Women’s Day: Paying tribute to 65 years of struggle

65 years ago, up to 20 000 women marched to the Union Buildings in determined, orderly fashion, to protest the draconian pass laws imposed on women of colour during apartheid. 

This year’s theme was declared by government as “the year of Charlotte Mannya Maxeke”, which also marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of the struggle stalwart. 

Maxeke was born on 7 April 1874.

The sub-theme for this year’s commemoration, government said, was “What Women Want”. 

Since last year, an added burden of Covid-19 and soaring gender-based violence (GBV) incidents continue to plague the women of South Africa. 

ALSO READ: Covid-19 and GBV make a deadly combo

Victims of abuse have been forced to stay holed up with their partners after months of intermittent lockdown regulations, with police last year reporting at least 23 rape-related murders between April and September 2020. 

Over the same period, at least 274 domestic violence-related murders took place, the true figure of which was likely much higher.

Globally, one in three women suffer physical violence or sexual abuse, with the Covid-19 pandemic worsening a disturbing problem, the World Health Organisation said. 

On Monday, President Cyril Ramaphosa is due to deliver the 2021 Women’s Day address, with the much-anticipated release of the country’s National Strategic Plan results, initiated to curb the GBV pandemic. 

ALSO READ: Covid-19 worsening shocking rate of GBV, says WHO

65 years of reflection

In light of women’s continued struggles for peace, equality and freedom, it is important to reflect on the momentous march that took place on 9 August 1956. 

Women as far as Cape Town made their way to Pretoria to participate in the march, which was attended by women of all races. 

The march was organised to hand over a request by the Federation for South African Women‘s (FSAW) Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph, Rahima Moosa and Sophia Williams De Bruyn to then prime minister JG Strijdom to abolish the law that African women had to carry passes. The law was established in 1952.

Strijdom was not present during the handover of the signed petition, and neither was any of his senior staff.

SA History reports the massive bundles of petitions were left carelessly outside Strijdom’s door without even being looked at. 

But before leaving the Union Buildings, activist Lilian Ngoyi arranged for the massive crowd of women, many of which embarked on the march with babies on their backs, to stand in silence for half an hour. 

They then sang ‘Nkosi sikeleli Afrika’ before leaving. 

At the time, women were labelled as politically immature, a stereotype that was broken on that day. 

The Afrikaans press, which recognised the significance of the march, even tried to make it out as though white women arranged it, a fact that was quickly disproven. 

After the march, FSAW declared that 9 August would be known as Women’s Day, and decades after apartheid was abolished, it is now an annual holiday celebrated by all in South Africa.