I'm not sure how I view this. On the one hand, if it was me, being told I had to vote for a guy, or a girl, or a white or a black would just plain piss me off. Now I'm sure some of y'all will rush to tell me that's not what's going on. Bullshit. By saying 1/3rd of the legislatures must be women, they have effectually told 1/3rd of the areas represented (and yes India does representation by regional area like the US does) they must elect women. Some of y'all are saying what's wrong with that? Well what if I told you you must elect a white fundamentalist Christian? Suddenly it's a problem huh?The upper house of India's parliament has approved a bill to reserve a third of all seats in the national parliament and state legislatures for women.
The bill was passed with 186 members of the 245-seat house voting in favour. Only one member voted against. Several smaller parties boycotted the vote.
The bill's introduction on Monday led to uproar from opponents, resulting in the suspension of seven MPs on Tuesday.
First proposed in 1996, the bill now has support from India's main parties.
At present women make up just 10% of the lower house of parliament (Lok Sabha), and significantly fewer in state assemblies.
Sonia Gandhi, Congress party president, has said she attaches the "highest importance" to the proposals and passing them would be a "gift to the women of India".
The bill needed the support of two-thirds of voters present in the upper house (Rajya Sabha) for it to be passed.
It will be tabled in the lower house at a later date. An overwhelming majority there support the move, correspondents say.
The bill has the support of the governing Congress-led UPA alliance, the BJP-led NDA alliance and left-wing parties.
Many believe it will help overcome gender inequality in India and lead to decisions that help improve the lives of millions of women.
'Giant step'
Party leaders hailed the approval of the historic bill, which they had hoped would be passed on Monday, International Women's Day.
Indian women
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"The bill is a historic and giant step towards empowering women and a celebration of their rights," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in the Rajya Sabha.
"Women are facing discrimination at home, there is domestic violence, unequal access to health and education. This has to end," he said.
Communist leader Brinda Karat said it would change the "culture of the country because women today are still caught in a culture prison".
"In the name of tradition, stereotypes are imposed and we have to fight these every day," she said.
The Congress party's Jayanthi Natarajan said "women have been waiting for 62 years for this moment".
The bill's passage through the upper house was marked by scenes of chaos after it was tabled on Monday.
Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Jaitley, speaking in parliament on Tuesday, said the uproar was "one of the most shameful moments in India's parliamentary democracy".
Earlier, seven MPs had been forcibly removed from the upper house by security guards, after they refused to leave having been suspended for disorderly behaviour.
The MPs had shouted slogans, snatched papers from Vice President Hamid Ansari's table, torn them and thrown them at him.
The MPs are all members of three parties opposing the women's bill: the Samajwadi Party (SP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Loktantric Janata Party (LJP).
While India's main parties back the legislation, smaller socialist parties argue it will reduce representation of minorities and socially disadvantaged groups.
They want set quotas for women from Muslim and low-caste communities.
There are currently 59 women in the 545-member Lok Sabha. Under the proposals their numbers would rise to 181.
The composition of the 245-seat upper house, which at present has 21 women, will not be affected as its members are indirectly elected by state assemblies.
India already reserves a third of local governing council seats in towns and villages for women, a move that has significantly increased their role in decision-making.
On the other hand, there's a phrase to describe the lot of women in much of India... Bottom of the hill at shit creek. And shit creek is flooding. Something clearly has to be done, as women are almost routinely murdered by their husbands families for illegal dowries. Expected to accept being shut up in Purdah (ironically by rising middle class families aping trying to act like upper class families who don't do that anymore) or being killed in the womb for their sex. The situation is regional. In Southern India these things rarely happen, in Northern India...
I'm just not sold that this will solve anything or do much besides hang a pretty picture over the crack in the wall. I'm sure the Indian parliament members (including the convicted criminals who make up over 15% of the membership) are only trying to do the right thing but...
I think it would be more effective if they were tried to ensure girls were sent to school, or protect a women's right to divorce. Or upped the penalty on dowry killings. As it stands, well, folks the biggest pushers of a sex selection abortion or demanders for a dowry are the Mother In Laws. In other words, other women.
