President of the Humboldt University Professor Jan-Hendrik Olbertz
The South African Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany, Rev Stofile Members of the academic corps at the Humboldt University
Our award winner Costanza Toninelli
Members of the student fraternity
Ladies and gentlemen
It is indeed a privilege to have been invited to deliver the address tonight, at this very prestigious and progressive academic institution, Humboldt University - the oldest in Berlin having been founded in 1810 - which boasts of having been home to many of Germany’s greatest thinkers including idealist philosopher Hegel, physicist Albert Einstein, founders of Marxist theory Karl Marx and Frederich Engels, the German unifier Otto von Bismarck and the African American Pan Africanist WEB du Bois, to mention but a few.
It is remarkable that 29 of the world’s Nobel Peace Laureates have also been moulded within this academic institution. It has also served as a model for many other universities, especially the principle of the union of teaching and research.
The occasion is all the more significant as we honour Ms Costanza Toninelli as the second winner of the Caroline von Humboldt for research. It is inspiring to all women that this award is named after a woman who was not only a wife to Willem von Humboldt who was the co-founder of this university with his brother, but was herself, in her own right described as an intelligent, well-educated, energetic woman, whose knowledge and talents were praised by her contemporaries everywhere. While in contact with great minds, she advanced to one of the most extraordinary female personalities in the beginning of the 19th century in Europe.
Indeed we are today honouring an extra-ordinary young woman who has not only done exceptionally well in physics but is also very multi skilled with good technical, communication, social and organisational skills, while also being competent in many languages.
I am certain that she will make a significant contribution to humanity in her lifetime. Her proposed topic, “Organic Molecules in Disordered Photonic Structures: from co-operative effects in mesoscopic ensembles to a random quantum network,” with the introduction of molecular nanophotonics as a novel research field will obviously reshape the research landscape in this field and will add to the existing body of knowledge.
Distinguished guests,
For many generations women were forced to live unrecognised lives in the shadows of their husbands. Today women need not be restricted in their achievements merely for having been born female. We owe this to the many women who have come before us, fighting for empowerment, equality and emancipation. I am by no means saying it is easy to achieve the goals we set for ourselves.
We often have to work harder than our male counterparts while also fulfilling our traditional roles as mothers, caregivers, wives and housekeepers. Even today, there are countries where females do not earn the same salaries as male employees, even when they do the same jobs. This phenomenon exists not only in the developing but also in some developed countries.
This does not just reflect domestic and corporate life. It seems that despite some advances in the emancipation of women, males and females continue to interact in a social context that is essentially skewed towards a masculine paradigm. The patriarchy has sometimes become so entrenched we are no longer even aware of it. Although it is very difficult to defeat this, we must keep going and indeed, it will be a long journey.
Ladies and gentlemen,
For us in South Africa, we have travelled a long way to reach the point at which we now are.
Even in the ANC since it was a product of a patriarchal society, and although established in 1912, women were only considered full members with the right to vote in the 1940s. Women have had to fight within the ANC since 1912 and we are happy that as we commemorate the centenary of the party in 2012, the policy of parity has now been institutionalised in all structures and committees of the movement. If women did not participate and fight for policies that supported the development of women, we would still have a man’s movement.
In my youth, I remember that for white children education was compulsory and free until they were 16 years of age. It was therefore much easier for them to enter university and receive scholarships. For us Africans, education was neither compulsory nor free.
There were very few schools that offered maths and science to girls. As a result of this, I was not exposed to math and science for my first nine years of schooling. I had to do an extra year at secondary school to allow me to meet the requirements to study for a Bachelor of Science Degree.
After completing my BSc Degree I had to work for a year before entering medical school. Because of my political involvement I had to go into exile, in my penultimate year of study. Fortunately, the ANC organised a scholarship that enabled me to complete my medical degree in the United Kingdom.
In 1990 when we returned to South Africa, we also returned to the triple oppression of women.
In one instance, when I wanted to apply for an overdraft from the bank, I had to get the permission of my husband because women were considered minors. Financial transactions could not therefore take place without the consent of a male figure. An employed black woman would sometimes have to get the signature of an unemployed son when applying for a financial assistance from banks. If you were not married, you could get an uncle, nephew, son or any male to sign for you because women were regarded as minors, even in the law.
Ladies and gentlemen,
In South Africa, we have always tried to reduce the gap between theory and practice. Women have therefore been active participants in the debate and movement for the promotion of women's equality since negotiations for our democracy during which it was agreed that gender issues should be mainstreamed. Our governance model has therefore been characterised by the creation of government structures charged with promoting women's rights and status in addition to supporting the involvement of women in policymaking structures. We have internalised the slogan from Beijing - woman’s rights are human rights.
I am certain many of you are familiar with the African Union (AU) commitment to achieve gender parity by 2020.South Africa is however committed to achieving this by 2015. It is my firm conviction that when women find themselves in positions of leadership they should strive not merely to maintain the status quo in a man’s world, but rather to change this man’s world into a human world.
Distinguished guests,
If we are to fundamentally re-orientate the patriarchal paradigm in which we find ourselves, we must amongst others, change the patterns of socialisation and even the modes of production in society. We must also begin to move towards knowledge based societies which will uplift the economy while contributing to social development. The opportunity for this is further created by challenges facing the international community including the creation of what we in South Africa refer to as “green” jobs as a response to climate change.
In this regard, South Africa will be hosting COP17 in December 2011.We believe that climate change presents an opportunity to change our economies while involving women to a greater degree since women and children will bear the greatest brunt of climate change.
The introduction of the Caroline von Humboldt Award is true to the ideals of the founders of this University who were obviously pioneers. This will encourage young women and give them access to endless possibilities in research, science and innovation.
The Beijing+5 Report of 2000 suggests that science and technology must be fundamental components of development, transforming patterns of production, contributing to the creation of jobs and new ways of working, and promoting the establishment of a knowledge-based society. In the past science and technology has been dominated by men but this is changing and that change must be accelerated.
This remains as relevant in 2011 as it was in 2000, and indeed, it will remain relevant for many years to come. This is reflected in the 2011 priority theme of 55th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW55) which is “Access and participation of women and girls in education, training, science and technology, including for the promotion of women’s equal access to full employment and decent work”.
The Millennium Development Goals, agreed to by all international leaders in 2000, can be easily achieved if anchored around the third goal which refers to women in decision making. If women are in decision making they can ensure that poverty is addressed because this affects 70% of women, they can ensure mother and infant mortality is addressed and that children will go to school.
This can only be achieved if we pay very close attention to equality between men and women. This has been a very important question for us in South Africa because during apartheid women, particularly African women suffered what we called ‘triple oppression. ’The triple oppression was on the basis of their race, class and gender. Indeed they were black, workers and women. During the drafting of our constitution, we insisted on the equality clause in our Constitution and the Bill of Rights which would enable the creation of a non-racial and non-sexist society.
South African women participated alongside the men in our struggle for liberation. Our national liberation icon and struggle hero, the late President of the African National Congress (ANC) Oliver Reginald Tambo said that, “If we are to engage our full potential in pursuit of revolutionary goals, then, as revolutionaries, we should stop pretending that women…have the same opportunities as men."
Our struggle was therefore intrinsically linked to the emancipation of its women. Indeed our other great leader, former President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela in 1994 said: “Freedom cannot be achieved unless the women have been emancipated from all forms of oppression.”
The Women’s League which is the women’s wing of the ANC had to ensure the equal participation of women in the negotiations, and that there is a critical mass of women in Parliament. The ANC has increased its component of women from 30% in 1994 to 50% currently. But this number is reduced because other parties fail to implement parity and that is why we have now have 43% of women in Parliament and about 40% in Cabinet.
What is significant is that women have also been appointed to portfolios traditionally reserved for women - Defence, Science and Technology, Correctional Services, Home Affairs.
We are also attempting to ensure we achieve equity and parity in the public service.
This is not just about numbers but it is about ensuring the policies and laws further our non-sexist and developmental agenda. It is also about role models for young women while contributing towards changing the power-relations and towards transforming the patriarchal society.
In this regard we also ensured that our labour laws speak to equity and equal opportunities so women can apply for any job and they earn the same salaries as their male counterparts.
It is also important that women who are in positions of decision making, create conditions for the advancement of other women in traditionally male dominated areas because in the past, some women are very happy to ‘make it’ in a man’s world rather than changing this world into a human world that is suitable for men and women. We also introduced mandatory paid maternity leave for at least four months during which women earn 100% of their salaries. There is still room for improvement as the economy improves.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Policies to promote the development of women, such as those in government, are unfortunately not reflected in industry, academia and the judiciary which is a pity since these are very important sectors shaping the destiny of a society.
We must transform the academic sector so that more women become part of the leadership of academic institutions, and not just in traditional fields like the humanities or education.
The same should be encouraged in learners. We should cease to socialise our girl children toward what we believe they are traditionally good at, the arts and humanities, while boys are socialised towards the sciences. If a girl displays an aptitude for the sciences, this should be actively encouraged and no effort spared to develop her talent.
While we still have a long way to go, it is pleasing that women in South Africa are advancing against men in science fields, particularly engineering, agricultural studies and biology. The largest increase has been evidenced in health sciences. In 2010/11, the National Research Fund established by the Department of Science and Technology supported 3 566 masters and 1 937 doctoral students, of which 50% and 48% were women, respectively.
We have dedicated R100 million towards increasing the value of postgraduate bursaries as well as the number and equity profile of postgraduate students, supporting emerging researchers and academics with an emphasis on black and women researchers. We are also encouraging established researchers to increase research productivity and supervise the next generation of researchers.
Analysis of some of the most successful nations has illustrated that the key to sustainable programmes and development is necessarily the involvement of youth. In South Africa we are privileged to have young population which can be developed and nurtured.
To this end, we have also introduced the Youth into Science Strategy with a number of initiatives aimed at girl learners in particular. One such initiative is the Talent Development Programme which supports girl learners in Grade 11 and 12. The programme is aimed at preparing learners with mathematics and science lessons, life skills and further education and training (FET) career guidance, including preparing them for university studies.
We have also ensured the enrolment of both girls and boys at schools and today, we have more girls than boys in tertiary institutions. It is important to start socialising boys and girls in a way that reflects equality because it is impossible to expect men to treat women as equals if they did not learn this as children. The teachers at school should treat them as equals and nurture their talents in all subjects while encouraging girls to take any subjects they may show an affinity for.
In 2009 we the Minister of Science and Technology established the South African Awards for Women in Science which recognises the women who make a significant contribution to society through science.
Constanza is an excellent example. Her curriculum vitae suggests that love of the sciences began a very long time ago. I am certain she was privileged to have the support of committed educators who encouraged her passion for science and we have no doubt she will do the same for her students.
Distinguished delegates,
In my current portfolio as Minister of Home Affairs, a critical component of our work is to safeguard citizenship. Citizenship which is considered to equally bestow the same rights and privileges upon all inhabitants confined within the borders of a specific nation-state by birth or naturalisation in most societies often advantages men over women.
In some countries, although the constitution of that country will recognise that men and women have equal rights including that of development, it is most often not the case. I believe that most of the women in both our countries can identify with this. In some countries, the child carries the citizenship of the father, instead of both parents. We are proud to say that in our country, you are a South African citizen if one of your parents - mother or father - is a South African. There is no discrimination.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The imperative for including women in all structures of governance is premised on the fact that inequalities in representation not only violates the basic human rights of women, but are also inimical to long-term socio-economic development directly compromising economic growth, sustainable development and poverty reduction.
I also believe that with emancipation of women comes greater responsibility, especially for young women who have the energy, vigour and vitality to defend the advances other women have made. One of the easiest ways in which to do this is through research. It is always easier to make different decisions with facts based on solid scientific data at your disposal. I therefore hope that young women who have an opportunity to pursue postgraduate studies or who are in the field of research, consider topics that will contribute to a better life for all humans including women and children.
Distinguished guests,
Being a politician myself, I am always disheartened to hear young women say they are not interested in politics. Indeed, politics shapes the course of life for all citizens, as well as the future of the country. At the same time, politics is not mutually exclusive.
I firmly believe that if we are to truly achieve the emancipation of women we must begin to increase the participation of women in policymaking structures. In countries where this has been achieved, we are able to see significant improvements in socio-economic conditions of citizens. This can be directly linked to women making different choices about the fiscus of the country and indeed, increasing contributions to the health, education and other portfolios that directly affect women and children.
Academic institutions are very important in the issue of equality and we hope that many institutions will follow the examples of progressive institutions like Humboldt University.
We should aspire to a world which is non-sexist and non-racial where people can be judged on their ability and not on their sex. For any country to reach its full potential it must use all its talents and women make up slightly more than 50% of the world’s population. If women are left out of this participation, the world will be operating on 50% of its strength.
To Ms Toninelli, please accept our congratulations on your having won this award and I have no doubt that you will continue to inspire and nurture the next generation of women scientists.
I thank you.
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