A coalition of women's organisations have set up a monitoring group to scrutinise the pledges of election candidates to check if they encourage democratic participation and take into account issues of gender equality.

Called Women Monitoring Election Candidates (WoMEC), it was launched as a joint initiative by the Women's Development Collective, All Women's Action Society, Women's Aid Organisation, Sisters-in-Islam, Women's Centre for Change, Metal Industries Employees' Union and Persatuan Sahabat Wanita.

"Women's organisations have been actively involved in advocacy and lobbying of issues pertaining to women and development for19 years. To date, the issues raised are still inadequately addressed and we are still lobbying for reforms of (laws) which have not changed substantively," said WDC executive director Maria Chin Abdullah during a press conference this morning.

According to her, WoMEC will be tasked with ensuring that citizen's issues and concerns, particularly those of women, take centre stage in the election agenda.

The group will also push for candidates to live up to promises made before the election.

'Gender card'

Among the key concerns of WoMEC, said Maria, is the narrow and limited form of public consultation observed by policy-makers in Malaysia - and that is through the ballot box only once in five years.

As with previous elections, Maria said candidates are once again playing the "gender card" to court women's votes as the polls approach through gestures such as giving flowers to women and distributing wish cards to voters on International Women's Day.

However, she noted that few actions are taken to address women's issues once the votes are secured.

"This further reinforces the prevailing development of limited consultation instead of changing it," she said.

In order to build a healthy democracy, Maria said the people's fundamental freedoms to associate and to express themselves have to be respected and actively upheld.

"Efforts must be made to encourage the people's willingness and capacities to actively participate in the different levels of democratic processes nationwide," she added.

Political will

Questioned about the success of women's groups in lobbying for reforms to promote gender equality, Maria said progress has been made through the higher number of women representatives compared to previous years, as well as the setting up of the Women and Family Development Ministry.

"The women politicians have been quite disappointing because they haven't done enough though this is not to say they have made zero effort.

"We have made our demands and we have continued to lobby but we don't (always) see the positive responses or political will to make things happen," she said.

WDC director Dr Cecilia Ng said recent news over the preparations for the elections showed that the role of women in participatory democracy is being taken more seriously by all political parties.

"We have just over 10 percent representation now. We are aiming for 30 percent and that is actually already a low figure. In many countries, (lobby groups) are aiming for even higher representation," she said.

Ng also pointed out that all political parties, including PAS, have placed emphasis on fielding women candidates.

"All this did not come from nothing. It came from years of lobbying by women's groups," said Persatuan Sahabat Wanita secretary Suguna Papachan.

Survey of politicians

To facilitate its monitoring work, Maria said WoMEC will be sending out its eight-point survey to election candidates, questioning them on their stand on several issues.

The candidates are asked if they would pledge to take action, if elected, to work to improve safety and security, introduce legal reforms on discriminatory laws, encourage participatory democracy, reinstate local council elections, abolish repressive laws, guarantee basic living standards, eliminate abuse of police powers and introduce transparency and accountable public authorities.

The deadline for submission of the candidates' responses has been set for March 18.

WoMEC will then issue regular press updates to inform the public about the responses (or non-response) of the candidates.

Another non-government organisation, Transparency International, has also launched a poll of politicians' attitudes on issues of corruption and accountability.

The anti-graft watchdog will be releasing the results of its assessment just before polling day.