Not pink enough

In Chile, it's the usual caviling, by the usual suspects, even when they're in power;

From local government to Congress, Chilean politics is dominated by men. In the 2012 municipal elections, 85 percent of candidates were men, while female representation in Congress is currently at 14.2 percent in the lower house and 13.2 percent in the Senate — lower than regional neighbors Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.

Having expressed a desire to move toward a more gender balanced cabinet, [President elect Michelle] Bachelet appointed more female ministers than incumbent President Sebastián Piñera, though failed to equal the number of women that featured in her first cabinet.

In January, Bachelet announced just nine women would join her 23 strong cabinet, compared to 10 out of 22 in 2006. This trend in underrepresentation worsened with the appointment of her undersecretaries — only 11 out of 32 of which are female.

So, why the dearth?

“I would have liked a team completely balanced in terms of gender, and clearly this has not happened,” Bachelet said following the appointments.

While the role of assembling a ministerial team falls directly to Bachelet rather than an electorate, Noria Nuñez — sociologist and president of the Institute for Women Foundation — believes that both the lack of a quota law and institutionalized inequality leave any president with a dearth of qualified female candidates.

So they must be the weaker sex after all?