Are They Actually Competent?......Two women Prime Ministers in the West.

A closer look at the period of government of Margaret Thatcher (United Kingdom) and Gro Harlem Brundtland (Norway). Confronted with scepticism, both women had to prove that they were capable of equally good political leadership as men.ARE THEY ACTUALLY COMPETENT?………Two women Prime Ministers in the West in the late twentieth centuryBy Anneke RibberinkUntil recently, female national leaders were still very much in the minority all over the world. In the period 1945-1990, there were less than twenty. However, women in the West acquired more political influence than ever in the latter part of the twentieth century. There were more women in parliament, more women ministers and there were even a few women Prime Ministers, although only two of them were influential in the West. It is striking that the two women Prime Ministers who were important in the West came to power at more or less the same time, i.e. Margaret Thatcher (United Kingdom, 1979-1990) and Gro Harlem Brundtland (Norway 1981,1986-1989,1990-1996). And it would appear interesting to compare these two women in their political experiences as pioneers. Following a brief outline of the way in which the two women came to power, a closer look is taken at their period of government. How is the quality of their performance in government judged? Both women had to prove that they were capable of equally good political leadership as men. They were both confronted with scepticism and opposition when they came to power, as well as during their period of government. As indicated by the title of this paper, there was still a widespread view that women were incompetent in political spheres. The best way of withstanding negative expectations is to present a good policy and to perform effectively. The fact that female political leadership is already less controversial at the beginning of the 21st century than it was thirty or forty years ago is, in my view, due largely to the preliminary work of these pioneers. This paper will investigate this thesis. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]