Mon, 10 February, 2025

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: Authorities should find more efficient legal solutions for democratic elections, women’s representation should not be left behind

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When organizing democratic elections, one of the challenges faced by countries with relatively new democratic regimes, especially those that have emerged from the communist regime, is the lack of clear mandates and sufficient resources for election management institutions. The culture of introducing incomplete changes to electoral laws just before elections harms the democratic process, while women are much underrepresented throughout the electoral process. This is what international expert on democratic elections and gender issues, Tatyana Hilscher-Bogusevic, said in an interview with Portalb.mk. Hilscher-Bogussevich has fifteen years of experience in this field.

Hilscher-Bogussevich is engaged as an expert on ensuring fairness, transparency and inclusiveness in political advertising and media representation within the project “Money, Media and Elections in North Macedonia” implemented by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) with support from the Government of the United Kingdom. Within the project, she, together with other experts in the field, worked on an in-depth analysis on the topic “Towards Inclusive Internet Portals and Election Advertising in North Macedonia”.

Based on your experience as an election observer and advisor on election reform, mainly in post-Soviet and ex-communist countries, can you paint us a picture of how these countries are different or similar when it comes to conducting democratic elections?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: Thank you. An interesting question. It’s also interesting how you frame it, underscoring that there would always be some differences and some similarities between the processes, and you’re absolutely right about that. If we look at some common challenges that many younger democracies or developing democracies are experiencing, I would probably highlight three issues that I see as the most crucial.

First of all, the weakness of democratic institutions. The challenge is that many institutions, like election management bodies, institutions responsible for voter registration, campaign finance oversight, or electoral dispute resolution, are often, either by law or in practice, lacking a clear mandate to do what they’re supposed to do. They also lack capacity and resources. This is sometimes a question of legal regulation, but also of practice, because these institutions are often, in several countries, subject to pressure from political actors or the executive branch. That pressure ultimately makes them more vulnerable and undermines voter trust.

So that would be one issue I’d highlight. Another aspect is political polarization and the lack of public trust in elections as the main fair mechanism for political change. This is often undermined by practices such as vote-buying, misuse of administrative resources, but also “media vise”.

Disinformation?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: Disinformation, you’re absolutely right. Maintaining voter trust in elections as the primary mechanism for change is very fragile and requires protection.

What I would also highlight is participation and representation—inclusion, as such—and the representation of different groups, whether women, national minorities, persons with disabilities, etc. In many countries, there are already laws in place to create a legal basis for participation. The problem is that these laws are very often not implemented. As a result, we see a lack of participation from vulnerable groups and other communities, whose voices remain unheard in the electoral process. This is where I see similarities in the challenges faced by different countries.

And is there any difference? I mean, we understand that country to country there are differences, but what is the main difference, like from one region to another? Is one more advanced than the other?

What I would see as an interesting element, perhaps, is that in some countries, as you say, parts are very different due to different electoral systems. However, external factors—like the prospect of EU accession or being accepted into the EU family—play an important motivational role for many countries.

To be more democratic..

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: Yes! Because there’s a need for alignment; the laws need to comply with European norms. But this also serves as an opportunity to review and implement long-pending reforms. For instance, reviewing constitutions or other structural elements. In North Macedonia, this motivation was significant in the past and resulted in some progress. This motivation, however, seems to have waned recently. We’re now seeing a similar motivating factor in countries like Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine as they face fresh prospects of joining the European family.

It’s like a motivation.

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: Yes, and that is sometimes lacking. In many countries, this external push doesn’t exist. Without it, achieving change is much more difficult.

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich | Photo: Portalb

You mentioned Macedonia. You were here in 2018 as the lead electoral reform advocacy consultant. Can you share with us briefly how that experience was? What did you do here, and what were the main challenges?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: This was indeed a very interesting experience for me. Back then, I was a consultant on behalf of OSCE ODIHR. It was called the Support to Western Balkans Project, specifically focusing on electoral reforms. My role was to advise the working group established under the Ministry of Justice to review recommendations provided by OSCE/ODIHR on several past elections and to advise how those recommendations could be put into practice.

Why this was very interesting for me is because it represents a format that is highly valued in international practice. Why? Because North Macedonia, like all other OSCE participating states, is committed to following up on past recommendations. So, the process itself showed compliance with those commitments. It was inclusive, based on cross-party cooperation to improve electoral processes, and it involved civil society organizations. The working group developed quite a number of comprehensive proposals to improve the electoral procedures and code.

And then what happened?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: It’s not as rosy as one might wish. Once the process concluded, two main things happened. First, the referendum took place, which diverted legislators’ attention from electoral issues. Second, the electoral code was amended five to six times.

Yeah, at least five times.

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: The same working group format was reestablished at least three times. They continued to develop equally forward-looking recommendations, but very few of those suggestions actually became amendments to the electoral code. One issue is that there’s a persistent habit here in North Macedonia…

A culture?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: A culture, of introducing piecemeal amendments to election legislation just before elections. These changes often reflect immediate political realities or agreements but fail to encourage a comprehensive review of the laws.

And actually, we go into this vicious cycle every time before elections. So, what’s your main advice? I mean, if you can summarize it, how can we improve this, besides having political will and being democratic?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: It is necessary to continue on the same path. The ingredients, so to say, are correct. As a country or as institutions, as actors—be it civil society or political parties—there are all the right steps. Now, what is necessary is to actually follow through. The suggestions and improvements actually need to be presented for discussion in Parliament in the comprehensive form in which they are developed, because the knowledge is there, the experiences are there, and the correct argumentation is there.

Just the implementation is what is missing… Let’s move on to the gender questions. I would like to specify that, according to the Metamorphosis monitoring report, there was generally a lack of representation of women in the media in our last parliamentary elections in Macedonia. How can we improve this generally?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: That’s the focus of the work that I’ve been doing currently for IFES. Indeed, we’ve drawn very much on the findings of Metamorphosis and tried to also use that to look both at editorial coverage of women in online portals or internet portals and at political advertising. Because of this dual focus, we’ve actually now spent a couple of days traveling to Tetovo and Shtip, discussing with interlocutors what the possible solutions to this situation could be. And I must say that, from my perspective at least, we need to look at it from two angles. On the one hand, this is about media—about online portals—and the role they could play in improving the situation. On the other hand, it’s also very much about political parties because they are ultimately the gatekeepers. They are the communicators in terms of what information comes out.

If we focus on political parties, I think it is quite important for them to ask themselves questions such as: Are we designating enough women to speak, to provide interviews, for example, on key strategic issues? Are we nominating women and, through that, showing that women have a say, have opinions, and the confidence to speak about these issues? Also, are political parties using gender-sensitive language themselves? All of these questions are quite important, and they can send a very positive and significant signal in terms of how women are perceived.

Another dimension that we’ve been speaking about is that political advertising during elections is covered by state funds. This is taxpayer money. It is actually an international good practice, and it is very normal to set requirements for how this money is spent. For example, one possibility that we’ve been discussing is introducing what is called “gender-targeted measures.” Political parties, for instance, could be required to spend 30 or 40 percent of their funds or airtime specifically promoting women. Examples like this exist in international practice, and they work very effectively.

Another approach is to earmark some of the funding, perhaps even at the state level, that would be available to eligible political parties for gender-targeted work throughout the parliamentary term. This would mean not only focusing on elections but also integrating measures aimed at improving media representation of women overall. There are plenty of examples from international practice of how this could be done. Ultimately, the core idea is that public funds must serve publicly significant goals, with gender equality being one of them.

But when you say gender equality is so important, can you specify why it’s important to have this media coverage not only during elections but also in general? Why is it important to diversify the sphere and let women be represented as they should be?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: Ultimately, it is because media—now increasingly including online and social media—is the primary source of political information for citizens and voters. This is where they get their information, and it plays a significant role in shaping the image of what is being shown to us, right? When women are completely excluded from the coverage, or if women are not presented as independent, competent actors but rather through sensationalism or stereotypical portrayals in family roles, this is the image we project as a society. For voters, this normalizes the idea that politics are not for women, that it is a space for male actors who are more competent or professional. This perception significantly impacts voter behavior, such as whether seeing a woman’s name on a ballot list triggers positive motivation or hesitation.

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich | Photo: Portalb

Media plays a big role in how these messages are conveyed. Can you share “tricks” and advices on how media can improve in this regard?

Tatyana Hilscher-Bogussevich: If we focus specifically on online portals—and this is something we are currently looking at—there are already measures in place. The problem right now is that online media are not recognized as media service providers. This needs to be addressed to ensure regulation and monitoring.

On a positive note, there are already sufficient self-regulatory mechanisms in place under the Association of Journalists, the Council of Ethics, and the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Services. Codes of conduct exist that provide sufficient guidance. A positive step would be for online portals to formally endorse these instruments or voluntarily register in the professional online media register under the Council of Ethics. By joining these instruments, they signal their commitment to these principles.

Also, basic changes, such as focusing on the substance of what women are saying—emphasizing their competence and shifting focus away from appearance, such as what they are wearing—are crucial. This would amplify the importance of women’s voices on television, in online portals, and in society.

ИзворPortalb

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