Rumah Pemilu Indonesia Election Portal
The Coalition of Communities Concerned with Women’s Representation (KMPKP) noted that in the 2024 elections, women would still experience violence in politics and gender-based violence in elections. Violence is seen as continuing to increase, starting with harassment, intimidation, and physical and sexual violence in public and in the mass media. This has an impact on the small number of women and vulnerable groups running for political office.
“The limited number of women and vulnerable groups who serve as election organizers means that the special perspectives and needs of women and vulnerable groups are often overlooked in the policies and mechanisms for organizing elections,” said the Chairperson of Kalyanamitra, Listyowati, in the discussion “Evaluation of the 2024 Simultaneous Election: Distortion of Women’s Representation and its Increase Violence Against Women by Election Organizers” in the Menteng area, Central Jakarta (1/7).
Based on data from the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem), although there has been an increase, the figure for women’s representation is considered not yet significant. In the 2024 election, the figure for women’s representation in the DPR will be 22.1%, or 128 seats out of 580 DPR seats. Tulisem believes that this figure is very likely to increase if the KPU really ensures women’s representation of at least 30% in each electoral district.
Data on women’s representation in the DPR throughout the election, namely, in the 1999 elections, the figure for women’s representation was 9%, or 45 seats out of 500 seats in the DPR. The 2024 election will be 61 seats out of 550 seats, or 11.1%, and the 2024 election will be 18%, or 101 seats out of 560 seats. Meanwhile, in the 2014 elections, it was 17.3%, or 97 seats out of 560 DPR seats, and in the 2019 elections, the figure for women’s representation was 20.5%, or 118 out of 575 DPR seats.
Listyowati said, based on Kalyanamitra’s research in the 2024 elections, violence against women occurred among female voters and vulnerable groups, including academics, journalists, community assistants, volunteers, election organizers, and female legislative candidates. Meanwhile, the roots of gender-based violence in elections are caused by patriarchal ideology and gender norms, unequal power relations, and a lack of regulation and protection.
“States and political institutions need to adopt and enforce policies that protect women from violence, including safe reporting mechanisms and firm legal action against perpetrators of violence,” emphasized Listyowati. []
