FLASH
Shkruar nga Prof. Mimoza Manxhari
Are women truly being empowered to think, to lead, to challenge?
I don't like politics.
Not because I don't care, but precisely because I do.
I care too much about the truth to enjoy the spectacle. I care too much about people cheering the holidays. I care too much about the dignity of women to see them transformed into symbols.
I don't write as a politician.
Not even as a militant.
Not even as someone interested in the power game.
Write like a woman.
As a citizen.
As a witness.
In the silence of my thoughts, as I follow this election campaign, I sense a paradox. On the surface, there is an apparent celebration of the feminine presence. The stage is filled with women - young and old, smiling and confident. The ads glow with painted self-confidence. The leading figures promote their inclusion almost as a campaign theme in itself.
"Look at us," they seem to say, "we are modern, we are inclusive, we empower women."
Some even ask for our vote precisely because of the number of women they include.
It would be easy to applaud this. Many do. But I stop.
Not because I don't want more women in public life.
But because something is wrong.
When I look closer, I don't see powerful women. I see women present.
I don't see women with their own voices. I see women chosen to be.
I see them applauded for their identity, but not heard for their ideas.
I see women who settle down, not stand up. To be seen, not to be heard.
And even more rarely, they oppose you.
It seems as if femininity has become a symbol of modernity, of civility, of gentleness. But as we know, symbols are symbols. They are usually silent. And silence is not power.
In recent days, I have also read emotional dedications - women honoring their male candidates. Some of them have touched me. They remind us that behind political ambition are hidden human stories, acts of kindness, invisible sacrifices. I respect the courage of the wife, especially when the words come from true love and long experience.
They offer something that campaigns rarely do - Spirit.
But I'm also worried.
I worry when even the sacred space of love can be turned into a campaign tool. When personal admiration turns into public promotion. When a woman's voice is heard only to soften the image of a man.
Understand. It's not a criticism of anyone in particular. Simply a reflection on a pattern that is repeating itself.
We must ask:
Are women truly being empowered to think, to lead, to challenge?
Or are they still asked, silently, to perform? To stand gracefully on stage alongside the real power, to embellish it, or to give it a more human image?
The political world is not becoming more feminine. It is simply becoming more capable of exploiting femininity.
And these are not the same thing.
This is not progress. It is replacement.
We are not seeing the rise of women shaping society.
We are seeing the use of their presence to shield him from criticism.
I say this without anger.
I belong to myself.
I have no party, no slogan, no flag to wave.
I say this as someone who still believes in the sacred dignity of every human being. In the irreplaceable beauty of honest speech.
In the deep power of women. Not only to care, but also to cope.
I believe in a politics that is not afraid of clear minds and pure hearts. That is not afraid of women who think differently, who propose, who ask for more than applause.
Our society inherits more than symbols.
It deserves votes.
Our girls deserve to know that their strength will not be reduced to the charm of their image, and their ideas will not be covered by spectacle.
I don't write this to condemn. I write it as a calm, kind request:
Let's not confuse beauty with dignity.
Let's not call it progress when women are present but not powerful.
Let's not ask for representation and then silence our representatives.
And above all:
Let's not forget that real change comes not from filling the stage, but from changing the script.
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