Enlargement, Gender and Governance (EGG)
EU Framework 5, Project No: HPSE-CT-2002-00115
Work Package 2: Analysing Female Visibility
Executive Summary
HUNGARY
Eva Eberhardt
The visibility of women in Hungary shows a picture that is not too unfamiliar to women in Europe. Although the labour market activity of women has both decreased and changed in the last decade, there are still many women visible in the public share. The generalised problem that women face world wide, but to a different degree, is the glass ceiling phenomenon to which Hungary is of no exception.
Hungary is an ex-state socialist country with a legacy of party enforced women’s visibility. In the past, the party had always applied its 30% quota for women into all position. It was interesting, however, to find out that this rule was not applied to the highest positions of power, such as the Central Committee and the Politbureau, were women’s presence was about 10% or less.
While society and political discourse are in the process of rejecting and/or digesting the experience of the past 50 years, the political life and areas of decision- making became somehow, dominated by male faces. The lack of politics/quota/support for women politicians is noticeable through the past four elections when women’s participation, selection and election resulted in one of the lowest figure, between 7-11%, amongst the European average. Women fall under 10% as leaders or head of boards within their party structure.
The ruling Hungarian Socialist Party introduced a 20% quota before the 2002 general election. When they formed the government, they also appointed few more women into leading position, such as the Speaker of the House and appointed four women as Ministers. Only when we move down on the scale to local politics, we can see the number of women increasing to 22%. Still today, women can be seen in large numbers as middle managers and clerks in banks and other companies, while the higher echelon posts in those institutions are occupied by men. The pyramid structure of political life leaves women on the bottom. As it was shown, 12,7% of the mayors in Hungary is women. And 90% of them hold the position in small villages or settlements.
Women’s situation in other structures, like the trade unions, is also problematic. The ever decreasing numbers of trade union members is directly linked to unemployment, caused by the economic restructuring, that was the main feature of the transition. Women’s unemployment has never been as high as men’s and this fact is reflected by their unionisation.
Today, there are different trade union groupings and confederations, the largest is MSZOSZ with a 50% women’s membership. Out of its 87 confederated unions, 22 are led by women. LIGA, the independent trade union has a 36% female membership.
Women have also played a strong role in the civil society groupings. Many of the existing 47.000 NGOs or foundations involved women in the setting up stage, led by women and employs women. However, women NGOs only number 350 and many of these are not focusing on the plight or on the adverse situation of Hungarian women today.
There is very little consciousness about the persistent marginalisation of women in Hungarian society. Women themselves are often not aware of and therefore, not recognising the discriminatory tendencies of politics, policies or measures against them. Or, some women even agrees with anti-women measures and believe that, for instance, women with children should stay at home and not precipitate for an equal place in public life or on the labour market. As long as women believe that women’s primary role is that of mother, wife and the provider of all domestic services without help from the male members of the family, change can be only piecemeal and painful. These beliefs need the urgent injection of the EU gender programme with policies for women into decision-making positions at its held. Only enlightened women in positions of power can decide what is the best for womankind.
Eva Eberhardt
Budapest,
1 August 2003