FRENE GINWALA is Speaker of the National Assembly of South Africa.

The seed of democracy lies in the principle that the legitimacy of the power to make decisions about peoples' lives, their society and their country should derive from a choice by those who will be affected. For many centuries the basis of this legitimacy was limited and many were excluded from making a choice: slaves, those without property or formal education, those not "civilized" or not part of the dominant culture or religion in society, people of colour, of a particular racial or ethnic group, indigenous peoples of countries conquered and annexed through superior weaponry, and overwhelmingly, women.

The seed of democracy lies in the principle that the legitimacy of the power to make decisions about peoples' lives, their society and their country should derive from a choice by those who will be affected.

The franchise was won through struggles within societies, and the right to self-determination of subject peoples through anti-colonial and liberation struggles in many countries. Today most of those previously excluded have won the right to both choose and be members of institutions of governance. Universal franchise in free and fair elections has become recognized as a minimum standard for democratic societies.

However, in new and established democracies alike, it has become clear that universal suffrage did not in itself lead to the establishment of representative legislatures. Many sections of the population continued to be excluded, mainly the rural poor and the least educated, and still, women. Overall, the proportion of women in legislatures is exceedingly low. The question is why and does it matter? Why should it matter; what difference does it make whether women are in legislatures and other institutions of governance or not?

It is important to appreciate that the issue is not only about numbers. If policy decisions and laws are to be made for the benefit of all members of society, then the extent to which the decision-making body is able to take into account the experience of as broad a spectrum of that society as possible, will be the gauge of the degree to which its decisions will be appropriate and meet the needs of the entire society rather than those of a particular group or groups.

While the debate about enfranchisement of women and participation of women in decision-making often focuses on issues of justice, equity and human rights, the representation of women and the inclusion of their perspective and experience into the decision-making process will inevitably lead to solutions that are more viable and satisfy a broader range of society. That is why women should be part of the process and why it matters: all of society benefits as we find better and more appropriate solutions for our problems.

The challenge goes beyond ensuring the election of larger numbers of women into the legislatures. Patriarchy, subordination of women, and the deep-rooted perception that the public domain is reserved for men and that the social contract is about the relationship between men and government and not citizens and government, come together to exclude women ­ notwithstanding rights guaranteed in law and the political rhetoric of good governance and participatory democracy.

In many countries, women continue to have difficulty in exercising their right to vote due to cultural, religious, patriarchal and economic impediments. Women have and continue to face difficulty in entering institutions of governance; political parties fail to choose them as candidates, and the electorate reflects and acts on the gender stereotypes in society by choosing men. Once in the institution, women have faced new obstacles that constrain their capacity to function.

Conscious that the oppressed must help themselves, large numbers of women participated in the struggle for the liberation of South Africa, and as co-combatants were able to integrate into its theory the liberation of women. Continued involvement in the negotiations by women ensured that the new South Africa has a constitution that is gender-sensitive and provides a unique legal framework for genuine and effective equality. However, in common with women in other countries we found that the existence of rights in law does not automatically mean that women are able to claim and exercise these rights. Patriarchy and the subordination of women that is structured into society, as well as cultural and religious practices remain with us.

This handbook is a tool. It proposes no one solution, but accepts that our situations vary though we share common aims. It presents us with information on the methods that have been used elsewhere, and those that are now available to us.

Institutions of governance like all other institutions have developed in patriarchal societies and have been shaped by the assumptions of unequal gender relations, and on the basis of who (men) should operate within those institutions.

In South Africa, the building blocks of the society we inherited are impregnated with racism and patriarchy, and so are the institutions. We need to use them to improve the material and social conditions we found, but we recognize that they need to be radically transformed. Their culture, values, organization and style were designed to perpetuate inequality and preserve privilege: objectives which are diametrically opposed to our own. Unless transformed, these institutions will either co-opt and swallow any blacks or women who enter or frustrate them into resignation.

We have been fortunate in having a political leadership that recognizes that women are needed to make the radical changes that are necessary and that in turn the presence of women within the institutions will enable them to change the structures of power of which they are a part, making it easier for those who follow. The South African experience is one of many around the globe.

This handbook is a tool. It proposes no one solution, but accepts that our situations vary though we share common aims. It presents us with information on the methods that have been used elsewhere, and those that are now available to us. It draws on the shared experience of women as well as men working as activists, researchers, and politicians; as individual groups and organizations, and as local, regional and global actors.

In any society and situation it is those most affected who must act to bring about change. Those who are privileged benefit, even unconsciously from a system that marginalizes others. Hence they cannot be depended upon to make the changes that will remove their privileged status. It is up to us, the women.

Most importantly, it focuses on what women need to do. This is not to support those who believe society's responsibility ends with the enactment of equality or anti-discrimination legislation, and then it is up to individual women. Rather it is to recognize that in any society and situation it is those most affected who must act to bring about change. Those who are privileged benefit, even unconsciously from a system that marginalizes others. Hence they cannot be depended upon to make the changes that will remove their privileged status. It is up to us, the women.

As we go into the twenty-first century globalization brings both opportunities and new challenges. In the period leading up to the Nairobi conference in 1985 women came together to overturn the assumptions that confined them to the private sphere and tried to define their concerns as purely social and divorced from the political and economic conditions in society. Women in the developing countries united and secured recognition for the link between equality, development and peace. The Programme of Action adopted at Beijing is based on the recognition that the development of women is integral to the development of society and further that political and civil rights are inseparable from economic and social rights.

When we look back two decades or even half a century, we see the tremendous progress we have made. Looking forward into the new millennium we see how much further we have yet to travel, but we can do so with confidence in our ability to write women's story as one that brought justice, peace and security for all humankind.

FRENE GINWALA

April 1998