Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1060184
24 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 9 DECEMBER 2018 OPINION Raphael Vassallo Woman + Politics = Prostitute OF course, there is a male equivalent to that equation, too: 'Man + Politics = Crook'. But then again, it is debatable how much of an insult that really is, in a culture that evidently at- taches certain value to the idea of breaking the law (and getting away with it) as an end in itself. Being a prostitute, on the other hand – and, what's more, a female prostitute at that – is something our society seems to insist on holding in the utmost contempt imaginable. Even our language reflects this sort of unabashed, unapolo- getic gender bias. We refer to a female prostitute as a 'qahba'… and it is arguably the lowest and most demeaning form of insult that can be levelled at a woman. A male prostitute, on the other hand, is a 'qahbu'. And unless you use the word very liter- ally – in which case, it usually becomes more of a statement of fact, than any direct judgment of character – you will find that it more commonly refers to behaviour of a criminal/ delinquent/antisocial variety… i.e., nothing to do with 'sex' or 'social morals' at all. 'Dak il-qahbu' of a shopkeeper who overcharged or cheated you, for instance: or that other 'qahbu' of a drunk teenager, who scratched your car with a key, or broke off your side-mir- rors, after a night on the town… It is not exactly a compli- ment, naturally. But at the same time, being called a 'qahbu' is nowhere near as downright of- fensive – or ever intended quite so literally, for that matter – as 'qahba' invariably is, when ap- plied to a woman. To put it another way: one of the most notorious gangsters of the 1980s (originally suspected of involvement in the murder of Raymond Caruana, 22 years ago this month) was nicknamed 'Il-Qahbu'… not as an insult, mind you; but as a label with which he himself was presum- ably quite happy to identify. I can't imagine any woman, of any background whatso- ever, taking to the nickname 'Il-Qahba' with quite the same gusto. Unlike its male equiva- lent, it not considered a mildly offensive, but broadly accept- able bit of cultural irreverence. It is – let's face it – really quite insulting. Not just because it equates 'politics' with 'pros- titution' (in which case, quite frankly the prostitutes should be the ones taking offence); but more because of the inescap- able mindset that inevitably underlies it. It goes something like this: if you're female, and success- ful in politics… and elsewhere, too; but let's stick to politics for now. Oh, that reminds me: if you're female, successful, but on the 'wrong' side of politics... Important distinction, that. It's perfectly OK if you achieve your success with the 'right' party; in fact, depending on the party, you might even get to be defended by all Malta's civil society put together… But that sort of illogicality is applicable to all aspects of Maltese politics, not just its women. The bottom line either way (and no matter how many ways it can conceivably be work outed) is that: if you're female, and a politician… you're a 'qahba'. Simple as that, really. And there is even a perfectly 'logical' explanation. The only way a woman can possibly earn the trust and support of around 10% of her particular district… is to sleep with at least 90% of its male voters. I mean… how else do women climb up the political ladder, anyway? By actually campaigning? Working hard? Doing 'manly' things like debating on TV? Don't be silly. They're women, for crying out loud… Erm… yes, so as I was saying: 'qahba' – in these circumstanc- es, and all things considered – really is a pretty harsh insult to use. And yet; just look how eas- ily it rolls off the tongue these days. I started by suggesting a link with Malta's rate of female political participation… and, well, the numbers sort of speak for themselves, really. At present, only 10 out of 65 members of the Maltese Parliament are women: that's 6.5%. And yet, just look at the percentage of that tiny 6.5% that has been publicly called out (one way or another) as 'sluts' in their time. In some cases, the insult even came directly from one or more MPs during a Parliamentary debate. Marlene Farrugia, Julia Farrugia Portelli, Rosianne Cutajar are examples I remember off-hand… and already we're up to 30%. Throw social media commentary into the mix, and suddenly it becomes a dead certainty that all (100%) of Malta's women parliamentarians will have been saddled with the 'qahba' label, or equivalent thereof, at one point or other in their career. So we may have the lowest rate of female political partici- pation in the EU; but take heart, people. When it comes to the rate at which we gleefully insult our tiny percentage of female representatives, we are without doubt the undefeated champi- ons of Europe (and we'll keep on fighting, to the end, etc). Then people wonder why our national female political partici- pation rate is so low. Hmmm… what could the answer be, I wonder? Because there aren't enough 'family-friendly' meas- ures in parliament? Because Maltese husbands can't be trusted to check the oven every so often, while their wives are busy debating national leg- islation? Or could it be that Maltese women just don't par- ticularly relish the idea expos- ing themselves to a tsunami of instant, online 'slut-shaming', the moment they step out of the shadows and into public life? Even so, however; I doubt the answer is as simple as 'a fear of instantly being labelled with the most insulting, demeaning slurs imaginable'. I will certainly not wade headlong into the battle of the sexes here: but my guess is that people tend to generally respond to things like 'insults' – or the threat of insults - in their own, unique ways. That they also happen to be 'male' or 'female' just makes for an inter- esting footnote, that's all. Besides: this culture of 'slutshaming' cannot really be described as uniquely Maltese cultural trait, either. I have no doubt the same slur is used just as freely in most, if not all other European languages: and in the same way too. I.e., to instantly label female politicians one doesn't happen to particularly like. So no: this is not, and cannot be, something we have con- cocted ourselves. But I have noticed a certain pattern to how it manifests here, as opposed to other places. I've already outlined at least one of the practical effects; and it certainly does seem to be 'unique to Malta'. That 6.5% statistic… it cannot be a coincidence that so few Maltese women choose to enter political life; yet almost all who do, are routinely targeted by – at minimum – insult- ing and derogatory language; and at maximum, a concerted social media smear campaign (sometimes extending to the mainstream media) to the same effect. One other difference that stands out is that the word is used here not only liberally – as I'm sure it is everywhere else in the world – but also literally. It is not just a knee-jerk impulse to spout the most immediately offensive label that springs to mind. Lurking in this unpleasant mix there really is a genuine, profound and particularly ugly type of misogyny at work. Ultimately the word is intended to hurt because it pro- jects the victim as the utmost perversion of society's (very male) ideal of 'Womanhood'. If Malta's social construct of 'the ideal woman' (modelled PROJ ECT COORDINAT OR (J Pe No ) Pr Co Prepare the round for Economic ndependence. Ei Or Fr De ĦM