Gender and political participation in Hong Kong

This article makes an assessment of the state of gender equality in political participation in Hong Kong by analyzing data collected from a territory-wide survey done in 1996. The scope of analysis is broadened to include public participation at the grassroots level and to forms of public participation that are non-political but may have political implications. Three major categories of public activity are studied, namely, community participation, activism via social organizations, and formal political participation. The findings reveal a rather low rate of public participation for both men and women who tend to be active in different types of social organizations. Women, however, are less active than men in formalized politics and it is seen that there are persistent social biases regarding women's ability to serve as community and political leaders.