Senate Approves Terms of Reference for Women’s Caucus

The Standing Orders of the Senate have been amended to include the Terms of Reference for the Caucus of Women Parliamentarians to give effect to its constitution and duties.

The motion was approved during the sitting of the Upper House on (June 30).

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, said the role of the bicameral Caucus, which involves a similarly established Committee of the Lower House, “is to not only have the tough/easy conversations but to engage the population”.

“It is to have women and girls, men and boys understand the value that diverse opinions bring to leadership and the importance of being able to see yourself and your children being able to see themselves in leadership, in order to condition their minds as to the options that are available for them,” she added.

In her remarks, Government Senator, Sherene Golding Campbell, said that the Caucus is important in giving focus to the issues facing women and the various legislative and policy initiatives that pass through the Parliament “looking from a woman’s gender lenses”.

She noted that the work that the Caucus will do, will ensure that the higher standard that has been set for measuring the impact of women will be met by both sides of the House.

Senator Golding said that the members of the Caucus were committed to collaborating in a respectful way.

“We have committed to set out on a journey to work to serve the Jamaican people in a new way, in a way that puts our collaborative aspirations above partisan politics, in a way that says we are committed to rolling up our sleeves and doing the hard work to find consensus on potentially difficult issues,” she pointed out.

Opposition Senator Janice Allen welcomed the motion, pledging, “We will work together even where there are differences, to ensure at the end of the day that women in this country are properly represented and the issues impacting the lives of women at all levels of our society are addressed in a fulsome way and given the respect that they deserve.”