'Boost women's empowerment'

2008-08-19 12:03

Cape Town - Interventions on women's empowerment need to be strengthened, President Thabo Mbeki said on Tuesday.

Addressing the annual Women's Parliament in Cape Town, he also urged that those guilty of violence, particularly against women and children, be ostracised.

Gender inequalities made women vulnerable to income poverty and denial of opportunities and the essentials that provided a better life.

"If these issues are not addressed, together they perpetuate poverty from one generation to the next," Mbeki said.

Strategies to eradicate poverty should also address factors such as respect, dignity and freedom, as well as participation in all levels of decision-making.

Access to resources

Globally, but especially in Africa, women had inadequate access to the resources they needed to become economically productive and independent.

"Yet, as we know, women are very industrious and dynamic in the face of serious odds.

"We see this in instances where women defy serious challenges even in difficult circumstances, such as in the informal economy, working as hawkers, in part-time jobs, in agriculture and in domestic service, determined to provide for their families," he said.

Both in the rural and urban areas, women had increasingly become the backbone of the family unit as well as the community.

"Clearly, because poverty among these women threatens to negate whatever advance we, as South Africans, have made since the onset of democracy in 1994, we need to strengthen our interventions on women's empowerment in the spirit of the Women's Day clarion call: all hands on deck, all power to the women!" Mbeki said.

Violence

He said preventing violence against women and children needed continued focus.

"However, for all of us to uproot this malaise, we need family and community involvement.

"We need to teach our boys from a young age that violence against any other person is unacceptable.

"We need to break the silence on domestic abuse. We need to bring about a community culture that ostracises those who commit violence against any human being, especially women and children," he said.

Nevertheless, the achievements of the past 14 years should not be ignored.

"Today, as South Africans, even when we tend to be harsh with ourselves, we do acknowledge that we have made important progress in addressing the legacy of apartheid, some of whose elements are the oppression of women, poverty and underdevelopment, which affects, overwhelmingly, the black majority.

Long journey ahead

"As we know very well, we still have a long journey ahead of us to achieve the goal of a non-sexist, non-racial and prosperous society," Mbeki said.

"But, as society and as public representatives we should never, ever lose hope that we will ultimately reach our goal.

"We should never be discouraged by the occasional setbacks, because if we do, we would demoralise the millions of people whose hopes rest on our shoulders.

"We must draw inspiration from what we have achieved in the last 14 years which, in many respects, is unprecedented."

This included the impact of various interventions to improve the lives of South Africa's women.

"However, if I may borrow words from the world of athletics, we must constantly keep this in our minds that the process of social transformation in which we are involved is an extra-marathon rather than a short sprint.

"We must, therefore, have the stamina to stay the course," Mbeki said.

- SAPA