Delegation from Southern Sudan: discussion on Gender Issues

JOINT MONITORING COMMITTEE ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE AND STATUS OF WOMEN
3 November 2006
DELEGATION FROM SOUTHERN SUDAN: DISCUSSION ON GENDER ISSUES

Acting Chairperson: Ms S E Mabe (ANC)

Documents handed out:
Information Service: Research; South African Development Community on Gender and Development
Information Service: Research; Significant Achievements in Promoting Gender Equity in South Africa: Part1 & Part2

SUMMARY
A delegation of members of the Committee on Gender, Social Welfare, Youth and Sport of the Parliament of Southern Sudan visited the Committee to share their experiences. At the outset the Joint Monitoring Committee explained how Parliament operated and what were the specific functions of this Committee. They highlighted that the Committee monitored all issues affecting women in other committees, monitored the proper implementation of laws at a provincial and local level and the challenges faced. The safety and quality of life of vulnerable groups were mirrors of society. The Constitution and the equality legislation had vastly improved the status of women but there were still some cultural barriers. The Sudanese delegation gave a brief history of the conflict in Sudan, and reported that Sudanese culture had been swamped by Arab cultures and beliefs. Arabs owned about one third of the African continent and Sudan was at the frontline of the struggle against oppression. Less than 1% of Sudanese women were educated. Although constitutionally they were to make up 25% of the government, this did not happen in practice. The delegation believed that education was vital, that many of the problems lay in culture and tradition, that education must stress the importance of women. They asked if the education in South Africa on the rights of women had been directed to both women and men. They asked for clarity on the Constitutional provisions, on promotion of women’s projects and on raising funds for promotion.
Members of the Joint Committee said that they did not have all the answers but stressed that it was imperative for all women, regardless of their background, to unite, that international links were very important, and that proper attention needed to be given to women’s issues in budgets. Education was important, but more so was building of confidence by women, so that they were able to realise their potential even if not formally educated. There would always be resistance to equality, but women should empower each other. It was suggested that the Sudanese draw up a list of issues and that further networks should be built.

MINUTES
The Acting Chairperson tabled an apology from the Chairperson of the Committee, who was in Democratic Republic of Congo.

She welcomed the delegation, comprised of members of the Committee on Gender, Social Welfare, Youth and Sport of the Parliament of Southern Sudan

She welcomed the opportunity for the Members of this Committee to share their experiences with the visiting delegation and explain how the committee operated. She said that this Committee was allied to the Commission on Gender Equality and the Office on the Status of Women. She explained that Parliament consisted of the National Assembly (NA) and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP). This Committee was made up of 13 members from the NA and 9 members (one from each province) from the NCOP. The primary function of the Committee was to monitor the implementation of government commitments to international agreements that had been made in terms of gender issues. It monitored legislation affecting women and tries to ensure that gender was mainstreamed in all departments in the country. The Committee was a multiparty committee.

Ms X Makasi (ANC) added that this Committee was very important because it monitored the issues that affected women in every other committee. It monitored particularly how laws that were passed in parliament were being implemented on a provincial and local level, and tried to establish what the challenges to implementation of these laws were. For instance, culture could present a challenge to the implementation of much gender legislation. In the rural areas many women did not report marital assault because that would be contrary to their culture.

Mr F Maserumule (ANC) said that the former President of the ANC, Oliver Tambo, used to say that the liberation of South Africa would be determined by the emancipation of women and children. The safety and quality of life of women, children, the elderly and the disabled were mirrors for society, reflecting how well society was functioning. He said that his first concern when he was a soldier was the safety of women and children in a conflict. He wondered why the people of Sudan were at war with each other, when South Africans had provide it possible to peacefully coexist even though there were many tribes and languages within its borders.

Ms F Batyi (ID) said that South Africa had the most exciting Constitution. She said that before 1994 a woman was referred to as a girl, could not be independent and needed her husband’s permission to do many things. She could only become a nurse or teacher. After 1994 women were able to be what they wanted to be. The Deputy President was a woman. Women now had their own identity and independence. She hoped that all African countries could follow South Africa’s example.

Ms J Semple (DA) said that the South African government was a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDOR) and the Beijing Platform of Action. Government aimed to improve the status of women and this was the reason the committee was formed. She reiterated that the aim of the committee was to monitor government legislation and see whether it was working, and, if legislation was not being implemented, to find out the reasons.

Ms Betty Achan Ogwaro (Leader of the delegation) asked Prof Kwesi Kwaa Prah, Director of the Centre for Advanced Studies of African Society, to explain some of the history of Sudan.

Prof Prah said that Sudan was the biggest country in Africa and that all cultures in all corners of Africa were represented within its borders. It also had had the longest war in Africa, not because the Sudanese loved war, but to reach peace through resisting oppression. The war started on 17 August 1955 owing to centuries-long oppression of Africans. There had been around 1000 years of Arab-led slavery in Sudan, which the Sudanese had to resist. The fighting continued until the Addis Ababa agreement was signed in 1972. After this there was still insurgency as some people were not satisfied with the terms of the agreement. This low intensity war continued until 1983 when a military ruler dismantled the agreement. The South then went to war until last year when a peace agreement was signed. Two thirds of all Sudanese were African, but had been dominated in rule by settler Arab groups. That was the source of the conflict. Even in the heartlands of the Arab sections of Sudan, there were Africans who had become Arabised. Their cultures had been removed by forbidding the use of their languages, their practices and the infiltration of Islam. These African people’s mentality, values and taste was Arab. The government had been using such people to fight a war of expansion. Arabs called this “killing a slave with a slave”. Africans in Sudan were resisting oppression on behalf of all Africans on the continent. Arabs owned about one third of the African continent and Sudan was at the frontline of the struggle.

Ms Achan Ogwaro asked how the committee had raised the status of women to equal the status of men. She asked for commitment from the Committee to help their counterparts in raising the status of women. The capacity of women in Southern Sudan remained much less than of men. Less than 1% of women were educated although they consisted of 61% of the population. Women’s educational standards must be raised. Female leadership was also a problem, as they had to consider how to strengthen the leadership capacity of the few educated women. She asked what kind of models the Committee could suggest to improve women’s status. Constitutionally women were supposed to make up 25% of government, but this did not happen. Women need support from the committee, particularly in training.

Mr C Gakmar reported that Sudan was divided into the North and the South, governed by separate systems. The South had an executive, legislature and judiciary. Its constitution was similar to South Africa’s. There were members of the executive who were women and some women even headed committees. He said that this showed that women were being given rights. Sudan’s problem lay in culture and traditions. He asked how this Committee had educated people to understand the importance of women. He asked if women only were being informed of their rights or if men were also being educated.

Ms M Ajonga asked how the Committee promoted women’s projects and improved the capacity of women in the rural areas. She also asked how the Committee raised funds for promoting the capacity of women.

Mr P Walla asked how the South African Constitution promoted the status of women and equality.

Mr B Kol said that the last Sudanese budget had emphasised women’s education, recognising that it would lead to leadership. Women in Sudan had an important role to play in the liberation movement. South Africa had taken an intellectual approach and he wanted to know how South Africa had used education in order to improve the status of women.

Ms A Magoun asked what challenges women in South Africa faced.

Ms C Botha (DA) said that the Committee also had a lot to learn, not only to teach. She added that she did not think that the Committee had the answers to all of the questions. She advised the delegation to use the international links that existed for women. This would allow them to keep up with an international standard held up by women all around the world. She said they should use media exposure to inform the world about the real issues in Sudan. She added that the battle against culture and tradition would never be over. It would remain as a constant challenge. The economy was closely connected to the emancipation of women, as if there was more to share, women’s position in society would improve. The budget should be examined to establish how women were benefiting from the allocation. In the early 1990s the South African Women’s Coalition had involved all women in South Africa, in a non-sectoral format, and had proved that it was imperative for women who differed to unite.

Mr Maserumule said the history of women’s active struggle in South Africa stretched back 50 years. Women stood up to fight for themselves, which led to their inclusion in the constitution. The main challenge that women faced was in leadership. If a woman was educated, the nation would be educated. He advised the delegation that they needed a committee that cut across all sectors of life to improve the status of women. He appealed to the delegation to work for peace in Sudan.

Ms Makasi said that women should look for common ground and work on the things that affected them all, across parties. There would always be resistance to women’s equality but this should not discourage those working for equality.

Ms N Ngele (ANC) said that the delegation should not let education preoccupy their minds to exclusion of other factors. Most women in parliament were not educated. Women needed to have confidence in themselves and realise that experience was also valuable. She said women were politically equal to men, regardless of education.

Ms Makasi agreed with Ms Ngele and said that women were the managers of homes. She said that South Africans were lucky to have had a leader like Oliver R Tambo, who supported the freedom of women. She said that women only wanted what was good for their families and the country. They needed to be empowered so that the fruits of their labour could be realised. Women must empower each other. They should concentrate on the female leaders in parliament now, not focus too much on those coming up.

Ms Ngele said the delegation needed to indicate their areas of interest so that a programme could be drawn up in order to address those needs and interests.

Ms Semple suggested that the delegation needed to mobilise women to vote around issues that are important to them in order to get the issues on the table.

Ms Achan Ogwaro said that they had produced a paper summarising the issues that were important to them. She said that she hoped women would become more confident and assertive in order to continue their role in empowering the nation. She asked if women only were being educated about their rights and capabilities or whether men were also being educated. She said men were very resistant to empowering women and she asked how they could overcome this. She said there were traditions in Sudan that should be considered as domestic violence. She hoped that international pressure could be used to change this. She said she would like the South African women’s caucus to network with the Southern Sudanese Parliamentarian Women’s League in order to further women’s issues. She thanked the committee for the discussion.

The Chair thanked the delegation.

The meeting adjourned.