Journal #15: Do Women Leaders Matter? - Nicholas Kristof

The answer to this question Kristof is giving is yes and no. 

It was deeply disappointing reading that women even in the highest political position less cares about women's inferior status than some males such as Muhammad Yunus and Fazle Abed, (the founder of an extraordinary Bangladeshi anti-poverty organization, BRAC). These advocacies of women's rights have worked for improving women's economic status by "educating"them how to stand independent economically from women. 

Why would female politicians (femocrats) show less intense advocacy for women? Although Kristof pointed that local women leaders are passionate for women's issue and certainly there are women in the highest position who are famous for not only representing the state but women - Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (the president of Liberia) - he states that it is true that not all female politicians or leaders indeed take care of difficulties women particualry are facing. 

So, ultimately, it seems that the "gender" per se of a leader does not really matter, doesn't it?

Women's underrepresented position is not primarily because their leaders are males. Changing those leaders to female, either, did not show much improvement for women. Then what made Yunus and Abed consider women's issue so seriously? 

http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/do-women-leaders-matter/