Fundación Multitudes: Strides to Create a Code of Conduct to Combat Gender-based Political Violence

Fundación Multitudes, in its “Survey on disinformation towards women parliamentarians of Chile” (2021), through its Women ́s Observatory on Democracy and Disinformation, conducted research that showed that, of the Chilean women parliamentarians who answered, 96.8% said that they had been victims of disinformation as a form of gender violence and 90.3% said that they do feel more exposed to being a victim of disinformation than their male colleagues. This poses a risk to female leadership and equal representation. 

Online gender-based political violence is a prevalent issue affecting women in politics. Due to its intangible nature and the anonymity afforded to aggressors by new technologies it is challenging to study and to develop solutions. Drawing from women’s experiences in Latin America, recommendations can be formulated to establish a code of conduct within the region. Implementing such a code may help alleviate this problem and foster an inclusive and safe environment within democracy. Hence, Multitudes focused on creating recommendations for the development of a Code of Conduct that can be implemented in parliaments as a first step toward eradicating online gendered-based political violence, which often poses challenges and obstacles for women in the public sphere. The findings of the project’s desk review revealed two significant aspects. First, regulatory frameworks and laws exist aimed at combating gender-based violence within the region. Second, political institutions acknowledge the importance of this issue. While some countries have implemented protocols on gender-based violence within their National Assemblies, it is noted that there are no Parliamentary Codes of Conduct to address online gender-based political violence in Latin America. To mitigate online gender-based political violence against women parliamentarians, research was conducted based on recommendations obtained from surveys and interviews with women parliamentarians and civil society. Aiming to facilitate the creation of the Code of Conduct, further analysis of in-depth interviews provided insights into perceived material- along with sociocultural barriers that could undermine its establishment.

Implementing Codes of Conduct in Parliaments could enhance the decision-making process, significantly reduce potential aggressions between peers, and foster the political representation of marginalized groups. In politics, the presence of a code of conduct can bring attention to the issue of online gender violence, making it visible and enabling effective action against it. Additionally, through the analysis of interviews, social media, and the project ́s desk review, we gained a better understanding of each specific context and deeper insight into the phenomenon.