Shillong: Meghalaya may boast of its ‘unique matrilineal culture’ in which women play a prominent role in all spheres of life of the tribal community, from education to administration, from professional jobs to farming, from business to entrepreneurship.

But when it comes to participation in politics and governance, it’s virtually a male fortress!Till last week, Violet Lyngdoh, cousin of Bharatiya Janata Party’s state president Shibun Lyngdoh and a sitting member of Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC), was projected as a potential BJP candidate from the Khliehriat constituency.

But at the last moment the party nominated sitting independent MLA Justin Dkhar.

“I was surprised that the party denied me the ticket for which I had worked so hard for the last two years, preparing the support base of the party. I do not know why the party has picked up an outsider, who had joined BJP just two weeks ago! It seems they don’t favour a woman candidate,” she said.

In utter disgust, she joined the Nationalist People’s Party (NPP) and decided to fight Dkhar.A similar cry of ‘betrayal’ was raised by another woman aspirant, Moromi K Marak, from Dalu (Barengapara) constituency in the South Garo hills. She was the vice-president of BJP’s Mahila Morcha.

“I worked tirelessly to build up the party, forming mandal committees of Yuva, Mahila and Kisan Morcha in the constituency. But the party chose to ignore all my efforts, and instead, nominated the sitting MDC of the Garo Hills ADC, Kurosh Marak,” she rued.

In yet another instance, sitting Congress MLA Bluebell Sangma, who won a byelection from the Chokpot constituency in the South Garo Hills in 2015, was denied re-nomination this time by the party.Instead, the Congress has put up a male candidate, Lazarus Sangma.

There are as many as 36 constituencies in the state where female voters outnumber their male counterparts, and yet, women find few nominations in the local and state elections. Out of 374 candidates whose nominations were found valid, only 33 are women.In the 2013 state elections, only 25 women had contested the polls, out of which just four—all from the Congress—won.

This time, the Congress has nominated seven women among 60 selected candidates, followed by NPP which has nominated four women out of 53 contesting candidates. BJP has fielded only two women candidates. The regional Hills State People’s Democratic Party (HSPDP) has nominated just one woman candidate, the sitting MDC of the Khasi Hills ADC, Teilinia Thankhiew from Mylliem constituency in the East Khasi Hills district.

Why are there so few women applicants for polls in Meghalaya? Or, are women generally discouraged to join politics and contest elections by political parties?“It’s a fact that political parties generally prefer male candidates to female aspirants, as they think men have better chances of winning elections,” said Meghalaya State Women’s Commission (MSWC) chairperson Theilin Phanbuh.

“There are well educated women, many of them are from well-to-do families, but they don’t like to get involved in politics and elections for various factors”. First of all, she says, women feel politics is a dirty game, in which money and muscle power are used by politicians to win elections. There is too much corruption and wheeling-dealing in politics, which they find difficult to come to terms with. “That is why, perhaps, women stay away from all this,” she added.

Secondly, even as the Khasis have been praised for having their deep-rooted democratic grassroots governance institutions and systems, in customary practices, women are not allowed to participate in the decision-making process in the villages.

It’s the men who decide everything.And, finally, perhaps, because of this socio-cultural conditioning, women see a marginal role for themselves in politics, Phanbuh observed.

“Women feel they are mainly responsible for looking after family interests and taking care of their children and the old,” she quipped.About two decades ago, North-East Network (NEN), a prominent women’s rights group, had carried out a survey in Meghalaya to find out what women think of their poor representation in politics and governance.

Most of the respondents, both in rural and urban areas, said men like to see women as homemakers or care givers, not as public functionaries. “No matter how high a position a woman occupies, she can’t escape her primary role,” opined Dr Darilyn Syiem, advisor to NEN.

“Despite having many more educated and qualified professional women in Meghalaya now, I don’t think the situation has changed for the better,” she felt.

The political culture and the politics of the day is such that one is required to make too many gratuitous compromises in pursuit of power and self-interest at the cost of dignity and personal integrity.“In my opinion,” Syiem said, “well educated, talented and independent-minded women try to find options in other spheres of life where they feel more comfortable and relaxed.”

Moreover, “women are not empowered enough to confidently step into a male-dominated field,” she added.The picture in the Garo matrilineal society too doesn’t seem to be bright either.

Gamchi Marak, MSWC vice chairperson and a stout defender of women’s rights in her community, points out: “Ours is a matrilineal, not matriarchal, society in which all decisions are made by men as the head of the family. Women are not allowed to sit together in the village council.

Discussions are always led by men, while women listen and tacitly accept that role.” Also, “it has been ingrained in our culture that women cannot think and thus are incapable of taking a proper decision,” she rued.Women, therefore, don’t feel encouraged to join politics.

Of course, there are a few Garo women leaders who have made names for themselves and even become ministers, such as former Union minister of state for rural development Agatha K Sangma and state social welfare minister Deborah Marak, to name a few. But then, most of them come from influential political families.While Agatha, who is contesting the state elections on a NPP ticket, is the daughter of former Lok Sabha Speaker and veteran Garo leader Purno A Sangma, Congress is fielding Dikanchi D Shira, the wife of incumbent Chief Minister Dr Mukul M Sangma for the second time.

Congress is also fielding the chief minister’s sister-in law, Sadhiarani M Sangma, the wife of his younger brother Zenith M Sangma, Meghalaya’s sports and youth affairs minister.Dr Dokatchi Ch Marak of the department of Garo languages, Northeastern Hill University, Tura campus, feels that “training and capacity building of young women is necessary to improve their participation in the decision-making process and governance at all levels”.

Agnes Kharshiing, a firebrand women’s activist who belongs to an influential political family, argues: “Fighting elections is a costly affair; only those who have money can think of contesting elections. Women generally have little money.”

(Source:nationalheraldindia)