Taiwan leads Asia with over 40% lawmakers women

台灣在亞洲女性立法委員比例方面領先超過40%。

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Women hold 41.6% of seats in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan, the highest share in Asia, according to a Cabinet report on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

The report, released to mark International Human Rights Day on Dec. 10, highlighted Taiwan’s achievements in promoting women’s rights and advancing gender equality from 2021 to 2024, per the Cabinet's press release.

In 2023, Taiwan ranked sixth globally and first in Asia in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Social Institutions and Gender Index. The report also noted the country expanded protections for same-sex cross-border marriage and adoption rights in the same year.

Adopted by the UN in 1979, CEDAW obliges countries to eliminate discrimination against women and ensure equality in all areas of life. Taiwan has submitted CEDAW reports every four years since 2009 and enacted the Enforcement Act of the convention in 2011, implementing it in 2012. These actions reflect the treaty’s core purpose, which also includes conducting legal reforms and reporting on national progress.

Minister without Portfolio Lin Ming-hsin (林明昕), who chaired the Cabinet’s gender equality meeting, said that CEDAW is Taiwan’s most fully implemented human rights treaty. He noted the government has also launched initiatives to support child-rearing, create family- and gender-friendly workplaces, eliminate gender stereotypes, and promote women’s health.

To strengthen protections against gender-based violence, the government enacted the Stalking and Harassment Prevention Act and amended the Gender Equality in Employment Act, the Sexual Assault Crime Prevention Act, and the Domestic Violence Prevention Act. Cross-ministerial cooperation has also been promoted to integrate social support mechanisms and improve reporting and victim safeguards.

The Cabinet said the report’s review meeting was conducted following the procedures of the UN CEDAW committee. Five international experts are scheduled to visit Taiwan in July 2026 to assess the report.

Lin added that following years of human rights reforms after the period of martial law and the White Terror between 1949 and 1987, Taiwan ranks second in Asia for freedom this year, according to Freedom House’s Freedom in the World report.