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Paying tribute to the midwives of our democracy
Paying tribute to the historic Women’s March in 1956, Unisa has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with South African Women in Dialogue (SAWID) as part of the celebration of the 60-year anniversary of the march. The MoU is aimed at advancing women’s interests and signals the university’s commitment to undo the effects of patriarchy.
Thoko Mpumlwana (Chairperson: South African Women in Dialogue (SAWID) and Prof Mandla Makhanya (Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Unisa) sign a memorandum of understanding.
Prof Mandla Makhanya, Principal and Vice-Chancellor at Unisa, praised the women of 1956 for their brave actions, saying their efforts had yielded the fruits of freedom. “We are gathered here today to pay tribute to the midwives of our democracy and the flowers of our revolution. As we count the gains of our freedom in terms of our progressive constitution that recognises women’s rights, and as we celebrate the number of women who occupy leadership positions in our government and the private sector, we must always be reminded of the often untold courage and sacrifice of women in our anti-colonial, anti-apartheid, and anti-patriarchal struggles,” he said
Makhanya said impressive progress had been made since the dawn of democracy to empower women, and this is evidenced by an increase of number of women in leadership positions. However, he cautioned that the prevailing socio-economic conditions would reverse the gains if left unabated. “Given the current levels of gender-based violence, the rate of women’s HIV/Aids infection, the underpayment of women doing the same jobs as men, and the prevailing glass ceiling; given the prejudice against women who seek a better education, such as Malala, then it is clear that the struggle continues and the current generation of leaders will have to take the baton from the preceding generation.”
He added that the partnership between Unisa and SAWID was born out of a great desire on the part of university to extend its hand in tackling patriarchy. “Unisa felt that a partnership with SAWID, which already has a proven record in empowering women and championing gender justice, is of great significance in maximising our joint efforts. We hope to see greater successes from this relationship, and the Unisa Women’s Forum, the Institute for Gender Studies, and other related units and departments will play a crucial role in sustaining our partnership with SAWID. Let me also express our strong desire to maintain our relationship with the UN Women’s Unit as a united campaign to tackle gender issues.”
Thoko Mpumlwana, Chairperson of SAWID, hailed the partnership as significant milestone, which would change the course of history. She said the agreement is the beginning of a new journey, which will see the needs of women feature prominently.
Publish date: 2016/08/15
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