Making women’s votes count

Lack of awareness is identified as a major factor in female disenfranchisement.

ISLAMABAD:

Given that a significant number of women are not allowed to cast votes, participants at a discussion on Wednesday developed a collaborative strategy to help maximise their participation in the coming general election.

They recommended overcoming cultural and financial barriers women face at the discussion titled “Women’s Right to Vote” held at Aurat Foundation.

Lack of awareness was identified as a major factor in female disenfranchisement.

Madiha Irfan of Democracy Reporting International said that one way to rally women’s votes is by raising awareness among the youth. This was endorsed by the other participants who said that adolescent and women voters constitute the majority of the population, but remain marginalised due to social and financial pressures.

The participants recommended that the Election Commission maintain gender-disaggregated data of voters, prepare a reliable and accessible mechanism for updating and maintaining electoral rolls, ensure transparency and harmonise election reforms with the post-18th amendment scenario.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 29^th, 2012.