Hon Speaker, hon Ministers, hon Deputy Ministers, hon members, and guests in the gallery, it is incumbent upon us today to declare violence against women an act of unlawfulness, and it must not go unpunished. It is an act of sabotage against the ideals of the Freedom Charter, which declares that we are all equal and states that:
The preaching and practice of national, race or colour discrimination and contempt shall be a punishable crime;
The ANC holds these strong views and has clear policies and resolutions for addressing the triple oppression faced by women. The real struggle faced by women in our society and in our communities is with the pursuit of equality.
I would also like to draw the attention of the House to section 12(1)(c) of the Constitution, which reads:
Everyone has the right to freedom and security... which includes the right ... to be free from all forms of violence from either public or private sources;
Hon Speaker, in order for communities to fight violence against women and children we must, firstly, be critical of how we in our homes and communities have treated women - as subordinate to men. Patriarchy manifests itself in the form of wanting to dominate women and to control them, for example, to control whether they work, or whether they can make decisions about how they spend money or what they choose what to wear.
In a conflict-ridden society you find that the most vulnerable people, who experience torture and sexual violence, are women and children. Children are violated because they are typically treated as the belongings of women and once you hurt a woman's child, you kill the spirit of that woman.
Here on our own home turf you will find patriarchy raising its violent head when women choose to practise a particular sexual orientation. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities did not arise by accident, but by a necessity to respond to objective realities. Domestic abuse is also influenced by the need to violently suppress women's choices and to exclude women from participating in society, more specifically in the economy. We as South Africans need to start looking more into how violence is really a manifestation of power and inequalities. When women are seen to be rising up economically, politically and in of their self-esteem they are pulled down again.
We all know people who believe that women should not earn more than men, that women belong in the kitchen, and that independent-thinking women are troublesome. Here lies the problem. Patriarchy invigorates the fear of inequality. It is this economic disempowerment that has been found to imprison women in cycles of abuse by their spouses. And we condemn this violence, insubordination and patronising attitude towards women. The ANC condemns this in the strongest possible terms.
My focus is on women as citizens of South Africa and on women as members of society across the world. South Africa is a signatory to UN documents, and also supports a range of its tools and policies on gender discrimination and abuse against children.
The report on how South Africa implemented the UN Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination against Women illustrated the fact that South Africa is serious about tackling gender-based violence. The country's comprehensive legislative policy framework is progressive, and we believe that our laws are representative of a dedicated responsiveness to gender discrimination.
With the passing of the Domestic Violence Act, it now remains the state's resolve to train the SAPS to ensure the full implementation of the Act. Serious legal judgments like those of State vs Carmichael are fully using that legislation to reclaim the dignity of women. In the 2001 case, the judge stated that the state has a duty to protect women against violence.
Just as importantly, in the State vs Baloyi in 2001, the court stated that freedom from fear was identified by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a fundamental right.
Speaker, I would like to emphasise that South Africa's laws are written by the communities themselves. Through public submissions, hearings, consultations and lobbying of representatives, people are able to shape laws that protect them against violence. In this way the government is able to respond to the needs of the vulnerable in our society.
Other tools for addressing the patriarchal roots of the violence that we are witnessing include using early childhood development programmes to teach boys how to respect girls, especially since this can build up the consciousness of males of their role in gender inequality. Though the state has its own obligations, ...
... nemimango yetfu kufanele nayo ibambisane nahulumende ekulwisaneni naloludlame lolubhekene nabomake kanye nebantfwana. Kufanele kutsi bantfu baye bayewufakaza emacaleni lacondzene nekuhlukunyetwa kwabomake kuze leto tigilamkhuba tivalelwe tingaphindzi tibonakale emimangweni.
Sibonga kakhulu kubambisana nema-NGO lakhona lapha emmangweni lakwatiko kusita hulumende ngekugcugcutela futsi akhutsate labomake labasuke bahlukunyetiwe.
Sikhutsata kutsi bantfu basukume batentele, basebentise temidlalo kutsi bakhe ummango kuze ubuyisane. Bakhe imisebenti yekususa bantfwana emigwacweni lapho kunetidzakamiva khona; ngobe ngito letenta kutsi tingcondvo tebantfu tilahleke kwesikhashana bese babona kutsi kuncono bahlukumete bomake babente tigcili tabo temacansi. (Translation of Siswati paragraphs follows.)
[... even our communities must work together with government in the fight against violence against women and children. People should go and testify in the cases about women's abuse so that the perpetrators can be sent to jail and never be seen in the communities again. We are very grateful for the co-operation we have with NGOs which are able to help government in counselling and motivating women who have been abused.
We encourage people to be self-reliant, using sporting activities to build up and reconcile communities. They must establish activities that will keep children off the streets where there are drugs, because drugs make people lose their minds temporarily and only see fit to abuse women and make them their sex slaves.]
I once saw vegetable gardens in Gugulethu and in parts of Khayelitsha. Hunger would be a thing of the past if our people could engage in making vegetable gardens that feed families and produce goods for markets and restaurants.
Co-operatives can also be used as business enterprises and can generate profits that raise families out of poverty. President Jacob Zuma recently signed into law the Co-operatives Amendment Bill, which will improve the way co-operatives function. Communities must take advantage of this.
One can see how increasing the number of economic opportunities and forums for tackling tangible social matters can ultimately help us win the war against the violent manifestation of patriarchy in our communities. However, this war against gender inequality will be won once both men and women work together towards the emancipation of women.
Ngitsandza kusho-ke, Somlomo, kutsi sicela labobabe lesinabo kuleNdlu nakuyo yonkhe imimango kutsi babambisane natsi sibomake ekulwisaneni naloludlame. Sitawukhona kuluncoba loludlame nasekusukume bona, kube ngabo labasukumako beme la lapho ngime khona bakhulume ngaloludlame, ngobe ngulo lolubulala sive. Bantfwabetfu bayolikhandza likuphi lelive ngobe ngaphandle kwabo asisisive salutfo. Ngiyabonga. [Lihlombe.] (Translation of Siswati paragraph follows.)
[I would like to say then, Chairperson, that we would like to plead with all the men in this House and in every community that they should work together with us as women in the fight against this violence. We would be able to overcome this violence once they have stood up, and be the ones who stand here where I am standing and speak about it, because it is this violence that is killing our nation. Where will our children find this country, because without them we are not a nation? Thank you. [Applause.]]