The article focuses on one of the factors affecting the political representation of women: political culture. Defined as the level of egalitarian gender culture in a country as related to politics in particular, its open forms can be measured in public opinion polls. But the article focuses on two less apparent forms of differentiation between the sexes in relation to politics. The first is the different way in which each gender relates conceptually to power. The second difference relates to the view that equal representation is not too important. An in-depth analysis using ideological analysis (a type of CDA) even reveals the existence of a divided concept of freedom according to gender, which is obscured by a set of other divides, such as politics versus culture, public versus private, love versus personal autonomy., Hana Havelková., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The article deals with causes of lower involvement of women in political functions in the Czech Republic. The author identifies three sets of significant factors: institutional, socioeconomic and political cultural. Her approach is based on the model proposed by Pippa Norris to explain ratio of women in political functions in western European states, which involves both institutional and social factors that influence women's political participation. Thus, the author focuses on institutional rules that constitute barriers of entry of women in political functions. Furthermore, she studies an influence of ways of functioning of political parties that affect the level of gender equality in political representation. Finally, she examines attitudes of Czech public and particularly Czech women to women's political participation as well as reflexion of the lower political representation of women in the public discourse.
The participation and representation of women in decision-making bodies is an important factor in evaluating the level of political culture and the quality of democracy in a country. In the Czech Republic, and in post-communist countries in general, the representation of women in decision-making is imbalanced when compared with the representation of men. This fact is indicative of patterns of governance and the attitudes and values of citizens and suggests a generally passive citizenship in post-communist countries. In reaction to this development, there have been a number of analyses on women in politics in recent years. In general these studies concentrate on the barriers facing women entering politics and actively involved in political life. In recent years there has been a tendency in the media to give space to women who have left politics and have them look back and evaluate their career and the nature of politics. In this respect the academic sphere is lagging behind. The authors of this article aim to fill in this gap. They examine the following question: why do women leave politics after having struggled so hard to get in? They focus on the experiences of women who, in most of the cases, spent more than a decade in politics. They look at the women’s retrospective evaluations of their political careers, at life-work balance in politics, and the women’s experience of departing from politics. The article concludes that the key factor behind entry into politics, and behind maintaining a political career, is the relationships within political parties. Stereotypes and strategies continue to influence the strategic choices of actors, who assimilate into the existing political culture and choose not to generate considerable pressure for change in gender relations in political life., Petra Rakušanová, Lenka Václavíková-Helšusová., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The aim of this article is to fill in the gap in research focusing on the problem of the political participation of women in the Czech Republic. Based on text and interview analysis, it explains the role of women activists in Czech parliamentary parties in endorsing women for election to representative bodies. The article begins by describing the associations formed by women party activists and their position within the party structure, and then looks at the role of these associations in supporting women’s access to political structures. It also describes how women party activists take into account the barriers to women’s political participation and possible ways of removing these restraints. The final part introduces the hypothesis that although the creation of these associations seems to be a positive step towards improving women chances of gaining access to representative bodies, in their present form and circumstances they have no power to achieve any significant improvement in the status quo., Veronika Šprincová., tabulka, and Obsahuje bibliografii
The Czech government is obliged to guarantee equality for men and women. Despite that, it recognizes this duty only in theory; in practice it contravenes the principles of this formal agreement. The government’s programme, politics, legislation, and state budget and governmental structures are marked by a lack of gender equity and the failure to promote women’s rights. The hidden structural mechanisms causing gender discrimination can be analyzed by means of a gender audit of the government. This is an effective tool for defining the most critical areas of state politics, and it creates a relevant strategy for challenging negative effects. In doing so, a gender audit of the government can also be a rich source of public education and can help to promote public and political discussion on the topic of gender issues. In this article, the author argues in favour of carrying out a gender audit of the Czech government and its politics. She explains how certain areas of politics affect men and women differently, and how their gender correct transformation can positively contribute to democratic and just governance., Tereza Handlová., and Obsahuje bibliografii