Women’s Day was observed over the weekend with a hive of activities across the country. The day has been set aside to commemorate the bravery of 20,000 women who marched to the Union Buildings in 1956 against the pass laws.
To mark the day, marches, dialogues, motivational sessions as well as provincial events presided over by premiers were held.
To cap it all was the speech at the national function in Limpopo where President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke passionately about milestones reached since the dawn of democracy.
Women’s participation in leadership positions has increased. So has the access to decent work, financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. All these achievements dovetail to this year’s theme: “Building Resilient Economies for All”.
Of course, these should be appreciated but they generally apply to those who have made it into the working or middle class.
The picture looks significantly different for those in the lower strata. It is in this sphere where disproportionate levels of poverty and unemployment are realised.
What is clear is that we are not winning the war against gender-based violence
While Ramaphosa said: “We cannot and we will not leave anyone behind,” such statements ring hollow for many women in SA.
We have reported on women who have killed their children and committed suicide due to poverty.
For such women and others in the same situation it is an understatement to say they have been left behind, they have been forgotten and only remembered during elections.
And the elephant in the room: gender-based violence. The president agrees in his speech that GBV has reached pandemic levels.
Not only are the figures still alarming but the perpetrators are getting more brazen. Who will forget the case of University of Fort Hare student Nosicelo Mtebeni, whose butchered remains were discarded in a suitcase?
And, sadly, she is not the only woman to die at the hands of a man she trusted.
True, minor battles have been won. For instance, according to the 2024/2025 Fourth Quarter statistics, sexual offences showed a slight decrease, with 1,980 cases reported — down from 2,005 in the same period last year.
Rape figures also dropped marginally from 1,677 to 1,636. But one woman raped is one too many.
What is clear is that we are not winning the war against GBV. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.
Desperate situations need drastic solutions. When Covid struck, we took measures befitting fighting a national disaster.
GBV has been termed a pandemic and we wonder why are we not going that extra mile to nip it in the bud.
It is our hope that Women’s Month this year will not just be symbolic of courage.
It must also serve as a wake-up call to deal with real challenges facing women and it starts with dealing decisively with GBV.
Daily Dispatch
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