Miguel Mares Garcés

Ayuntamiento de San Antonio de Benageber

miguelmaresgarces@gmail.com

Participation in policy

Participation of women at Local Level

Representation of women in Political parties and National Government : Situation today

Best practices at Regional level

Political participation would be all intentional activity that develops a person to try to influence political affairs.

Anyone who gets involved, both collectively and individually, to change and influence the reality in which he lives, is making policy.

Informal participation and Participation in formal environment

Moreover, formal participation is the right of women to represent and be represented, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Charter of the United Nations, the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All

Forms of Discrimination against Women.

With the restoration of democracy, the Spanish Constitution of 1978 art.23 establishes not only equality of women before the law, marriage and

employment, but the principle of positive action to compensate for the real inequality.

In the field of representative democracy, until 1986 the deputies and councilors were 7%. From that year the Left parties took models in their statutes that had been so successful in the Scandinavian countries, and the number of elected women grew exponentially, also pulling the opposing parties fees, averaging 37 % in 2007, the year in municipal elections for the first time applied the Equality Act requiring the inclusion of 2 or 3 women in each /five nominations.

It a positive data that Municipalities under 5.000 inhabitants incresed in 10 points the participation –from 26,8 to 35,9%-

39% / 60%Lidership & political career

Age and Education

The most feminized departments at local level are Equality of Women (91%) and social services (38%).

Planning, Environment and in municipal governments, there is a respective 17, 28 and 22% of women.

Gender in the media: +photos

+ headlines + assertive verbs

while for women more reflective or passive forms are used

The participation of women in the various fields of political power has increased notably in Spain in recent years.

The Organic Law 3/2007 of 22 March for effective equality of women and men, devotes special attention to the promotion of the principle presence or balanced composition, understood as the presence of women and bodies and men in positions of responsibility, so that the people of each sex not exceed sixty percent or less than forty percent.

The policy areas in a balanced presence that currently occurs between both sexes are very small, and there is a great variability depending on the political body considered.

The presence is very low in some constitutional bodies and balanced in the case of most autonomic assemblies.

Information on the percentage of women in positions provides executives of the major political parties and the percentage of women in the government

of Spain, since 2005.

Women in management positionsPercentage of women and men in executive positions of the main political

parties. The development of information corresponds to the Women's Institute, from

thedata provided by each of the political parties.

Women in GovernmentPercentage of women holding various ministerial portfolios in the National

Government.

Source: Instituto de la Mujer. Ministry of Healh, social services and equality.

In July 2013, the percentage of women in executive positions set of sevenanalyzed political parties was 37.2%.

Analyzing each party individually, taking into account the criterion ofbalanced representation of the Equality Act, in 2011 the parties met

this criterion were Izquierda Unida and the Spanish Socialist Workers Party.Convergence and Union (CiU) with 19.2% in its National Committee and ERC

Executiu LeftRepublican Catalonia with 24.4% in its National Executive Committee were matches with less feminine presence.

The presence of women in the National Executive Committee of the Popular Party was 36.9%.

As regards the participation of women in government, it should be noted that after the general election in November 2011, four women

occupy as many portfoliosministry in the Government of the People's Party which represents a

female presence in the Council of Ministers of 30.77%.

Ministerial portfolios that have a female head are:

- Ministry of the Presidency, Vice Presidency and Government Spokeswoman

- Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality- Ministry of Public Works

- Ministry of Employment and Social Security

Most significant references in legislation of the Spanish Regions:

Law 9/2003 of 2 April for the equality of women and men of the Autonomous Community of Valencia:

Article 11 says that the Council of the 'Generalitat favor the presence women on nominations to the Valencian Corts by political and electoral processes.

Article 12: "The election of the Government grants recognized by law is increased by 10% for the seats won by women, (compatible with the

provisions of the Valencia Region Electoral law )The same percentage applies in the subsidy for each of the votes obtained by

the candidates that fit the provisions of the previous article of this law.

to create advocacy for equality is a formula for strengthening the commitment made in the eradication of gender discrimination and the development of

citizenship rights related to equal opportunities between women and men.

Article 42 states that "the Government shall ensure the principle of equality in the field of advertising in social media in public ownership, and therefore has

specific advice Observatory sexist communication of Valencia."

Article 50 is dedicated to the 'Valencian Council of Women "as a body to promote the participation of women in political life.

Article 51 specifies that "with the coming into force of this Act the Ombudsman for Equality is created in order to monitor compliance with the provisions

thereof."