More ministers than ministers: almost 40 years to reverse a situation that seemed irreversible

“If we look up we see it: in the paintings that surround us –and that represent the governments that preceded us– there are 102 people.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
21 May 2022 Saturday 21:51
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More ministers than ministers: almost 40 years to reverse a situation that seemed irreversible

“If we look up we see it: in the paintings that surround us –and that represent the governments that preceded us– there are 102 people. And only one woman appears, occupying a secondary plan within the military arm. Today we bury, forever and ever, that excluding model of other times. And we launched a symbolic message: Discrimination has to end.”

With these words, the president of the Generalitat, Ximo Puig, presented his government last Monday, the first with more women and men in history. The head of the Consell pointed out that there is no longer "going back in the defense of equality". However, the historical journey to reach an executive where women are the majority has not been easy and almost 40 years have had to pass. Another symptomatic fact, until 1993 -in the last legislature of Joan Lerma-, the first minister was not appointed.

In addition, in the first executives with a female presence, the ministers were relegated to certain portfolios such as Culture or Agriculture. To give another quite clarifying example, there has never been a Minister of Finance.

And it is that, as observed with a careful look at the elegant Saló de Corts, for years the woman has been an anecdote in a world of men. Among more than a hundred faces, only one female is drawn, of which there is hardly any information in the books that describe in detail the majesty of the Palau de la Generalitat and its halls.

It is the presence of an unidentified woman -certainly belonging to the defunct house in the City that was right next to the Palau- who looks out of a window and, curiously and very much in the background, observes the deliberations of the men of power.

The Consell of the first legislature (1983-1987) was chaired by Joan Lerma and had 9 eight ministers, all of them men. There were two renovations and the number of portfolios was increased to nine, but no women entered.

Nor was there a female presence in the second legislature (87-91), not even when the socialist leader decided to retouch his executive in the middle of the mandate. Lerma began Lerma's third and final term (91-95) with nine ministers and it was not until the 1993 remodeling that she appointed the first woman. Pilar Pedraza, writer and university professor, was appointed Minister of Culture and shared the Council's plenary session with nine other men plus the president.

The government changed, but not too much the trend. In the Legislature IV (95-99), Eduardo Zaplana formed a first Consell with seven consellers and one consellera. The leader of the Unió Valenciana María Àngels Ramón-Llin was the first Minister of Agriculture and the Environment. A responsibility that has historically been attributed to women.

Zaplana changed his government in 1996 and another woman became part of his executive. Marcela Miró was in charge of Culture, Education and Science. She would later go to the Department of Social Welfare, another of the most feminized portfolios. However, the proportion was 7 men (plus the president) and only two women.

Not even the increase to a dozen ministries in the V legislature (99-03) made Zaplana reconsider altering that proportion. Ramón-Llin continued in Agriculture and Carmen Mas entered Social Welfare. Marcela Miró was appointed president of Les Corts and is currently the trustee of Comptes.

It was in May 2000 that a more significant change occurred. The 2-10 ratio continued but Zaplana signed Alicia de Miguel as spokesperson for the Valencian Government. The popular leader became the first woman with so much power within the regional Executive.

Somehow, during her professional life, Alicia de Miguel had already broken barriers by becoming the first director of the transfusion center in the Valencian Community. The former leader recalls for La Vanguardia those years in the political front line. “It was a very responsible position, a very interesting time. She was responsible for the communication of the government and also for the policies of the PP in a brilliant time, one of the most brilliant”, she explains.

He indirectly acknowledges the power he came to have. “I had the great support of Eduardo Zaplana; Without the backing of the president, a spokesperson has a difficult life.” And he adds: “I don't know if I broke glass ceilings, but I exercised my responsibility with a great team behind me and it wasn't complicated either, the policies were good”.

On the situation of women in politics, De Miguel points out that the context must be taken into account. “From the first moment, the Zaplana government gave a boost to the policies of and for women. An impulse that I followed as Minister of Social Welfare”. However, she acknowledges that as the years have progressed, women "have reached positions of greater responsibility."

After Zaplana came Francisco Camps (6th legislature 2003-2007). He reduced the number of apartments to 10 and kept two women. De Miguel and a young Gema Amor who replaced Ramón-Llin at the head of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

In the 2004 remodeling, it was the first to have three women coincide at the same Consell table. That yes, with a Consell of 13 departments and a proportion of 10 to 3 without counting on the president. In addition, Gema Amor became a councilor without a portfolio, a new formula devised by the popular president. In this remodeling another trend was installed. The recently created Minister of Tourism would be for women: its first tenant was Milagrosa Martínez.

In the VII legislature (2007-2011), still with Camps, the proportion changed to 10 ministers and 4 ministers. The traditional departments of Agriculture (Maritina Hernández), Culture (Trini Miró) and Tourism (Angélica Such) were joined by Belén Juste as head of Industry and Commerce. The one who was general director of Feria Valencia was the signing of Camps for this weighty portfolio.

In 2008, Paula Sánchez de León joined as head of Justice and Public Administration, improving the 9-5 ratio that ended the legislature being 8-5 due to the death of José Ramón García Antón.

The VIII legislature (2011-2015), the last of the PP, was moved. Camps was invested after sweeping the elections with 50.7% of the vote and formed a government with 4 women and 6 men. The best proportion to date with important details. For the first time, a woman was appointed vice president of the Consell (Paula Sánchez de León) and a portfolio such as Infrastructure was delivered to Isabel Bonig. In addition, the journalist Lola Johnson was appointed Minister of Tourism, Culture, Sports and spokesperson for the Consell. Very relevant positions in the executive structure.

Camps resigned after a month due to legal problems with the Gürtel case and Alberto Fabra replaced him. The Castellón leader did not touch the ratio of men and women (it remained 6-4), but he did remove Sánchez de León and appointed José Císcar as his lieutenant. The other great movement was the incorporation to the executive of María José Català in a powerful Ministry of Education, Training and Employment.

The crisis tightened and Alberto Fabra ended up reducing his Consell to 8 departments with a ratio of 5-3. Català became spokesperson in 2014 and Císcar ended up occupying the Ministry of Agriculture, a plot historically occupied by women since Ramón-Llin entered in 1995.

It was necessary to wait for the arrival of the Botànic to have the first parity government. In the IX legislature (2015-2019) there were five conselleras and four consellers plus the president. Although Mónica Oltra was not the first vice president, the truth is that, given the internal balances of the parties, the power of the Compromís leader has been indisputable all these years. In addition to a Ministry in constant budget growth, Oltra has been spokesman for the Executive for seven years.

It was also noteworthy that, with the change of government in 2015, for the first time, a woman held the Health portfolio (Carmen Montón, who would be succeeded by Ana Barceló), the department with the largest budget in the Executive. By the way, Agriculture returned to the hands of a woman after Císcar's parenthesis.

The second Botànic by Ximo Puig (2019) maintained parity with a looser structure of 12 ministries to give entry to the new government partner Unides Podem. Six conselleras, five consellers and a president.

And all until last Monday when that fairness leaned towards the other side of history. With the departure of two ministers and two ministers and the entry of three ministers and one minister, for the first time in history the Valencian Government has more women than men, an achievement that has taken almost 40 years since that first government of Joan Lerma in 1983.


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