Obstacles to women in politics

MASVINGO –THE uneven political playing field, characterised by bullying, name-
calling and outright harassment hinders women from contesting for positions during
elections.
This was unveiled during a Gender and Media Connect post-election meeting held
last week, where the conduciveness of the political environment to women’s
participation was under the spotlight.
The meeting ran under the topic “Pre-electoral, during and post-electoral dynamics:
Is it conducive for women candidates?”
Humanitarian Media Focus in Zimbabwe (HUMFOZ) co-founder, Hazvinei Mwanaka,
said women should be strong and persistent in the political journey because it is not
friendly to them.
“As HUMFOZ, our researches revealed that women are disadvantaged as they are
aligned to their traditional roles with people focusing on the negatives and dark past.
Therefore, women need to be strong and persistent in political journey to inspire
future generations and change the narratives," said Mwanaka.
“The working environment is toxic and women face all sorts of abuse such as
harassment, cyber stalking and they end up not willing to participate. Women
journalists have much at their disposal so as to change the narrative about women in
politics by covering them in a positive way,” she said.
The media has a role in correcting gender disinformation, where the community
which they are participating in is patriarchal, while the portrayal of young women in
politics by the media undermines their images, she said.
Member of Parliament Auxcilia Dhanzi, said she is grateful for the post that she got
as it made her understand that as women, they also have a voice in decision-making
processes.
The negative publicity of women on social media platforms affects the self-esteem of
aspiring politicians and this affects their participation in developmental issues.
“I would like to thank the ruling party through President Emerson Mnangagwa for
extending women’s quota to 2028, where every Zimbabwean woman is given a
chance in decision-making. I encourage women to support one another and desist
from looking down upon each, but rather put an extra effort in supporting each
other," said Dhanzi.
“As women our time with family is limited when committed to politics, hence women
are scared of high positions except the few like Senator Mabel Chinomona, Oppah
Muchinguri Kashiri and they are an inspiration. I appreciate today’s engagement

meeting by GMC and would like to urge women to invest in productive spheres and
go for influential positions,” she said.
It is very unfortunate, she said, that people always think that women attain positions
through immorality instead of merit and hard work.
Speaking at the same event, Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe Chapter Co-ordinator
(WCOZ), Blessing Chimombo, said the participation of women in politics is still low.
“The GMC engagement meeting is a good initiative as it tries to hook up women. We
are lucky to have female journalists; together we can go further and inspire each
other. As for women in politics, I urge them to remain in politics to represent others.
“The participation of women is, however, affected by lack of resources compared to
their male counterparts, lack of support from family and friends, pull-her-down
syndrome, where they are de-campaigned with past mistakes especially by fellow
women, media’s portrayal of women where it focuses on body shaming, dark past
and stereotypes.
“Traditional beliefs, where society is patriarchal, women are not expected to
participation in decision-making platforms, lack of information by women to attain
certain positions and they require capacity-building programmes to improve their
knowledge and also the community has a tendency of not believing in women and
that affects women participation. The women in Parliament number decreased from
28 in 2018 to 22,” she said.
Chimombo believes female journalists can help women politicians by positive
coverage, which uplifts them.
She urged GMC to engage female politicians on how to answer and approach media
after noting that female politicians shun the media.
GMC works to promote not only the rights of women and girls in media, but also
rights of women and girls in accessing media both as a source of information as well
as platforms for free expression and helping them to attain the relevant gender skills
to champion advocacy on issues affecting them using the media as a tool for socio-
economic development and empowerment.