Chair, the Deputy President, Ministers and members of the House, I would like to start by acknowledging and responding to some of the comments that were made by speakers. I agree with hon member Vukuza-Linda that, indeed, "ukuthwala" [abduction] is nothing but a criminal, heinous, callous, evil act and all self-respecting South Africans should look down on that practice.
I am told by the Minister of Women, Children and People with Disabilities that, working with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, they have commissioned the SA Law Reform Commission to work towards formulating a Bill to declare "ukuthwala" [abduction marriage] a serious crime and a serious offence. [Applause.]
I am also told that the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development will soon be tabling a Bill on human trafficking, focusing on women and child trafficking. So, I do hope that some of these pieces of legislation will enable us to address some of these heinous crimes that are committed against women and girl-children in particular.
I want to remind the House again that, in addition to this year's theme of "Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women", the UN has declared the decades of 2010 to 2030 decades for mobilising at a grass-roots level the emancipation of women. With that theme in mind, I ask members - especially members of the parties on my left - to pull themselves together because we need them. They can't continue this overturning they are doing because ... Unzima lomthwalo. [... there is lots to do.]
We need all of them, and not this story of having the opposition, when they have to take the responsibility globally, saying it is ANC this and the ANC that. As women, we need a plan. What is your plan? You need a plan as the opposition of what you are going to do to join the world in the battle for emancipation; and not the plan that you have, of an overturn for expedience. When there is a dying party, you want to take the remnants thereof, and then have one token woman in the executive committee. That can't work. We need a plan. [Applause.] One to ten is just pathetic; it's not good enough. Also, regarding a plan in which women will be kept in the gallery, we want them here, not in the gallery. [Applause.] We want them here and we want them in your exco.
Mr Groenewald, if you were a member of a party informed by principles like those of the ANC - nonracialism, nonsexism, a democracy that is underpinned by human rights values - you would not speak with a forked tongue like you do: rightfully acknowledging the role of Afrikaans women who have played a noble role historically and then end up opportunistically throwing in Mr Manyi's name where it doesn't fit. [Interjections.] This is because it is not Mr Manyi who said that the FF Plus should only be represented by men. This is patriarchy and has nothing to do with Mr Manyi. It is about the principles of the party. [Applause.] [Interjections.]