Female political leaders are perceived either as bitches or
weak, with no middle ground, Hatnuah Chairwoman Tzipi Livni said on Tuesday at
an event in Haifa about the image of women in politics.
"When you look at women in positions of leadership, the
choice for women is either to be bitches or to be weak," Livni said.
"When I started I was tougher, I don't want to say bitchy. It was hard for
me to be open, to show sensitivity. I thought that this would be perceived as
weakness."
Livni, a former foreign minister, said that when she entered
politics "it seemed to me as if there was no difference between feminine
and masculine leadership. When I understood how I was perceived, I realized
that I should exert more power and show less openness."
