Date: 11/08/2010
Source: The Democratic Alliance
Title: DA: Kalyan: Speech by DA Member of Parliament, on the Women's Day debate, National Assembly, Cape Town

2010 is an important year for women in Africa because firstly, it marks five years since the Rights of Women in Africa came into being, secondly because it marks six years since the adoption of the Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa which all Heads of State and Government committed to, and thirdly it is the start of the African Women's Decade.

Women make up 70% of those living below the poverty line and therefore they are most likely to bear the heaviest burden. At the same time, women are often left out of the conversation about adapting to major social problems - for instance, to climate change -even though they are sometimes in the best position to provide solutions.

In most poor communities, women play many roles. As providers, they usually work in agriculture or other informal sectors and they collect food, water and fuel. As caretakers, they look after the children, sick and elderly, the home and the family's assets. As a result of their multi-faceted roles, women have invaluable knowledge about adapting to erratic environment changes.

It doesn't have to be this way. If women are included in decision-making in their own communities the special needs of both men and women can be met.

The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People's Rights relative to the Rights of Women in Africa comprehensively enshrines civil, political, social and cultural rights, the rights to development, peace, and reproductive and sexual rights.

It provides a legal framework to address gender inequality. Most importantly, the Protocol calls for the legal prohibition of female genital mutilation, a practice which is still in use in at least 23 countries.

South Africa has a responsibility to put pressure on the 22 countries that have not ratified the protocol to do so.

South Africa has expressed reservations with respect to Article 4(j) on the death penalty because that has been abolished. Another reservation South Africa has is with regard to Article 6 (h) where our laws on citizenship are more advantageous for children then the provision in the protocol.

For the Protocol to be effective we need to:

Firstly, encourage all countries sign and ratify the Protocol and other international instruments which protect the rights of women, urgently.

Secondly, build the capacity of Gender Machinery and Ministries and use a multi-sectoral approach to implement women's rights commitments.

Thirdly, put in place effective monitoring mechanisms to measure implementation of the Protocol.

Fourthly, develop and include gender-sensitive indicators and sex-disaggregated data on women's rights into national statistics, national development plans and national budgets.

Fifthly, involve civil-society in a co-ordinated advocacy campaign about the Protocol.

Sixthly, confront the cultural and religious barriers to full attainment of women's rights as per the Protocol - for example, customary inheritance laws and treatment of widows.

In conclusion, I wish to congratulate Honorable Matladi of the UCDP on her appointment as Vice President of the Women's Caucus of the Pan African Parliament.