WOMEN AND POLITICS: SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION AND A POLICY OF DECONSTRUCTION

Abstract

Female representation in politics is not unusual but the significance can be questionable. Women’s involvement in politics has been minimal in Malaysia. The improvement in the number of female representatives over the years has been surprisingly slow. Thus the political landscape is still a man’s world. Although the number of female registered voters is higher than male, women’s representation in the parliament fails to reflect this societal majority. The feminist perspective argues that deterrent factors to women’s active involvement are due to social construction and such a claim is supported when reviewing this phenomenon. Women are still viewed as the supportive group and unfit to lead the society. Despite the National Policy for Women that was adopted to deconstruct such double standards for women, the struggles for women in politics are tremendous. This research applies the qualitative method to examine women and politics. Secondary data is gathered to challenge the claim that the National Policy for women has empowered women in politics. This article examines the meaning of social construction and deconstruction mechanisms that are unable to boost women’s participation in politics. Overall, women are certainly capable of carrying out political responsibilities but the miles to significant political participation are still far.