‘We must celebrate achievements of SA women’ – Ramaphosa

As the country reflects on the rape of eight women allegedly by illegal zama zamas, president Cyril Ramaphosa said the prevalence of gender-based violence remains one of the biggest obstacles towards achieving full and meaningful gender equality.

Ramaphosa was addressing the nation in his weekly newsletter “From the Desk of the President”, ahead of Women’s Day on Tuesday.

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The commemoration marks the day in 1956 when thousands of women marched to the Union Buildings to protest against apartheid pass laws.

Ramaphosa said South Africans will be familiar with the iconic images of Rahima Moosa, Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph and Sophia Williams de Bruyn marching defiantly up the stairs of the amphitheatre at the Union Buildings on that historic day.

“They spoke about the impact these pass laws would have on black women. Families would be broken up and children left uncared for. They spoke of fear of arrest and humiliation and degradation at the hands of policemen. They spoke of losing the fundamental right to move freely from one place to another.

“They argued that with their movements restricted, they would be unable to earn a decent living, to take up an occupation or to study,” Ramaphosa said.

The president said in the South Africa of today, women enjoy the fundamental rights and freedoms that their grandmothers and great-grandmothers were denied.

“Today, women can advance in any occupation, study in a place and field of their choice and own businesses. Thanks to employment equity legislation and other policies of the democratic government, women’s representation in the workplace, in government and all of society continues to grow.”

Ramaphosa emphasised that South Africa has worked to repeal all laws that discriminate against women, and over the years the courts have ruled against policies and practices that unfairly discriminate against women on the grounds of motherhood, sexual orientation or other factors.

“We have laws that protect women against harassment in the workplace and that address modern forms of victimisation of women. Women in traditional communities have rights to own land, to enter into contracts and to inherit.”

Ramaphosa added that as South Africa works as a collective to rid society of gender-based violence, it should not diminish the progress the country has made in building a non-sexist society.

“As we work to achieve gender equality in all areas of life, we must acknowledge that we have come a long way. And that we still have much further to go,” Ramaphosa said.

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