Speaker, the hon President of the Republic of South Africa, hon Deputy President, hon Ministers, Deputy Ministers, hon members, let me start off by expressing my gratitude for the honour of being able to participate in this important debate. May I also join my colleagues in thanking the President for organising the celebration of the release of Tata Madiba. It is not a mistake to ensure the central positioning of women in different sectors of the economy and the state machinery; in fact, it is a fundamental necessity. When you economically empower a woman you economically empower the whole nation, but if you economically empower a man you economically empower an individual. This may sound like a slogan, but the time for slogans is over.
The President has declared this year a year of action - meaning that all theories must be put into action. Remember Margaret Thatcher when she said:
If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.
[Applause.]
Patriarchal oppression was embedded in the economic, social, religious, cultural, familial and other relations in all communities. Its eradication cannot be an assumed consequence of democracy.
All manifestations and consequences of patriarchy - from the feminisation of poverty, physical and psychological abuse, undermining self-confidence and hidden forms of exclusion from positions of authority and power - need to be eliminated.
Samora Machel once said:
The emancipation of women is not an act of charity, the result of a humanitarian or compassionate attitude. The liberation of women is a fundamental necessity for the revolution, the guarantee of its continuity and the precondition for its victory.
The ANC will therefore continue to strive for the realisation of the commitments of the Freedom Charter, that the rights of all the people shall be the same, regardless of race, colour or sex.
Speaker, the steady growth in women parliamentarians, provincial legislatures and councillors is a reflection of the implementation of the ANC policies. The representation of women in Cabinet since 2004 has been internationally cited as one of best practice.
The increase in the proportion of women in the provincial and national legislatures and elected municipal councils has also been substantial. It is safe to say that we still have to improve on women Speakers.
Indeed, this recognition of the interconnectedness of women's struggles and what needs to be done to overcome this oppression was understood when we saw about 20 000 women marching to Pretoria in protest against carrying pass books. They also demanded the fundamental rights of justice, freedom and equality for their children. They gave voice to their resistance and determination and they demonstrated their power within themselves when they declared: Wathint' Abafazi Wathint' Imbokodo. [You strike a woman, you strike a rock.]
When we established our democracy in 1994, we dismantled apartheid legislation and put in place progressive policies. We established an Office on the Status of Women located in the Presidency and a Commission on Gender Equality. We fought for increasing representation of women at all levels of government and made great strides in that respect. We have taken a gender perspective on the implementation of development projects and programmes.
As a country, our government has taken it as its mandate to halve poverty and unemployment by 2014. In the first 13 years of democracy, there has been great progress in the provision of basic infrastructure, such as clean water and electricity. We have achieved gender parity in primary and secondary education.
In the state of the nation address the President said:
We are building a performance-oriented state, by improving planning as well as performance monitoring and evaluation. We also need to integrate gender equity measures into the government's programme of action. This action will ensure that women, children and persons with disabilities can access developmental opportunities.
It is for this reason that a women's Ministry was established, a very senior Ministry located in the Presidency, whose powers and functions include policy and legislation, planning, co-ordination and advocacy in areas such as poverty, which is a cross-cutting issue.
This Ministry must be able to work closely with the Ministries of planning, monitoring and evaluation. It must exercise its authority in ensuring that gender policies take shape in all departments without any hindrance. The budget must also be gender-orientated to enable departments to implement their programmes.
Speaker, regarding economic empowerment, gender roles led to women's role in the domestic sphere, as mothers and nurturers, being seen as of lesser importance in value than the tasks of men. Women are said to be natural nurturers and domestic labourers, while men are perceived to be natural leaders and decision-makers. These roles are reinforced at home, school and through the media, thus restricting women's self-perceptions, disempowering their social and economic potential and limiting the possibilities for their future.
This has been further compounded by the system of patriarchy and its imposition of male domination. In our history, the women of our country have experienced various forms of gender oppression in both rural and urban areas, in both traditional and modern contexts. Some argue that the violence against women is an extreme form of reinforcing patriarchal control of women.
Thus when we speak about economic empowerment of women and gender equality, it is from the starting point that the struggle of women for emancipation is linked to the dismantling of all systems that attempt to oppress them. South Africa thus will not be fully free as long as women are not free.
It is abundantly clear on the African continent that women are largely responsible for sustaining families through subsistence farming. According to the US Agency for International Development, rural women are responsible for half the world's food production and produce between 60% and 80% of the food in most developing countries. Thus women are key to agricultural development.
The UN Economic Commission for Africa has also pointed to the need for diversification in agriculture and pointed out that the agricultural sector could be the main contributor to poverty reduction. It is also important to state that women's participation must mean that women are at the helm of decisions that are made in this sector.
The 2006 UN Human Development Report also points out that: One of the greatest returns to improved access to water is in the time savings for women and girls and the expansion of their choices. Why does this matter for human development? Time is an important asset for the development of capabilities. Excessive time demands for essential labour lead to exhaustion, reduce the time available for rest and child care and limit choice - they reduce the substantive freedoms that women enjoy.
Time poverty also contributes to income poverty. It reduces the time available for participation in income generation, limits the scope for women to take advantage of market opportunities and impedes their ability to expand capabilities and skills, reduces further economic returns.
Indeed with more and more time on our side, with improvements in standards of living, women are putting their collective shoulders to the wheel in an effort to improve the performance of our economy. Their efforts are helping to create more jobs and fight poverty. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Business suspended at 16:33 and resumed at 16:49.
Evening Sitting