadership is a man's domain. "During the campaign, challengers would not think twice about attacking candidates because they were women, to discourage the electorate from voting for them. The message came through loud and clear: do not vote for a woman."

Lkhail said Morocco needs to consider some real solutions to strengthen the role of women in the political scene. She suggested starting by increasing the number of women on the national list and setting quotas for local lists.

Bassima El Hakkaoui, who heads the national list for the Justice and Development Party, shares this view. She says that to promote the place of women in politics, quotas should be considered for each political party at the local level, and more women candidates should be fielded in constituencies where they have stronger chances of success.

According to many female activists, the issue of strengthening women's representation in Parliament depends not only upon women's interest and education, but also the directions and choices political institutions take. Statistics from the 2007 elections showed once more that political parties are not willing to back their female members. Women figured at the heads of just 3% of electoral lists and just 5% of the total number of candidates.

Fatna Lkhail said women are still in the minority in party leadership, and therefore do not carry the weight needed to impose their will. She stressed that it is in local authorities that women can deal with the problem of their representation: "It is by working closer to the electorate that women will be able to demonstrate their real skills."

The international delegation called in to observe the elections stressed in its preliminary report that "thanks to the adoption of the national list system in 2002, Morocco has made great progress in promoting women's involvement in parliament. Unfortunately, it seems that the 2007 elections have not managed to consolidate women’s involvement in political life. There is a need to consider the best route to take to increase the level of women's representation, for party political leaders and election officials."