This article examines the Cuban record concerning gender equality in
political decision making. I begin with a brief overview of Cuba's
system of government. I then examine the gender composition of the
country's legislative structures, discuss efforts to strengthen
women's political participation, and compare the inclusion of women
into key state and party decision-making bodies. The article is guided by
three main arguments: First, in Cuba's legislative structures, women
have a greater presence at the national than at the local level, contrary
to the experience of the United States and Western Europe. Second, despite
the official position denying the existence of gender quotas, Cuba does
implement measures of positive discrimination in order to strengthen
women's presence in politics. Finally, Cuban women face a glass
ceiling as they move up to positions of greater decision-making power, a
reality faced by women all over the world. The excellent gender
composition of Cuba's parliament is an apparent exception that
confirms the following rule: The state of gender equality in Cuba's
decision-making structures reveals an inverse relationship between the
actual decision-making power of a particular institution and the presence
of women. That is, the higher we get in the institutional decision-making
hierarchy, the fewer women we find. The evidence presented in this article
demonstrates that Cuba has not made as much progress in achieving gender
equality in political decision making as some of the official data would
indicate, and that women continue to be largely excluded from the most
important decision-making bodies.The
article is based on a report commissioned by the European Commission. The
views expressed herein are those of the author and can in no way be taken
to reflect the official opinion of the European Union.The author gratefully acknowledges the
excellent advice given by two anonymous reviewers and the editors for
revising this manuscript.