TRANSITIONS ONLINE: An Identity of One's Own
by Elena Chinyaeva
15 January 1998


MOSCOW-In a recent issue of the English-language Moscow newspaper, the eXile, Eduard Limonov commented on the modern woman. Limonov is well known in Russia. He is a writer of tainted fame: his original and provocative prose centers mostly around his sexual adventures and preferences. He is also a politician of even more controversial repute. The radical, albeit small, National Bolshevik Party, founded by Limonov, an extreme leftist party of communist-leaning political forces, often mixes its rhetoric with that of the extreme, pro-fascist right. In broken English and in his typical rabble-rousing manner, Limonov, while paying tribute to the passion and beauty of Russian women, denounced them as dependent, pleasure-craving, and cunning. He declared a desperate desire to unite his soul with an American girl-a reliable partner and friend and generally a reasonable woman. Though Limonov's failure in love deserves sympathy, his views might have been calmly ignored had he not pinched a very sensitive nerve: the question of Russian women's contentious relationships with their men.


Indeed, Russian women often depend on men-in terms of money, social status, and sexual satisfaction-which is precisely why they often despise them for disregard, abuse, and submission. Yet, for far too many women, the idea of happiness is directly related to men; a happy woman is the one whose husband does not drink, brings wages to the family, and cares about her and the children. Men are in high demand, and in a macho world, any independent woman runs the risk of being labeled a "feminist"-a pejorative term in the current Russian context.


Yet there are strong reasons to believe that new socioeconomic conditions could bring about new attitudes to the problem of gender equality. A real working partnership between men and women is now a necessity. But how can that issue be promoted while taking into account the peculiarities of national consciousness and traditions?


OPENING DEMOCRACY'S DOORS

The 1979 United Nations Convention on the liquidation of all forms of discrimination toward women was ratified by the Soviet Union and is reflected in Article 15 of the 1993 Constitution of the Russian Federation, cementing the principle of equality of the sexes in Russia's legal system. Reality, however, is quite different. In a country that is 54 percent female-and has one of the world's largest proportions of working women-their representation in the corridors of power, nationally as well as provincially, is a measly 10 percent. Although the female Russian electorate is about 10 million votes greater than a collective male "constituency," women's representation in elected bodies is diminishing. The previous Federal Assembly-the parliament-was 11.4 percent female; currently, women deputies make up only 7.2 percent. In the lower chamber, the State Duma, the proportion of women members decreased from 13.6 percent to 10.4 percent. And only one woman sits among the 178 members of the Federation Coun-cil, the upper chamber consisting of Russian regional leaders, most of whom are elected. The division of labor is far too clear: men write the laws while women have to abide by them.


In some Western nations, female deputies comprise no less than one-third of the legislative body. That is generally achieved in two ways. The British Labour Party and the German Social Democrats have a policy preventing one sex from overrunning the party leadership or dominating a party ballot. They mandate that representation of either men or women cannot fall below anywhere from 30 percent to, in some cases, 50 percent. Scandinavian countries, on the other hand, introduced direct quotas. In Sweden, for example, 11 women sit on the cabinet-exactly half.


In Russia, a similar attempt to secure adequate female representation failed. A presidential decree issued on 30 June 1996 recommended that the presidential administration consider introducing minimal quotas for women in the civil service, as well as establishing a system for their training. This recommendation was effectively ignored on the basis that the introduction of quotas would result in less qualified civil servants-a weak argument considering that statistics indicate Russian women are generally better educated than Russian men. As a temporary measure, a proposal was made to the Duma's committee for women's, family, and youth issues that political parties and electoral blocs should have a certain proportion of men and women among their candidates.


HELPING OURSELVES

Although women are making little headway in politics, the women's movement in Russia is on the rise. In contrast to Soviet times, when so-called Women's Councils existed in every enterprise, agricultural collective, and academic institution, women nowadays unite on their own initiative to help "the sisterhood" adjust to the new socioeconomic conditions.


An article in the new academic quarterly Zhenshchiny Rossii (The Women of Russia), noted that there are several major groups of women's organizations. Among those with a generally democratic orientation and a goal to achieve real parity with men in the public domain, the most conspicuous is the Women of Russia movement. It is one of many organizations that promotes gender equality in society. In addition, there are multifunctional alliances, such as the Interregional Public Movement of Country Women and the Confederation of Business Women; narrowly conceived professional unions, such as those for women doctors and journalists; and organizations for the protection of family and children (see "Russia Meets Mother Power").


There are more than 400 women's organizations in Russia, but they have not yet brought about a qualitative change in the public perception of women. The women's movement is still young, although it has already moved from the initial stage of extensive development to that of integration and coordination. Recently, the leaders of more than 40 of the most influential women's groups signed a Charter of Women's Solidarity pledging information exchange, collective actions, and mutual assistance.
IDEAL VS. REAL

Promoting a women's agenda in Russia is complicated by the idiosyncrasies of the collective consciousness. Men's behavior is rooted in families, where women traditionally play a major role. It is through families that children of both sexes receive their first lessons in "gender studies," ingesting traditional stereotypes of what it means to be a "real man" and a "real woman."


Despite broad declarations of women's equality with men and their active recruitment into the work force, the Soviet system did little to promote real parity between the sexes in society. The economy of shortages imposed a division of labor within the family, where women took care of the children and the household while men were expected to earn a decent living. With such rigid divisions, "career woman" acquired a negative connotation as it implied loneliness and unhappiness in private life.


While the public consciousness cannot be expected to change radically after only a few years of reforms, the new economic conditions have prompted women-motivated by the same desire to protect their families and children-to enter new spheres, particularly small businesses. But the societal perception of the male-female relationship drags behind social practice, creating a contradiction between a woman's real role and the persisting ideal of her role as well-kept housewife. Even more peculiar is the way women perceive themselves: while they accept the ideal as the "normal" role for a woman, they generally do not wish it for themselves.


In a 1996 study, sociologists from the State University of Samara, in the Volga region, interviewed women across the socioeconomic spectrum and found that, on average, 77 percent believe that men are more likely to succeed. With no lesser unanimity, however, women of all social strata accept that as "justified." Work and family were equally important for about half of the respondents, although overall there was a strong orientation toward family. More than 40 percent agreed that it is normal for the husband to earn the money while the wife takes care of the household. Only 13.4 percent considered their work outside the home socially valuable. About 32 percent of respondents would terminate employment outside the home if it were economically feasible, while 43 percent would continue to work; 60 percent of women executives and entrepreneurs questioned said they would keep their job.


Conspicuously, more than 85 percent of respondents found the patriarchal model of male-female relationships acceptable, while about half would reject such an option if they had to choose. And while about 30 percent did not see work as a means of self-realization, up to 70 percent pointed to professionalism as the main characteristic of their work, demonstrating a constructive and conscious attitude to their participation in the production process.


About 61 percent of the women questioned were satisfied with their husbands and families. While the partner's active participation in family life appeared to be an important factor for all respondents, about 40 percent have accepted the lack of it and do not think it unfair.
Not surprisingly, the public attitude toward sexual harassment in the workplace and violence at home is complacent. In Nizhnii Novgorod, also in the Volga region, sociologists discovered that although five of every six women questioned perceived an increase in unwanted sexual attention in the workplace, 30 percent considered it an inflated or insignificant issue, and only a quarter thought it a serious problem. Generally, public opinion tends to blame the woman for "provoking" her male colleagues or superiors. According to 1995 statistics, between 20 percent and 30 percent of murders in Russia are the result of domestic conflicts, yet there is still no legislation on the matter. A draft law on the prevention of domestic violence is currently being prepared; curiously, it faces opposition from the prosecutor general's office and the Supreme Court.


The Russian Center for Public Opinion Research produced conclusions similar to those of the Samara study in its multiple-region study. The discrepancy between stereotypes and actual behavior is reflected in the low figures of satisfaction among men and women: only 6 percent of respondents were fully satisfied with their family life, about 25 percent were partly satisfied, and about 17 percent were not at all satisfied.

Those trends indicate that to successfully promote women's equality with men, two major factors must be considered. First, women do not form a homogenous social group. So, to reach the Russian "sisterhood," which differs widely in terms of education, material independence, professional training, and social aspirations, women's rights advocates must plan elaborate and flexible tactics. Second, Russians-both men and women-do not view equality for women as an important factor in the general development of modern society. The biggest problem here is not so much the inertia on the part of the male population as the lack of responsiveness among women. Presently, only about one-third of Russian women are ready to accept new attitudes. Thus, an aggressive type of feminism would be ineffective; a more subtle form must be found. The growing social activity of women, however, will eventually create an atmosphere conducive to establishing the relations of real partnership between men and women.

Elena Chinyaeva is a researcher at Oxford University, where she received her doctorate in history in 1995, and is a contributing editor to Transitions on Russian affairs.

© Transitions Online 2012. All rights reserved. ISSN 1214-1615
Published by Transitions o.s., Baranova 33, 130 00 Prague 3, Czech Republic.