Narcissism: a necessary evil?

Self absorbed, egotistical, power hungry, blind: all traits to describe narcissism. If you don't think you can still identify one, check out this helpful video on how to spot a narcissist!

For us, narcissism=bad, no second thought given. Let us consider this for a moment. 

Would you consider this man a narcissist?

How about this one?

Or this one?

Surely not him?

or him? (on second thought...)

Incidentally, in normal conversation we wouldn't consider these guys narcissist would we? surely not with the word carrying so much negativity!

What is common to all the people pictured above is that they have acquired and maintained high leadership positions (perhaps except for Romney, but who knows?) They are respected and have a high following. They are charismatic and good orators. But if they had been lacking in "self love, "a belief in themselves"and and high degree of self motivation, would they have made it? 

But is there such a thing called "healthy" narcissism? 

Michael Maccoby says that "narcissists, one of the three personality types identified by Sigmund Freud, have often emerged to lead and inspire people in the military, religious and political arenas. Business, too, has had its share of narcissistic leaders, especially at times, like the early 20th century, 'when business became the engine of social change...(and) men like Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Thomas Edison, and Henry Ford exploited new technologies and restructured American industry."  

There are incredible cons, and inevitable cons, he says. They bring great vision, the ability to see the big picture, and the drive and opportunity to change the rules of the game. They are successful in attracting followers, skilled in presentation, speaking, and charismatic. On the other hand, narcissistic leaders can be poor listeners, sensitive to criticism, lacking in empathy and relentless and ruthless in their pursuit of success. 

Researchers have qualified the term "adaptive narcissism" to describe people with a high degree of self-sufficience, and confidence. Those with adaptive narcissism, as compared to maladaptive narcissism, are better able to cope with anxiety, particularly in social contexts. They are successful in boosting their teams and classes. They help make sure that projects get done, contributing to the group effort, perhaps becoming a bit too assertive. Pathological narcissists, Yolanda Reid Chassiakos, says might exaggerate their efforts to invite praise and attention, but "healthy" narcissists would want to look good for himself/herself, and that modest confidence is contagiously attractive in both professional and personal spheres. 

Having said that, narcissism is definitely a double-edge sword. It is easy to get self-absorbed in achieving what they think is the correct path. Maccoby says, narcissists CAN become productive leaders: only if they work on themselves, recognising their potential shortcomings and traps of their own personality. He advises narcissists to find a trusted sidekick (think Steve Ballmer to Bill Gates, Michelle Obama to Barack Obama), indoctrinate the organisation with your own values, or own products, (basically align own interests with organisation, or vice versa) and finally to get into analysis (this includes self reflection, psychoanalysis, therapy which helps in understanding why they do what they do, becoming more self-reflective, open, likable and good humored) 

Narcissists tend to get promoted quickly, due to their charming character and their incredible commanding performances during crisis. However, once they get there, they have to perform. Leaders at the higher echelons of power, have to learn how to work together with people, listen to criticism and make the team motivated. If narcissistic traits could be identified early and blind ambition forgone, narcissistic "high achievers" can become quality leaders. Narcissists need to learn empathy, to work in teams, to align their own interests with the organisations. 

Therefore, a degree of narcissism isn't necessarily a bad thing. I mean, who could be more narcissist than politicians on a campaign trail? Does THIS sound familiar?

But perhaps narcissism to THIS extent is bad.  

Now that you know the pros and cons, will you take the test? 

For those brave souls go diagnose yourself HERE, or HERE

Vision, Mission, Persuasion and ?

During the fifth anniversary celebrations of Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP), Mr. Lee Kuan Yew (the former Prime Minister of Singapore) was asked about how to select future leaders. He replied; 

"(A Leader) must have passion. He must have the instinct to do something for his fellow man. He must have the capacity to persuade them to follow him. 

I went to sheep farm in Australia...I asked, 'how do you choose and train your dogs?' The farmer responded: 'We take them as young pups and look at their eyes. is he has good strong eyes and the sheep will will be scared looking at the dog, then we train him. if he hasn't got stamina to go thick and thin with you throughout the day, don't waste your time. Train one who is trainable and has the capacity to be trained." 

Looking at Mr. Lee's answer, three things can be garnered; a leader is passionate, has a vision and the ability to persuade! Mr. Lee also hints that leadership is destined at birth rather than learned. 

In a TEDx talk, Simon Sinek talks about how great leaders inspire action through the "Golden Circle"; with the "why" at the core. He says, its the why that makes the difference between an inspiring leader and those who don't really take off. In other words, a leader knows why they do and say what they say; have a passion! 

Indeed, one of the fundamental differences between a leader and the rest is their ability to enchant people. the art of persuasion. Without that initial attraction, a leader is basically just a regular Joe. What makes a leader a leader are the followers. If we think about it, before Anton Drexler, the founder of the German Workers party, invited him to the party, Hitler was a basically a nobody. 

And if the leader is able to attract the masses, they better have a place for them to go; ie, a vision! Martin Luther King Jr had a "dream" of how American society would be more inclusive, where men and women of colour would enjoy the same liberties and rights that others did. Mahatma Gandhi has a vision of a free and independent India and achieving that through non-violence. 

Therefore, Mr. Lee's assertions about a leader are correct. However is it enough? 

In my opinion, having a vision, the ability to attract followers and a mission is just one part of the equation. The other part is the HOW? How would the vision be achieved? What would be the next steps? What are the key elements? 

This boils down to the old debate about managers versus leaders. Managers are often thought to be concerned about budgets, administration, the hiring and the firing, the organising and coordinating while leaders are thought to be the visionaries and the charismatic presence who gives direction and inspiration. 

While traditionally oriented views might make a distinction, to be an effective and a great leader, one must have the art of leadership as well as the art of management. Havard Business School Professor David Thomas highlights, “increasingly, the people who are the most effective are those who essentially are both managers and leaders." 

Therefore, going back to Mr. Lee's comments on how to choose a good leader; yes, one must look for passion and charisma; and the ability to persuade others to follow them. However, if that person failed to deliver, would they be still considered a great leader? If Mr. Lee had not created the vision of Singapore that he promised, would he still be remembered today the same way? 

Relating this back to my own country's political situation, Mr. Nasheed, the former President was definitely an inspirational leader; a visionary with a mission. Through leading a dramatic movement called "Wathan Edhey Gotha: Badhalakah Emmen" (They way the nation wants: Everyone for a Change) he deposed Mr. Gayoom, who had been in power for the past 30 years, only to be faced by months of political upheaval and public unrest. This upheaval and unrest, though some were politically motivated, was mainly attributed to dramatic economic reforms which proved unpopular and alleged corruption and unlawful actions. Recognised all over the world as the Island President, he resigned after a police mutiny in February 2013.Therefore, however charismatic or inspirational, when a leader fails to maintain that support through the delivery of the ideals of the mission, they fail. 

On the subject of the traits of leaders, we commonly believe that leaders have to be intellectually capable to lead. Conventional wisdom states that if a leader is educated and worldly, they would make good leaders. This idea is manifested in our norms and is very visible during election cycles, when we vet the candidates according to their educational background, their past experience, job-performance, output and so on. Daniel Goleman on the other hand says, intelligence, toughness, determination and vision, though required, are not sufficient. The mark of a true effective leader is, he says, a high degree of emotional intelligence (EQ) which includes self awareness, self regulation, motivation, empathy and social skill. High EQ leaders are said to be better decisions, engage and influence more effectively, and create a better mood and working environment. 

These values do tie in to Mr. Lee's observations as well; especially the values of motivation, persuasion and the ability to lead change. However, a high degree of EQ also comes from self awareness; awareness about your own moods, drives, emotions and impulses. This requires self reflection, studying your personality type, what motivates you or unhinges you, and how your personality is shaped and how to engage with other people. Without this awareness it is difficult to know others and what drives them. And if you don't know your followers well enough, it is almost impossible to lead them effectively. 

Mr. Lee also hints that leadership is not acquired but obtained through birth. However, the concept of EQ gives raise to the idea that leadership can be learnt. Sure, some people are better than others at being perceptive and attuned to others. Some are optimists and have a presence. However, it is not impossible to learn these things either. Small things such as reflecting on your day and meetings before going to work everyday, will make you more prepared to face the challenges and irritations throughout. Leaving personal problems and grievances at home and not bringing them to work, will make your demeanour more pleasant. Actively listening to co-workers, knowing their personalities, and their interests will enable a leader to motivate them. These are things an aspiring leader can work at. Indeed, the large numbers of books written on the subject and the number of courses taught at universities are a testament to the belief that leadership can be acquired. 

Yes, there are certain things you are born with; such as looks, ability to learn and so on. However, even these things can be enhanced and improved and thus who’s to say, leadership qualities cannot be? If not, bad news to the loads of leadership trainers out there :)

Survey Analysis

The survey had the following objectives.

Is the public aware of the rights given to women in the Constitution regarding political participation?

Is there a gender bias in Maldivian society when it comes to politics?

What motivates/de-motivates political participation of women in Maldivian society?

The survey was aimed at 250 individuals. However, due to bad weather and the start of the fasting month, only 130 could be completed. Also, a number of individuals refused to take part citing that they did not take part in any ‘political’ activity. Even after explaining to those individuals that the survey was apolitical and just for academic purpose, they refused.

The first part of the Questionnaire was based on variables that could be used to compare the results with. These variables included gender, which was obviously an important issue as your own gender could change your perceptions on social values, culture, etc. Age group was an important variable because with age, changes attitudes towards norms and culture. Employment status and level of education, also reflects on the level of social interaction that could be used to determine awareness of social issues. In various cultures, wives cannot act independent of their husbands. Therefore, marital status was also asked. In the Maldives, there exists various differences between atolls and Male’, the capital; economically, education opportunities, social interaction. This difference may extend to attitudes towards political participation of women.

The second part of the Questionnaire was based on the present situation and knowledge of the constitution and laws. These questions aimed to find the awareness of the respondents and also to assess the favorability ratings of current women in politics.

The third part of the Questionnaire was based on perceptions of the respondents. It was designed to find out whether a gender bias existed in politics.

All in all, the questionnaire aimed to identify the attitudes of men and women towards women in politics, awareness of rights given to women through the constitution and ultimately identify any gender bias in society.



Opportunities for women to participate in politics

When asked whether they believed opportunities existed for women to participate in politics, 87% of the respondents sad that they did, while 13% said there wasn’t enough opportunity. 86% of female said yes and 88% of the males said yes. Interestingly, the incidence where men said no was greater than women. Several respondents, who said no, said that there wasn’t freedom for women to act independently in society. 96% of the respondents who agreed that there were opportunities for women in politics, agreed that women have the opportunity to participate in a political party while 91% agreed that women have the opportunity in parliament. 89% and 82% agreed that women have opportunity to be appointed for political jobs and the cabinet respectively. These high numbers may be an indicator of the current political changes and awareness in the Maldivian society due to democratic reform and introduction of party politics.


When asked about the rights given to women by the constitution, more than 90% of the respondents agreed that the constitution and the laws gave rights to women to participate in politics. 96% of the respondents who agreed that there was legal opportunity, agreed that women have the legal right to contest for Parliament. This may again be due to the recent parliamentary election where a number of female contestants ran successful campaigns. High profile women in political parties, including as party leaders may have contributed to 88% of the respondents agreeing that there is legal opportunity to contest for party leadership. (There is no Political Party Bill at the moment, it will be proposed to the sitting Parliament when it reconvenes after their break) Maldivian cabinets have more or less always included female ministers, thus attributing to the high number, 90%. A little over half of the respondents agreed that women can contest for President legally. This may be attributed to religion and traditionally held beliefs and stereotypes about women. The Maldivian constitution does not discriminate by gender, in the qualifications for President. (Chapter 4, Article 109).


The role of tradition, norms and culture is evident when asked who they would vote for President, in a situation where there is one male and female candidate, both of equal academic and professional qualification, experience and of no connection to the candidate in terms of family, friendship or political affiliation. 65% of the surveyed said they would vote for the male candidate mainly because they believed that “women should not be involved in politics” or “women are not physically or emotionally capable” or “women have other responsibilities compared to men (family)” or “women are not trustworthy or reliable” and “religion does not allow for women to rule over men ”. Out of the females questioned, 59% said they would vote for the man and 28% for the woman. Compared to the males questioned, 17% more said they would vote for the male candidate and only 8% said they would vote for the female candidate. Respondents who said that they would vote for the female candidate said that they would do so to see a “change” and because “I am a woman myself” and because “women understand people better.” From the 15% who said no preference, most respondents agreed that it didn’t matter whether the candidate was female or male but whether they were capable and whether they were trustworthy.

Nearly all of the surveyed said that political parties provided opportunities for women to participate in politics, have an equal chance of running the party and get appointed to political positions as men.


Support for women in politics currently

A crucial part of accepting and wanting women to take part in politics is about how well women who are currently active in politics act. When asked whether they support women who are currently active in politics, 85% replied yes and 15% replied no. Respondents were then asked to rate current female politicians on 4 key areas; trustworthiness, honesty, capacity, education. For trustworthiness and honesty, 63% and 50%, respectively, answered moderate with more or less even distribution on both ends.This may be reflective of the general attitude of Maldivians towards politicians, as dishonest and selfish. However, more than half of the respondents agree that female politicians are both capable and well educated. This is also easily understood by looking at the current profiles of women in parliament and the cabinet.

Most respondents answered favourably when asked whether they thought that female members of parliament performed at the same level as men.

Women and Political Participation

There exists a debate in Maldivian society, whether women should be stay-at-home mothers and home makers or focused on their careers or both. Traditionally, women have always been the home-maker while the man is the bread winner. It is expected that this traditional viewpoint has changed over time with more and more working women and working mothers. When asked whether women should stay at home, work or do both almost 3/4th of the respondents answered both. It is more interesting to look at how this trend changes with age group. At the lower age groups, 18-21 and 22-30, most respondents support both working and staying at home. While 17% of young respondents believe that women should be focused towards a career, this number keeps on decreasing as the age increases. Percentage of respondents who believe that women should stay at home highest in the highest age group suggesting that older generations held the traditional belief of women staying at home. It is encouraging, however to see that most of the respondents from each age group believes that women should do both.

It is also interesting to compare gender and preference of women’s role. Interestingly, 76% of the males answered that women should do both work and care for family while 66% of women said the same. Contrary to previous assumptions, more women said that women should stay at home than men.

Political participation can occur in several ways. From the smallest task of voting to holding the highest office in any country, can be considered political participation. 86% of the surveyed agreed that it was important for women to participate in politics. 84% of the men questioned said yes and 13% of the women questioned said no. Of the respondents who said yes, 96% agreed that women should vote while 93% and 92% said that women should be members of political parties and be appointed for political jobs, respectively. Only 60%, however, said that women should participate in political rallies. this is again, evident of the culturally acceptable roles for women; women should not go out and participate in political rallies and sit-ins and protests which are generally seen to be disruptive. A key question to ask is, whether women themselves want to be involved in politics. 63% of the respondents who said yes were female from a total of 88% who said yes.



Women and elections

We have seen that Maldivian society generally believes that there is opportunity for women to act in politics, both socially and legally and believe that it is important for women to participate in politics. Therefore, it is important to see whether a woman can successfully compete in an election. When asked whether a woman can win a party election, 92% said yes. This may be due to the fact that the party currently in government elected a female chairperson. When asked whether a woman can win a parliamentary election, nearly all of the respondents said yes. This may also be due to the fact that a number of women did run for Parliament in the last Parliamentary Elections. When asked whether a woman can win a Presidential Election, however, the numbers were slightly lesser. Only 63% believed that a woman could get enough support to win.

When asked whether they would personally support any woman who ran for President, Vice-president, Member of Parliament and Party Leader, 42% responded that they would support a woman who ran for president while 58% said no. 55% of females, interestingly, said no while more women than men said yes.

68% responded that they would support a woman who ran for vice-president while 32% said no. 66% of males said yes and 69% of females said yes

nearly 100% responded that they would support a woman who ran for Parliament. Nearly 100% of the females said yes while 94% of men said yes as well.

75% of the respondents said that they would support a woman who ran for Party Leadership. Out of the respondents who answered yes, 74% were male and 76 of the respondents were female.



Conclusion

Based on the answers given to the questions, we can conclude that women in Maldives can go out to work, take care of their families and also take part in politics. This is evident as most of the surveyed replied that there is opportunity for women to participate in politics. Most people also replied that women should do both work and take care of their families. Women are encouraged to take part in politics as Maldivian society views women’s participation in politics important. However, this participation is evidently discouraged at political rallies because of its unsavoury view in society. Also due to the traditional perception of women as passive.

There are rights given to women in the Constitution. The Constitution does not discriminate between women and men when contesting for President, Vice-President or Member of Parliament.[1] We can therefore conclude that Maldivian society is generally aware of the rights given to women in the Constitution; especially regarding Parliament, Cabinet and political jobs, political party membership. However, people may not be aware as well, of there being no discrimination against women to contest for president. Although half of the respondents agree that there is legal right for women to contest for president, a lesser number said that they would vote for a female or support a female candidate, most respondents saying that they would vote for a man given the choice between a female and male candidate. Pre-held beliefs and cultural elements such as interpretations of religion may influence this number.

Political parties rank favourably as providing enough opportunities for women to participate in politics rather than being setbacks. Female politicians also generally ranked as performing favourably in the 4 key areas discussed; trustworthiness, honesty, capacity and education. Most people believe that female MPs perform equally to men in the parliament. People therefore, support women who contest for Parliament and believe that they can get enough support to win.
We can conclude that apart from the office of the President, Maldivian society will accept women into political posts, parliament and parties. Women are not discouraged from participating in politics and opportunities for women exist. Women generally do not take part in politics because of pre-held beliefs about religion, women’s own capability and personality, not due to legal issues or because women perform badly in politics.

This survey is not by any means conclusive and reflective of the entire Maldivian society. As said before, viewpoints would differ between the atolls and Male’. However, because of the small number of respondents and the nature of their demographic, this variable cannot be measured. The survey took place in Male’ only, which may or may not have affected the results. Education qualifications are also too sharply skewed in one direction to take into account. In conclusion, more study is needed to assess these variables.

[1] The Political Party Bill, although not yet passed by the Parliament, does not discriminate either between men and women.

Final Report of Research Project

Democratisation, Rights and Cultural Norms: The Case of Women in the Maldives

Mariyam Midhfa Naeem
-Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Warwick-
Research funded by the Reinvention Centre for Undergraduate Research

Abstract

In Maldives, women do not participate nearly as much as men, in politics. Especially at decision making levels such as the Parliament and cabinet. Any number of factors could contribute to this outcome. Surveys, interviews and discussion groups led to the result that women are represented fairly and do participate but not at higher levels of politics, especially policy level. This is due to women themselves feeling shy, being passive or other social barriers, culture, traditional norms rather than legal basis. The strength of democratic values in Maldives is determined through the assessment of gender equality.

Keywords: women’s participation, democracy, norms, politics


Introduction

Maldives is a Small Island State nation located in the Indian Ocean. It has a population of 298,968 . Maldives is a 100% Muslim state with the Constitution and the laws having their basis in Shariah Law. With changing governments and changing attitudes towards politics and people becoming more aware and more involved with policies and the policy making process, more women than before are involved in political arena but nearly not enough. Women in government and the Parliament are vastly outnumbered by men. Moreover, the growing streak of religious extremism in the country suppressed women. I wanted to explore the reality of why women did not take part in politics and whether it was because they did not have the right, or because of culture and tradition. Political participation of women in the Maldives has not been studied as much, and therefore, there were no answers available for policy makers or political parties.

Women’s participation and representation are important measures of the quality of democracy. This project aimed to study the quality of democracy in the Maldives through assessing the participation of women in politics . Participation is often affected by culture, legal rights and traditional values and norms that are ingrained in a society. This project also aimed to identify whether cultural values and norms and legal rights were a barrier to women’s political participation. This was achieved through observing current trends of participation of women, determining level of awareness about rights and identifying attitudes towards women in politics, exploring the significance of constitutional rights, norms and observing the attitudes of young people towards politics and political career. This project aimed to add to the research on women’s political participation and the factors affecting it.

Methodology

The research was carried out in three stages. The first was the preparation stage, secondly the field data collection stage and thirdly, the analysis stage.

In the first stage, letters were prepared and sent to all concerned authorities to obtain approval for surveying and also obtain interviews with political parties, school, and other offices concerned. The survey questionnaire was drafted and sent for printing. The surveying area was determined.

In the second stage, documentary analysis was carried out together with field work. Documentary analysis, especially of the constitution and reports of CEDAW on state of women in Maldives along with local reports of surveys provided a much-needed background on the status of women in Maldives. The field work contained interviews and also surveying. Interviews were arranged with two groups of 17-19 year olds, including boys and girls, from the Centre for Higher Secondary Education. The purpose of these interviews were to garner their views on the participation of women in politics and whether they believed there was a gender bias in Maldivian society. These interviews also provided information on what kind of career choices the young people had made and what affected these choices. One hour long interviews were also arranged with 3 political parties. Originally, 6 political parties with the highest number of members were contacted for interviews, but 3 parties did not return calls or letters. These interviews provided an insight into activities within the party and how women were involved in them. It also provided a picture of Maldivian society and the party’s perceptions on how and why women did/did not participate. Interviewing face-to-face gave the opportunity to interact personally and talk candidly with several figureheads of Maldivian politics. The surveying was carried out over two weeks. It was initially aimed at 250 participants in the capital, Male’. However, the number had to be revised to 130 as bad weather and the start of fasting month delayed surveying. The survey aimed to identify the attitudes of men and women towards women in politics, awareness of rights given to women through the constitution and ultimately identify any gender bias in society. The survey was carried out personally, rather than through telephone or post, firstly because this has mostly been the method used in Maldives to survey and secondly, as it provided a more personal touch and the surveyed, talked more openly and connected with the interviewer.

In the third stage, analysis of the collected data took place. Reports were written on all the field work done and the survey was analysed using Microsoft Excel. This stage took over 2 weeks. The final report was written based on all the reports written previously.


Results

Documentary Analysis:

Analysis of several reports on status of women showed that several improvements and efforts have been made by the government towards improving status of women. The current Constitution includes a provision on non-discrimination on the basis of sex. The human Rights Commission also puts great emphasis on the rights of women and provides mechanisms of seeking redress in the incidences of violations of rights. All bills proposed by the government encouraged non-discrimination on grounds of sex, and attempts to remove existing social and legal barriers. Positive discrimination was not approved as it was seen as encouraging discrimination against men. However, the political party bill is still up for discussion in parliament and is seen as an opportunity to lobby for a quota for women in legislature.

1 in 5 women aged 15-49 who have ever been in a relationship have been physically or sexually abused in some form by their partner. 1 in 9 women aged 15-49experience severe physical abuse from their intimate partners, such as kicking, choking, being punched, burnt or have a weapon used against her. 1 in 3 women aged 15-49 years have answered to having suffered some form of sexual or physical violence at least once during her lifetime. The rate of child sexual abuse is relatively high. However, fewer cases are reported. Physical abuse may force women to stay hidden and shy away from high profile political activity and be passive.

Interviews at Centre for Higher Secondary Education:

All students accept that there are socially accepted “female” jobs and “male” jobs. Generally, students mistrust politicians and regard them as selfish and unqualified. Students said that when electing politicians, gender was not an issue but capability was. Most students identified honesty and capability as the key areas they look for in rating a politicians; female or male. However, they do not believe that a woman can be president because of religious beliefs and cultural values. Most students also think that women themselves do not want to take up high profile roles and they are not able to because of their other responsibilities. Most students believe that a woman’s first priority should be home and with their family while a man’s first priority should be work and home.

Interviews with Representatives with Political Parties:

Political parties do not discriminate amongst men and women. Women are clearly a part of political parties as indicated by membership records. In some parties (DRP) women outnumber men. However, representatives acknowledge that few women are able to break through from grass root level politics and advance into party leadership roles and other higher political office. All representatives cite social problems such as women not having enough exposure and skills, and personality problems such as women not having enough confidence and being too shy as factors that lead towards women not being as active as men in higher politics. Other factors such as financial dependency, geographical challenges and women not having enough time are also mentioned. Religious extremism is also a growing concern. Parties also cite traditional views of women as passive and shy and uninvolved, changing over time. Parties have identified that women’s participation is necessary and are taking appropriate measures to ensure that women are adequately represented (forming women’s wing, etc). However, more needs to be done by political parties to ensure that more women run for parliament, are more active in day-to-day running and executive positions of the party itself.

Survey:

Based on survey, women in Maldives can go out to work, take care of their families and also take part in politics. This is evident as most of the surveyed replied that there is opportunity for women to participate in politics. Most people also replied that women should do both work and take care of their families. Women are encouraged to take part in politics as Maldivian society views women’s participation in politics important. However, this participation is evidently discouraged at political rallies because of its unsavoury view in society. Also due to the traditional perception of women as passive.

There are rights given to women in the Constitution. The Constitution does not discriminate between women and men when contesting for President, Vice-President or Member of Parliament. We can therefore conclude that Maldivian society is generally aware of the rights given to women in the Constitution; especially regarding Parliament, Cabinet and political jobs, political party membership. However, people may not be aware as well, of there being no discrimination against women to contest for president. Although half of the respondents agree that there is legal right for women to contest for president, a lesser number said that they would vote for a female or support a female candidate, most respondents saying that they would vote for a man given the choice between a female and male candidate. Pre-held beliefs and cultural elements such as interpretations of religion may influence this number.

Political parties rank favourably as providing enough opportunities for women to participate in politics rather than being setbacks. Female politicians also generally ranked as performing favourably in the 4 key areas discussed; trustworthiness, honesty, capacity and education. Most people believe that female MPs perform equally to men in the parliament. People therefore, support women who contest for Parliament and believe that they can get enough support to win.

We can conclude that apart from the office of the President, Maldivian society will accept women into political posts, parliament and parties. Women are not discouraged from participating in politics and opportunities for women exist. Women generally do not take part in politics because of pre-held beliefs about religion, women’s own capability and personality, social problems such as low pay, lack of child care facilities and family obligations, not due to legal issues or because women perform badly in politics. Men do not discriminate against women in politics, apart from president. This survey is not by any means conclusive and reflective of the entire Maldivian society. Viewpoints may differ between the atolls (rural) and Male’ (urban). However, because of the small number of respondents and the nature of their demographic, this variable cannot be measured. The survey took place in Male’ only, which may or may not have affected the results. Education qualifications are also too sharply skewed in one direction to take into account.


Conclusion and outcome

This project aimed to study the quality of democracy in the Maldives through assessing the participation of women in politics. The working hypothesis was “women’s participation is low due to cultural norms shaped by religion, traditions and gender bias”.

The documentary analysis showed that women have equal rights to men in the constitution and laws. Women have equal rights to vote, stand up for political posts and even the highest post in the country . In the past, women have stood up for parliament but not nearly as many as men. Women are abused in Maldivian society. This can mean that the social standing of women is not comparable to men. Women do take part in politics through political parties and their activities. Their participation is seen as important. Women are encouraged and nominated for political posts. However, there is gender bias in jobs due to traditional perceptions of women and men and the kind of work they can do, which exists in most societies. These stereotypes are evident in young people’s viewpoints as well and suggest that these are culturally and socially accepted beliefs. Unless these beliefs are overpowered, women cannot break the biases in society and in politics. In the political arena, women and men are more or less equal in terms of opportunities, current trends and rights. Women are not discriminated against and men do not push women down. However, it is evident that men and women do not believe that a woman can be president. This is generally due to culture shaped mostly by religion and perceptions of women. Women’s political participation is hindered by social problems. Women themselves are reluctant of being active in politics. This may be due to the nature of politics in Maldives as well. Therefore, it is fitting to conclude that women’s participation is not low relatively. However, it is affected by cultural norms shaped by religion and tradition and legal rights, especially at higher levels and ranks. Democratisation entails full realisation of gender equality. And therefore, more efforts need to be made for more gender equality and thus, a stronger democratic state.

Doing research helped me to understand several things about my own country, such as the nature of politics and political parties and identify areas in which Maldivian society lacks awareness; legal awareness. It also helped me to identify my own strengths and weaknesses and how to improve them. I have developed a keen interest in social research and aim to continue with similar projects after my degree. The project helped me to horn my organisation skills and learn how to deal patiently with people. I had to revise and reconsider my research aims and methodology several times during the project and this was a test of patience and perseverance. Taking up research in a community where people are not very willing to talk to researchers and surveyors and where people have a general mistrust of politics and politicians is a challenge. Moreover, taking a survey about women’s participation in politics was a bigger challenge due to perceptions of women in society. Identifying how to connect with people and learning how to interact with high profile politicians, was an honour and a challenge.

The findings of the research project were shared on my personal blog and received favourable comments from the readers. Information about the research was circulated through word of mouth and through email amongst friends and acquaintances. Several people have encouraged continuing with more social research in the future.

Throughout the research project, my family and friends were always helpful and encouraged me and I would like to thank them. I also want to acknowledge all the offices and political parties for their time and knowledge. Lastly, I would like to thank the Reinvention Centre for Undergraduate Research for the opportunity and the means to discover more about my country and myself.













References

Census 2006 est. Source: Department of National Planning, Republic of Maldives. Available at: http://planning.gov.mv/en/content/view/38/5/ (accessed on 18/09/2009)
Ministry of Gender and Family (2007), “CEDAW Second and Third Combined Periodic Report of Maldives”
Ministry of Gender and Family (2007), “The Maldives Study on Women’s Health and Life Experiences: Initial results on prevalence, health outcomes and women’s responses to violence”
The Maldivian Constitution (2008)

Supplementary information

Annex 1: Report of meetings with political parties
Annex 2: Report of meetings with students from CHSE
Annex 3: Survey findings and analysis

Research Project: Day 1

Day 1 has not been very fruitful I guess. Called Elections and CHSE in the morning. got no reply from either of them. On the bright side, got the questionnaires printed and also the map of male has finally found me. a friend told me of this program that is used now as a map. it is so cool. gives you all the addresses and stuff. will be hugely helpful in deciding which areas to go to and stuff.

also got a reply from DRP. guess their letter reached them. which means that other letters must have been delivered today by Maldives Post as well. I will call them tomorrow and check. DRP says that they will do their best to arrange a meeting with the people i requested: Parliamentary group leader, President of Women's Branch or Deputy Leader. was a good omen at the end of the day.

Hope tomorrow is better. have to arrange the CHSE meetings most importantly tomorrow!!!

Research Project: Introduction

So my blog here is going to be dominated by my research project and its outcomes, the many challenges I face and the achievements. I will strive to give a daily update on the ongoings and keep a diary of the important events.

Have a look at my research proposal.

Democratisation, Rights and Cultural norms: the case of women in the Maldives

Mariyam Midhfa Naeem

Women’s political participation and representation are important measures of the quality of democratic representation. This research project aims to measure the quality of democracy in the Maldives through the participation of women in politics and the significance of norms and rights to the level of participation.

Objectives

· To observe the past and current trends of participation of women in politics, political parties, executive and cabinet portfolios

· To explore the level of awareness about political rights of women and attitudes of the population towards women in politics

· To explore the significance of constitutional rights and cultural norms to the level of participation

· To explore the attitudes of young people towards women in politics and political career aspirations of girls.

Hypothesis

Women’s participation in politics is low due to cultural norms shaped by religion, traditions and gender bias.

Research Design:

Documentary Analysis

· Examination of the constitutional rights given to women and various laws enforcing them.

o This is achieved through analysis of the current constitution which was adopted in 2008 and also of the former constitution used from 1998-2008.

· Examination of voter turnout and history of elections and candidates.

o This is done through the analysis of archives of past elections held at the Elections Commission. Analysis will be done of 5 parliamentary elections and 5 presidential elections.

o Focus will be on the following questions

§ What is the percentage of women voter turnout in the elections?

§ What was the percentage of female candidates in elections and success ratio?

· Examination of international and independent databases on the Maldives and participation of women

o These are international standards such as Freedom House, Gini co-efficient, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International

· At the end of documentary analysis the following objectives will be met.

o Establish whether right to vote and right to stand up for political posts, are given to women in the constitution

o Establish the number of candidates that have stood up in past elections and the ration of success of female: male. Also the ratio of female candidates: successful female candidates can be measured as well

o Identify the voter patterns in terms of gender

o Identify the international perceptions on the Maldives and the freedom of rights that it gives to citizens

Qualitative Data:

· One-on-one interviews with heads of political parties and women’s branches. The 5 parties with the highest number of members will be interviewed

o The following questions will be focused on

§ What are the roles for women in the party?

§ What is the standpoint of the party on women in politics?

§ Are there women’s branches in the party? Why yes/no?

§ Are women active in the party? In higher levels of the party?

· Interviews with government officers responsible for women’s welfare

o The following questions will be focused on

§ What are the biggest setbacks for women in Maldivian society?

§ Are women abused? Why?

§ What is the social role of women? Has it changed over the years?

· Group discussions with students (girls and boys separately) from the Centre of Higher Secondary Education, focusing on the following questions

o What career options do you think are available to be pursued in the Maldives?

o Do you think there are certain jobs that are gender specific? Which ones?

o Is a political career an option? For girls? Why yes/no?

· At the end of this stage the following objectives will be met.

o Explore the current role of women in political parties and attitude of parties towards women in politics

o Explore the social standing of women in Maldivian society. Explore the different norms and cultural attitudes towards women

o Explore the mindset of the young population towards careers in politics. explore whether there is a difference in perception in girls and boys and the reasons behind any difference

Quantitative Data:

· Survey with a pre-designed questionnaire to find answers to the following questions

o Is the public aware of the rights given to women in the Constitution regarding political participation?

o Does the public believe there is a gender bias in terms of career choice?

For men:

o Do they believe that there is a role for women in politics? if so, what roles?

o Is there opportunity for a woman to contest for president/vice-president/MP/accept cabinet portfolio/party leadership? Why?

o Would they support a woman to contest for president/vice-president/MP/accept cabinet portfolio/party leadership? Why?

o Do they support women in political positions?

o Do they believe that women are capable of doing an equal performance to men in such a position? Why?

o Do women support other women who are in such positions? Why?

For women:

o Do women believe that there is a role for women in politics? if so, what roles?

o Do women believe that they have the opportunity to contest for president/vice-president/MP/accept cabinet portfolio/party leadership? Why?

o Are women willing to contest for president/vice-president/MP/accept cabinet portfolio/party leadership? Why?

o Do women believe that they can get support to/and if they contest for president/vice-president/MP/accept cabinet portfolio/party leadership? Why?

o Do women support other women who are in such positions? Why?

o Can women do an equal job to men in such positions? Why?

· Through the survey, the following objectives will be met

o Identify the attitudes of men and women towards politics and women in politics

o Identify any gender bias in career choices

o Assess the awareness of rights given to women through the constitution

At the end of the field work period, the following questions are to be answered

o What are the levels of participation of women in politics?

o What are the reasons for high/low levels of participation?

o What are the norms and attitudes towards women in politics in Maldivian society? Does this have any connection to the level of participation?