Programme director
Chief Executive Officer of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, Mr Achmat Dangor
Chief Executive Officer of Human Science research Council (HSRC), Dr. Olive Shisana
Executive Director of Impumelelo Awards, Ms Rhoda Kadalie
Representative of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, Dr Gerd Stephan
Esteemed guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Allow me first to thank the leadership of Ikwezi and the Nelson Mandela Foundation for inviting me to address this inaugural Mandela Colloquium on Democracy, Development and Governance. Let me congratulate you for honouring the truly remarkable man, our beloved leader Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
This is truly a celebration, a celebration of the selfless contributions Tata Mandela has made and continues to make even after retirement from active public life. It is important that we remember our heroes and celebrate their contributions to our country. I am particularly honoured to be asked to speak here today, just as I was pleased a few weeks ago to learn that the United Nations general assembly has officially declared 18 July, Nelson Mandela’s birthday, as “Nelson Mandela International Day”.
This is indeed a fitting tribute to a man who spent 67 years of his life actively devoted to promoting human rights and social justice; as Jennifer Cryws-Williams wrote in her little book: “Mandela’s selfless actions have been embraced by the whole world as a symbol of courage, hope and reconciliation”. To date even after many years of retiring from active politics, Madiba still continues to devote a large amount of his time working for the common good of all humanity.
It is a pleasure for me to talk about an issue that is very close to my heart: “women and the democratic experience”. Globally, it is estimated that women comprise more than half the world’s population, 70 percent of the world’s poor, and two-thirds of those who are not taught to read and write. In South Africa, as in other parts of the world, women constitute a larger percentage of the population. It is therefore without question that a true democratic society should have the liberation of women at its heart.
Recognising that gender equality and women’s empowerment are core values of democracy, government introduced the new Constitution which commits our society to equality of men and women. The ideological aspect of this matter was born out of recognition that equality between men and women in rights and in the joint efforts of building up society is one of the basic principles of a democratic society.
A look at our past and present political history will reveal that we have always been deeply conscious of the need to tap the vast potential for nation building resting in women. During the opening of the democratically elected parliament on 24 May 1994, Mr Nelson Mandela said, and I quote: “Freedom cannot be achieved unless the women have been emancipated from all forms of oppression. All of us take this on board that the objectives of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) will not have been realised unless we see in visible practical terms that the conditions of women in our country has radically changed for the better, and that they have been empowered to intervene in all aspects of life as equals with any other member of society”.
Fifteen years after Mandela said these words, it is important that we remind ourselves that a democracy worth the name must have women's equality at its heart. Thus gender equality must be an explicit goal for democracy building processes and institutions. If democracy is to be realised and practiced, an understanding of how it intersects with gender equality is essential. For me, as for many of you in this room, ensuring that women are equally represented where the decisions are taken is a matter of democracy. Women, as much as men, have a fundamental right to steer the political decision making process. Women must have equal say with men in shaping policies which affect us all. Democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law are the foundations of a stable and well functioning state. To increase the well being of people and overall prosperity, we need to involve women in the decision making and development processes.
Whereas the apartheid regime chose to remain oblivious to the needs of women, the African National Congress recognised that democracy and national prosperity only thrives in a society in which women’s contribution and potential are nurtured and embraced. Since 1994 we have witnessed a gradual shift in the balance of power as women are finally being recognised as equals and as leaders. We undoubtedly live in an age where women are gaining greater ascendance to every sphere of human influence, and this is what we have to celebrate.
If one is to analyse the ascension of this country’s women to positions of great esteem in recent times, it is clear that the approach to entrust confidence in women is more than a one off event. Instead it is a clear national policy. Of the 490 members who were elected to the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces in April 1994, 117 were women representatives. This was a dramatic change from the previous apartheid government in which women constituted only 2.8 percent of parliamentary representatives.
In the current Cabinet, 14 of the 34 ministers and 12 of the 28 deputy ministers are women. In total, women constitute about 45 percent of the national public representatives, placing South Africa third in the globe, behind Rwanda and Sweden. This puts the country firmly on course to achieve the Southern African Development Community (SADC) target of 50 percent women in political decision making by 2015.
Ladies and gentlemen, while we all agree that many women are still to be liberated from poverty and human degradation, we must acknowledge the many giant steps that our country has taken in putting women in the forefront of society. It is no exaggeration that democracy has a positive impact on the lives of South African women and many pointers show tangible gains for women in social, economic and political arenas.
Today if you examine the composition of parliament and other key sectors of our society, you will realise that significant progress has been made. Thanks to the visionary leadership of Nelson Mandela, women are increasingly are being given the opportunities they deserve. More than ever before, women and girls in our country have greater access to education, health care and reproductive services, and are making inroads into professions that were previously male dominated.
They are contributing more to their families and communities. They’re gaining access to decent jobs that can give them a decent standard of living. The results of a recent study by the Department of Science and Technology shows increased enrolment of women in higher education. Women’s participation in democracy is about having the right, the means, the space and the opportunity, and where necessary, the support to participate in and influence decisions and engage in actions and activities, so as to contribute to building a better society.
Strengthening the economic status of women through both legal rights and social conventions is part of government’s agenda. The expansion of education and the provision of equal opportunities is another move in that direction. More important than anything is the liberation of women through active work and sincere participation in the reconstruction of our society.
We ought to bear in mind that the achievement of the complete emancipation of women is a revolutionary necessity for accelerating the wheels of progress. The present realities of our society and the critical challenges facing it allow no room whatsoever for excluding women from the arduous task of nation building. These require her participation in meeting these challenges and providing the various essentials which constitute the dynamic struggle against them.
To this end, the African National Congress has made a conscious decision to integrate women’s emancipation, empowerment, equality and poverty eradication in such initiatives as the Expanded Public Works Programme, the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (ASGISA), Broad Based Economic Empowerment, Rural Development and Anti-poverty programmes.
I will not lecture this distinguished forum on the challenges we face. However, I would be remiss if I fail to mention that despite the commendable progress we have made thus far, much work still lie ahead. One of the biggest problems women in this country face is violence in their own homes, on the streets and sometimes at the workplace. And because women are the primary caregivers in many families, any threat to their safety and well being, affects the well being of their children. So too is the extent to which women are disproportionately affected by poverty, unemployment, disease and underdevelopment.
A woman who undergoes abuse in her home suffers not only physically and emotionally, but also faces economic insecurity and less control over important decisions for her children’s health, nutrition, education and well being. In addition, her children can be psychologically and emotionally damaged. This can have serious repercussions, often leading to substance abuse, juvenile pregnancy and even criminal behaviour in later life. And often, children who grow up with violence in the home learn to use violence in their interpersonal relationships to dominate others. Boys who see their mothers being abused are more likely to grow up and abuse their wives.
There can be no real democracy in our country, until women can go about their business without being robbed, and our girls can get to and from school without fear of being raped and until mothers and daughters can feel safe in their own homes. Otherwise, democracy remains a hollow concept, if half of our country’s population remains trapped in poverty and vicious cycle of violence and abuse. As a system for participation and representation, how can a nation be described as democratic if men and women do not participate equally in the decision making that shapes democracy? Democracy for democracy’s sake is an exercise in futility. Women empowerment is an indispensable character of any true democratic society.
The progress that we as women have made over the last fifteen years must encourage us and spur us on to even greater achievements. What we have achieved so far has been the result not just of individual effort but of collaboration and consensus, a coming together of women united in a common purpose, seeking the common good. It is people like you with passion and enthusiasm and the will to act, working in concert with us in government that can make a real difference and consolidate our achievements. Perhaps we need to ask ourselves: How can we ensure that women’s contributions to democracy, economic recovery and future growth are fully harnessed and the gender outcomes we all want are achieved?
No one individual, organisation or entity has all the answers. But together we can, and will make things happen to ensure that women in South Africa become full partners in the progress and development of this nation. It will take courage, determination, commitment, and a constructive approach. Such empowerment will be able to harness the potential of women in such a way that will lead to the building up of a free and unified country that is both strong and advanced.
Such emancipation cannot be achieved by legislation only, despite its great importance. A great part of the responsibility of the struggle for the emancipation of women falls upon all of us in this room. I believe that we stand at a moment of extraordinary opportunity in the history of this country to achieve this. A great deal of work remains to be done to meet the challenges ahead and to defend the hard won democratic gains.
I look forward to the outcomes of this colloquium and interesting deliberations. Collectively, we can make a difference to women empowerment.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Social Development
24 November 2009
Source: Department of Social Development (http://www.dsd.gov.za/)
