TITLE:
Challenges on Deliberation: The Indonesian Experience in Dealing with Women Empowerment in Law-Making
AUTHORS:
Maryuni Sudarwanto
KEYWORDS:
Democracy, Indonesia, Parliament, Standing Committee, Women Empowerment
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Political Science,
Vol.15 No.2,
April
25,
2025
ABSTRACT: Democracy is a continuing process that evolves around institutions and practices in protecting the source of authority in law-making from below (people/liberal democracy), not from above (state force or religion/authoritarian democracy). While election institutes procedure in selecting representatives, the quality of democracy would depend on deliberation (deliberative democracy). Challenges will come from approaches to dissolving individual interests into collective interests to create a collective life so that all people living in the related state can reach their potential under the rule of law. Oppressive approaches using state force or religion could turn liberty into tyranny. Enclosing discussions around scientific knowledge and communication with citizens would be the ideal approach to deliberation. In Indonesia, upholding the ideal approach was still challenging. MP’s over-attachment to religion hindered discussions of the bill around women’s factual problems.