Democracy Needs Parties, Not Only Democrats. And more women!

(First published in 2006)

By Bo Goransson,former Swedish envoy to Kenya.

Edited by Boniface Manyala

Republication date: November 5, 2007

Looking at 2007 we of course have to use the crystal ball, although we know a lot, or at least we think we know a lot. I bet that seen a fast growing economy in 2007. The export sector has continued to lead. The main internal, economic and social problem has continued to be the weak domestic demand, caused by the glaring inequalities and the widespread poverty. Africa has continued with reforms, increased growth, intensified regional collaboration and spreading of democracy, which is good. In Kenya, elections have dominated the political scene and debate, that we know.

Will this year’s election constitute another leap of democratization? We don’t know. Do we get any guidance from looking in the rear mirror? I think so.

It is easy to see that Kenyans are increasingly aware of their rights and power to influence politics. The 2002 election was important, a mile stone, Kenya at the crossroads making a bold decision.  But it was the beginning of a transformation, we have to remember that, it was not the transformation. The referendum process represented another step in deepening and fermenting Kenyan democracy. I am not so naïve as to believe that the campaigns in 2002 and 2005 were free from excesses, lies, propaganda and from fear factors.

Having said that, we did witness discussion at work places, small and “big debates” in media, civic education of considerable insight and impact. There were local discussions during the referendum campaign about the role or existence of chiefs, about the possibility to get one’s voice heard at local and national levels, about the power of the president and about control of land.  The by-elections in 2006 seemed to be a step backward; at least there are numerous reports on vote buying and violence.

There is no doubt, however, in my mind that the democratic space has widened. The setbacks we have seen so far seem to backfire on the non-reformers; the effect of the raid on Standard, for instance, increased press activities, not the other way round. Or is that wishful thinking?

But progress has not embraced women, half of the people. Although more women than before were both nominated and elected to parliament in 2002, there are clear backlash tendencies for women.

The referendum process was an alarm signal. One reason for many men to vote No to the proposed constitution seemed to be the fear of women starting to claim land. The right of everybody to inherit land already exists in the Kenyan laws but it was clearly spelled out in the proposed constitution that these rights also include women. This scared many men. And their No vote was a vote against the rights of women. Quite understandably, women today own only 5% of the land in Kenya.

Women continued to be marginal in major events. Oranges, Bananas and now PNU, ODM-K and ODM all display male parades. The new Government of January 2006 digressed rather than progressed as female Cabinet Ministers went from three to two.  The new ODM structure is in the same deplorable league: 5 out of 6 “Pentagon” members are men!

Another alarm signal is the salary hikes awarded by MPs to themselves. No matter what you think of that hike, the effect will be that a seat in parliament is very well paid. As a consequence it will attract more men. Competition is going be harder, and the means to get the lucrative nominations is going be rougher. There is however a sigh that the number of women in parliament will go up in 2008.

According to a recent study qualified women in urban areas shy away from participating in politics because they do not want to be subject to hooliganism, harassment and deceit. Who can blame them?  The system with one MP for each constituency and the winner takes all system, rather than a proportional system, has also proved to favour men.

 Another study, commissioned by the UNIFEM and conducted by Strategic Public Relations released early October, gives more hope, that actually the number of women representation at both civic and parliamentary level will soar.

I do not understand how the political parties can fail to see the potential of the female voters and votes. If I were employed as a spin-doctor for any political party in Kenya my main advice would be to actively promote women’s participation. Not only would that party gain insight, knowledge and experience, it would show that it has not excluded 50% of the people from their affairs - and it would certainly win the general election! But no one will employ me, and to be honest, I think that it is the women in Kenya who should speak up more than they do.

Democracy needs not only democrats, and more women, but also stronger parties. We have already seen a mushrooming of new parties this year. To what extent do present and future political parties base their participation, in coalitions or movements, on programmes and principles, not on personalities and power?

That parties differ is not remarkable, the idea with parties is that they should reflect various opinions and groups. That coalitions break up is not remarkable either. These are well known twists of democracy when divergences are not possible to accommodate in wedlock.  But for an outside observer, the ease with which politicians move from one group to another is a rather peculiar aspect of Kenyan politics.

In most other countries, an individual MP going from the opposition into government would be seen as disregarding democracy.  People decided through their votes that Parliament should have a certain composition, with a majority and a minority of a certain size. To switch between the blocs, to cross the floor, is seen as not respecting the will of the people. In Kenya, there is not much sign of such a discussion: It is accepted that the result of national elections give way for regional or local interest - an MP is expected to better serve his constituency if elevated to Cabinet. Hopefully, the newly assented Political Parties Billy will check these excesses.

This is what I would wish to see happen on the political arena in Kenya during the remaining 2months:

• Public disclosure of assets by candidates. There is no need for a law on that, any party has the right as part of their party constitution to decide on such an issue: If you want to run on our ticket, declare, and do it public. If one started, wouldn’t the other follow? Who would dare to abstain?

• Public disclosure of campaign contributions and transparency in how funds are used. Given the allegations and rumours on irregularities, that would certainly clear the air. And as with private disclosures, if one starts, which party can afford to abstain?

• Actively increase female participation in the political arena. In Nairobi only 40% of the women are registered. Women candidates should be nominated and supported by parties, not harassed, aiming at more fair representation.

• An election process, and ultimately election, that has its focus on ideology and issues, and respects the various roles of institutions, players, agents. Free, active and responsible media; independence for institutions overseeing the election process; fair and far-reaching election education and access to information.

I have a final wish: The greatest risk I see for Kenya’s future is the division of the people, by its leaders. The risk is obvious, and it is a risk with enormous costs.

During my years in Kenya, I saw the ugly face of ethnic tension grow stronger and more apparent, become almost accepted. The constitution process, so far, has been a failure in this respect, it seems to pin various segments of Kenyan society against each other rather than making everybody rally behind a national vision. The coming elections have the potential to make this worse, but it also brings an opportunity to walk another path.

The political parties have a key role in this, if they focus on programmes and politics, not on politicians and personalities. They could use the campaigns to unite Kenya, not divide further.  They can talk about national policies and politics, not only local. They can link the national to the local and the local to the national. It is the responsibility for all candidates to talk about the neglected North East or the spread of HIV/Aids in the west, not only candidates from these regions. It is the obligation also of men to talk about domestic violence and female genital mutilation.

Kenyans, like all other people, want democracy. There is no doubt about the will of the people in Africa; two thirds prefer democracy to other forms of government according to a recent survey. There is no doubt that Kenya and Kenyans are forerunners in this.

But to stay in the forefront, Kenya needs not only more democrats but stronger political parties - and more women in politics. On the issue on minimum versus comprehensive review, why not prioritise reforms that guarantee women better chance in the election process and a higher representation in parliament?

The writer is the immediate former Swedish Ambassador to Kenya, Bo Göransson

The articles published on this website displays the edited text.

 Source: http://www.swedenabroad.com/Page____53152.aspx