Towards the Substantive Representation of Women: A Study of the Indonesian Women’s Parliamentary Caucus

Abstract

Abstract A women’s parliamentary caucus works to strengthen the goals of women in a legislative body. It trains female members of the parliament in legislation and facilitates communication among feminists in parliament and civil society in pursuing common goals through collective action to enact feminist legislation. Qualitative research in Indonesia over the parliamentary term 2009–2014 has suggested that active communication is vital for the performance of such functions. Poor communication in the study term resulted in an inability to initiate collective action, a mismatched design of capacity-building activity and diminishment of the relationship between feminists in parliament and civil society. The existence of a caucus alone is insufficient. A functioning caucus is essential for substantive representation of women.