The virgins, the bursaries and the mayor – Uthukela District Municipality has made news worldwide by granting 16 virgins bursaries to study at university.
Shocked activists have called the so-called ‘Virgin Grants’ a blow to women’s rights.
What has riled them even more is the fact that uThukela Mayor Dudu Mazibuko, as a woman, should have defended any infringement on women’s rights.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) have demanded that the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) investigate uThukela bursaries based on virginity testing.
In particular, they have targeted uThukela Mayor Dudu Mazibuko.
“I will be writing to the SAHRC, requesting that an investigation be instituted into the mayor of uThukela District Municipality, Dudu Mazibuko, for her role in the alleged establishment of the ‘Maiden Bursary Award’,” said DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Women, Youth, Children and People with Disabilities, Nomsa Tarabella-Marchesi.
According to the DA, this draconian programme is an affront to the right to privacy and dignity of young women, as it mandates virginity testing for any woman who wishes to be a bursary holder under the programme, precluding those who are not virgins.
“The programme prescribes that young women must not only be virgins in order to qualify for the bursary, but must remain virgins in order not to be booted from the programme.
“To this end, the young women have to undergo virginity testing at each holiday break.
“This is an abuse of state power and needs to be investigated to determine whether it is constitutionally sound,” added the deputy shadow minister.
The Mayor, however, failed to address the question of how young women who were victims of rape, incest and sexual abuse would be catered for under this bursary scheme.
Given the alarmingly high incidence of sexual violence against women and children in the country, this is a gross oversight.
While the DA respects that virginity testing may be part of certain cultural practices, it is inexplicable that a government department can subject young girls to such an invasive practice under duress because they are desperate to obtain bursaries and access opportunities.
Responding, Mayor Dudu Mazibuko lashed out at those who criticised the granting of bursaries.
“We did not go out looking for women who are virgins, these women are part of an organised group of young Zulu maidens,” she explained.
They have been under-going instruction and training from between eight and 12 years old.
They are extremely proud of their virginity, but as Zulu maidens they are taught many things as part of Zulu culture, virginity being just part of it.
They approached us and asked why we reward women who have children with grants but we do nothing for them. We took the decision to help them by giving them an opportunity to study.
“The virginity tests are not done by us, it is culturally done and these girls are incredibly proud of their status within the community.
Nobody forced them to choose to abstain from sex, no one forces them to undergo tests.
They do that as part of the cultural ceremonies they take part in. “Obviously if a girl should be raped we would be sympathetic and investigate the continuation of the grant.
“Looking at it from a financial prospective, this group came to us, they have studied hard, achieved good marks and qualify for university.
They are role-models in society, granting them bursaries is far cheaper than paying grants to subsidise women with children.
We could understand the condemnation if we went out and demanded that women have to be virgins to get bursaries.
We granted hundreds of bursaries to both boys and girls with no questions asked,” said Ms Mazibuko.
The controversy surrounding the awarding of the bursaries even attracted the attention of CNN. The Mayor was interviewed by CNN last Tuesday.
