KATHMANDU: Data reveals that Dalit women have minimal representation at decision-making levels within the state, with their presence in the executive, legislative, and judiciary branches remaining significantly low.
Dalit women, who face compounded discrimination based on both gender and caste, have been fighting for their rights since 1947.
However, it took over six decades for them to gain a foothold in the parliament. The first representation came in the 2007 interim parliament, with six Dalit lawmakers, a number that rose to 25 in the 2008 Parliament/First Constituent Assembly.
However, their presence began to dwindle in subsequent parliaments: to 22 in the Second Constituent Assembly (2013-17), and further to 14 in the 2017 House of Representatives. Currently, only eight Dalit women are represented in the existing HoR.
Durga Sob, Vice Chairperson of the Nepal Samajbadi Party (Naya Shakti), expressed that this decline is a result of deprivation of Dalit women’s access to resources and political opportunities, despite the constitutional guarantee for proportional representation of marginalized groups.
At the provincial level, Dalit women have seen some progress. In the 2017 elections, 24 Dalit women were elected to the Provincial Assembly, and this number increased to 27 in the 2022 elections.
However, representation in the executive branch remains limited. Kalawati Paswan served as Assistant Minister for the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Construction in 2010, while other Dalit women have held positions as Ministers of State.
In provincial governments, Sita Nepali became Minister for Internal Affairs and Law in 2022, and Sita Kumari Sundas served as Minister for Economic Affairs in 2013. So far, four Dalit women have served as Ministers of State at the provincial level.
At the local level, Dalit women have primarily occupied positions such as Deputy Mayors or Vice Chairs. In the 2017 local elections, 21 Dalit women were elected to these positions, but this number fell to 12 in the 2022 elections. Additionally, five Dalit women have been appointed as Deputy Chiefs in District Coordination Committees, with a total of 89 Dalit women serving in these bodies.
Dalit women have also made strides in local leadership positions. In the 2022 elections, 13 Dalit women were elected mayors, 229 as deputy mayors, 12 as chairpersons, and 335 as vice-chairpersons of rural municipalities. Additionally, 69 women were elected ward chairpersons, and 6,594 women were elected as ward members.
In political parties, representation of Dalit women varies: four in the Nepali Congress’s central working committee, five in the UML, 18 in Maoist Centre, two in the Rastriya Swatantra Party, one in the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, and six in Unified Socialist. The Nepal Samajbadi Party (Naya Shakti) has only one Dalit woman in its central office-bearer team.
A study by WOREC Nepal shows that Dalit women make up 7% of rape victims in the country. Additionally, Dalit representation in civil service is only 2.8%, with Dalit women making up an even smaller proportion. Sita Pariyar made history as the first Dalit woman to become Chief District Officer of Humla, 66 years after the establishment of the civil service.
The 2078 BS census indicates that Dalit people make up about 14% of the total population, yet Dalit women continue to have minimal participation at all levels of decision-making, including the executive, legislature, judiciary, constitutional bodies, public corporations, and commissions.
Bindu Pariyar, Chairperson of the Nepal Feminist Dalit Upliftment Association, emphasized that the state needs to implement policies that increase the participation of Dalit women in policy-making and decision-making levels.
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