Women’s struggles for equity continue to be frustrated in Papua New Guinea and other Pacific island nations. Issues such as gender violence are largely ignored by male politicians and everywhere women suffer political setbacks. In Papua New Guinea, only three women served in parliament concurrently in the decade following independence in 1975. From 1987 to 1997, there were no women in parliament and few in provincial offices.
This chapter provides a reflection on one woman’s loss at the polls during the 2007 general election in Papua New Guinea.

It is a chapter in the book edited by R.J. May, Ray Anere, Nicole Haley and Katherine Wheen (2013), ‘Election 2007: The Shift to Limited Preferential Voting in Papua New Guinea’, ANU Press.