Department of Women appalled at International Association of Athletics Federation’s (IAAF) decision to strengthen sexism in sport
The Department of Women wishes to place on record its support for South Africa’s star athlete Caster Semenya. The department also lauds government’s efforts to support Semenya through her legal challenge of the IAAF ruling which expects certain athletes to reduce natural testosterone levels through artificial chemical processes.
The department has supported Caster Semenya from the outset, constantly engaging the media on the IAAF’s colonial treatment of the female body.
Women bear the brunt of discrimination in society. This discrimination is given life through institutionalised patriarchy in schools, universities, places of worship, in the workplace, and in the home. Sexism also rears its head on the sports field where we are expected to accept pay disparities for male and female teams, the relegation of female sporting codes to second-tier events not worthy of coverage on television etc.
The professionalism of women athletes also continues to be questioned because this goes against deeply ingrained ideas of the roles of women in society.
On the rugby field, a 2-metre, 140kg player is celebrated for his stature, strength, athletic skills and ability to dominate an opponent. In basketball, a 2.1 metre player is marvelled at for his ability to reach higher. In soccer a striker’s height is also admired through his ability to win the ball in the air.
The same applies for male athletes whose strength above their opponents is seen to be hard-fought gains through hard work and perseverance. However, when it comes to female athletes society seemingly places limits on what the female body should look like and how they should perform. The very archetype of the female athlete is being defined and controlled by sexist regulations.
The IAAF has run this race before and lost. Indian Sprinter Dutee Chand successfully challenged an earlier version of these regulations set by the IAAF to control the bodies of female athletes. In 2014 Dutee took the IAAF to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) where the ruling was overturned and she was allowed to compete.
“Female athletes must constantly suffer emotional abuse through absorbing comments like ‘She runs like a man’. These preconceived notions of what the female body should look like or how female athletes should perform is deeply sexist, because it has infiltrated the entire structure of society,” said Minister in the Presidency Responsible for Women, Bathabile Dlamini.
Minister Dlamini added that the Global North constantly attempts to control the Global South and in particular the body of the African woman to fit in with their own colonial ideas of the body as a site preserved for fertility. “We must remain resolute in our efforts to fight sexism, colonialism, and xenophobia, irrespective of the form it takes,” concluded Minister Dlamini.
The department calls on all South Africans and global citizens to proclaim #HandsOffCaster.
Important numbers to note:
Police: 10111
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Gender Based Violence Command Centre: 0800 428 428
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Enquiries:
Shalen Gajadhar
Cell: 060 979 4235
E-mail: shalen.gajadhar@women.gov.za
