Politician fired up for seat in Tonga's all-male parliament

Transcript

The highest polling woman candidate in Tonga's last election says she'll be calling on the help of her New Zealand mentor to help fight the next election. 

Sipola Fakaanga Havili missed out on a seat in the 2014 polls, leaving the Tongan parliament devoid of women MPs.

Mrs Havili has joined a women's mentoring programme for MPs run by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

She was recently in Wellington to get parliamentary training and meet her mentor, New Zealand opposition MP, Carmel Sepuloni.

Mrs Havili told Sally Round the visit has fired her up to bring about change in her own country.

SIPOLA FAKAANGA HAVILI: There is a need for democracy. There is a need for change. The most striking thing that I see is how systematic [and] well organised your committees are and I wish our country back in Tonga is like that. That really triggers scrutiny of the government, there is a system that everyone has a right to say what they want and things are so systematic in designing laws, like today, we just covered the regulation review committee and it really brings to me something that is so important how things are going chain-by-chain to ensure that there's transparency and accountability from the government, and that is the most important thing a government should be - to be transparent, to be accountable for its peoples' funds and everything. So, there is less corruption when the system is so organised like that as I have observed here in Wellington. 

SALLY ROUND: On the other hand, what do you think our parliament could learn from yours?

SFH: I don't see much that they could learn from me. I am here to learn something. I am here to empowered to be a great MP in the future, and also to empower women. Because in my country, the date of women's suffrage was 1951, then back after 24 years - 1975 - the first ever woman to get to parliament. 1975 up to 2016 only seven [women] - and of that seven, three were nominated by the cabinet. In this time, the last election, there's never been a woman, what is the problem? What has caused this? Am I still strong to be the first to go in to fight to be the first woman parliamentarian in the democratic party? 

SR: There are no women in parliament in Tonga? 

SFH: There are no women in Tonga so I'm very thankful to New Zealand aid, the CPA programme, this empowers me to still go on. Forward ever; backward never. 

SR: Were you feeling like giving up after not being successful in the last election? 

SFH: I kind of think like that because I was the only lady in the Democratic Party in Tonga. I felt that there should be more support and more follow-up of myself being a young person in age to go up. 

SR: What do you mean by more follow-up, more support?

SFH: More support of my other women MPs, more support from other stakeholders in a country if they think that women issues is an important issue, a woman should go in. So, despite the differences in our political beliefs and principles it shouldn't be the case. We should work together because we are the changing agent for Tonga. As I have seen here, what triggers men impresses me here when I see a lot of women parliamentarians in different parties - like 60:40 percent - almost 50:50. That really struck my heart and I can see the support, and last night ever in history I was the [inaudible] that all the MPs of women's, from different parties, from both political differences, they came together as one if there's a women's issue. 

SR: You get a mentor out of this programme, how is that going to help you as you - obviously you're going to fight again in the next election - how are you going to use your mentor to do that? 

SFH: My mentor is a great model to me today and this week - Carmel Sepuloni. Last night, I attended her public interview or something like that at one of the restaurants. I was so amazed. I can see the potential for women that other women can't see sometimes because not all women are leaders. Some of us are followers, some of us are born to be leaders and it has to be respected. We have a right, but that right can't be exercised if you are not part of those that be the decision makers. How can might be right be exercised is to get into parliament and put it there...

SR: So will she help you get into parliament? 

SFH: She will help me. Definitely, she will help me. I believe she will.

SR: Do you think that could be sort of interfering a bit too much maybe?

SFH: No I'm not. I'm very thankful that I know there is someone out there who will stand beside me and will warm me through to the 2018 election in Tonga. I am so grateful to have women like that.