Gender and strategic Political: Opportunities and Challenges for Women and Youth in Political Parties in East Nusa Tenggara Indonesia 2019
Authors: Neolaka Melkisedek N.B.C , Tabun,S Diana San , D.N.A.Benu Esrah 
Published: January 2025

Objective: The general purpose of this study is to portray participation related to opportunities and accessibility of women and youth to strategic political positions such as structural positions and decision-making processes in political parties in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Indonesia. The main question that this study seeks to answer is what are the empirical conditions of women and youth in political parties within the framework of these opportunities and accessibility. This study, in answering the research question, focuses on the challenges and obstacles faced and the ideal conditions expected by women and youth related to opportunities and access to strategic positions in political parties.

Theoretical Framework: The involvement of women in political parties has actually been regulated in the law - Law No. 2/2011 on Political Parties - which contains a clause that the establishment and formation of political parties must include 30 percent of women's representation. In addition, political parties as participants must meet the minimum requirements of 30 percent of women's representation in the management of political parties at the central level, and include at least 30 percent of female legislative candidates during elections. Meanwhile, youth are regulated in Law No. 40 of 2009 concerning Youth, which relates to the interests of youth categorization and space for participation in development, including political development. In NTT, although political parties have tried to provide ample space by regulation, the number of women and youth who hold structural positions and are involved in strategic decision-making processes is still not optimal.

Methods: The methodology adopted for this study utilized a qualitative approach by addressing the case of NTT. Data collection was conducted purposively through focus group discussions (FGDs) and indepth interviews. The analysis used descriptive analysis techniques. FGDs or focus group discussions involved a number of key informants from large parties (PDIP, Golkar), medium parties (Nasdem, PKB, Demokrat, Gerindra), and small parties (Hanura, PPP, PSI). The FGDs were divided into 3 discussion clusters. Discussion 1 was conducted with political party elites and members of the NTT DPRD. Discussions involved researchers, political observers, CSO activists and journalists. Discussion 3 focused on marginalized political groups of women and youth in political parties.

Results and Discussion: The results show that these findings explain that the existence of women and youth in strategic positions in political parties in NTT today is not achieved through routes that prioritize the identity of women and youth but is built on old traditions under the determination of political elites, the majority of whom are men and the elderly. At that point, women and youth who succeed in obtaining strategic positions in political parties try to maintain their positions in the same way as their predecessors. In line with this, the involvement of women and youth in the process of making strategic political decisions is still a problem in a number of political parties in NTT.

Research Implications: Women and youth face various barriers and challenges in accessing important positions and strategic decision-making processes in political parties. These obstacles and challenges, based on field findings, can be identified from economic capacity, social and political knowledge and skills to the environment inside and outside political parties in the form of feudalistic and patriarchal political cultures that continue to be reproduced. Broadly speaking, the obstacles and challenges of women and youth in political parties in NTT can be categorized as cultural and structural, which are internal and external.

Originality/Value: This study contributes to research related to the study of gender, women and youth in obtaining challenges. This research thus has its own significance in the map of studies of women and youth in political parties. If previous studies looked at it through the lens of elections, then this study looks at it through the opportunities and accessibility of women and youth to strategic positions within political parties such as structural positions and involvement in the decision-making process.