Woman researcher sees persistent underrepresentation of women in politics despite increased representation in Parliament

Dr. Chulani Kodikara, researcher at the Social Scientists’ Association and Co-Editor of Polity (SSA Magazine) says that even though representation of women in Parliament increased there is persistent underrepresentation of women in politics.

Representation of women in formal political institutions remains low when compared with other countries in South Asia, Dr. Kodikara said delivering the opening remarks at a recent half-day event titled ‘Improving media engagement with women in politics in Sri Lanka’, aimed at improving media engagement with women in politics.

The event was jointly organised by the South Asian Women in Media – Sri Lanka (SAWM-SL), in collaboration with the Free Media Movement (FMM), Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association (SLWJA), The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka (TEGSL), and the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI) in Colombo.

“Given that representation of women in Parliament has stagnated at around 5% (or more) for more than 40 years, and that the NPP was able to increase representation in Parliament, without any kind of quota or reservation, is really an achievement that we need to recognise and applaud. We have to also celebrate that for the first time in our history two women from the Malaiyaha Tamil community were elected to Parliament in 2024.”

Juxtapose this increase in women’s representation in Parliament to the dramatic increase in women’s representation in local government from 2% to 25% following the implementation of a quota for women introduced in 2016, she said it was achieved after a very long struggle waged not by party women, but by women’s organisations in Sri Lanka.

However, even as these gains are celebrated, she said much more needs to be done in terms of increasing the numerical representation of women in politics, noting that even though the number of women in Parliament has increased substantially, women continue to be underrepresented in the Cabinet.

She also noted that women continue to be underrepresented in leadership positions within party structures across all mainstream political parties in Sri Lanka.

Emphasising the media’s role in shaping narratives around women in politics, she said research indicates that female politicians receive less media coverage and are often portrayed in gendered, sexualised, or stereotyped terms. She also noted that the media tends to reinforce traditional gender norms, positioning women within the domestic sphere while aligning men with political leadership.

“The media are also less open to the concerns and achievements of women politicians than to those of their male counterparts,” she said, adding that the rise of social media has exacerbated harassment and hate speech against women politicians, posing a significant barrier to their participation in public life.