Women’s bill fails first test

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Tuesday 20th December 2011

By JEFFREY ELAPA
PARLIAMENT yesterday failed to get the 73 votes needed to pass the Equality and Participation Bill enabling legislation to the Organic Law on Local Level and Provincial Government Elections.
The first vote taken by parliament to enable the legislation for the 22 reserve seats for women fell short by 14 votes. 58 members voted in favour while three voted against the amendment.
The three members who voted against the Bill were Public Service Minister Bart Philemon, Western Governor Dr Bob Danaya and Madang Governor James Gau.
The only member who was present from Sir Michael Somare’s faction was member for Moresby South Dame Carol Kidu. The other 23 members failed to attend parliament.
But a few members of the 73 O’Neill group of MPs left their seats before the vote was taken, an indication that they did not support the Bill.
The bill is expected to be passed with an absolute two-third majority today as promised by the Deputy Prime Minister Belden Namah yesterday.
It would mean that 22 women in the 22 provinces of PNG, including Hela and Jiwaka, will have reserved seats in parliament while their male colleagues will have to fight for their seats.
Namah, Sam Basil, Byron Chan and Benjamin Philip assured the women that parliament would take a vote again today.
He said parliament would talk to some of the members who abstained and those who were absent.
Prime Minister Peter O’Neill said the bill had been left idle for too long.
He called on women in the country to vote against MPs who failed to turn up in parliament to vote for the bill.
“Not one of them deserves to be re-elected,” he said.