On this auspicious day, the Commission salutes generations of women in the country and across the globe that have dedicated their life’s and efforts to strive for substantive equality to become a reality for all women.  

The Commission also wishes to acknowledge the government’s stated commitment in the national Constitution as well as in various pieces of legislation to protect and advance the rights of women.  Some of the commendable laws that have served to advance the rights of women include the Employment Equity Act; the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act; the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act; the Maintenance Act and the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act.

A further notable commitment of the Government at the international level is evidenced by the re-commitment of South Africa to the Beijing Platform for Action +20 at the 59th Commission on the Status of Women in 2015.  This, together with Government’s regional commitments in terms of UN and African Human Rights instruments underpin South Africa’s commitment to achieve gender parity by 2030, amongst other gender equality targets. In this specific respect, the Commission particularly commends South Africa’s response to UN Women’s “Step it Up for Gender Equality” campaign, which calls on governments to make national commitments to close the gender equality gap.

Amongst the programmatic efforts of government to secure gender equality and the rights of women, the Commission wishes to recognise government’s commitment to mandatory affirmative action, as well as the enforcement of a Code of Good Practice to ensure equal pay for work of equal value within the next five years and measures aimed at ensuring the inclusion for women to reach universal financial access by 2020, to making budgets more gender-responsive at all levels, and to pursuing a five-year goal to achieve an HIV-free generation, with particular reference to girls and young women.  The Commission further recognises the government’s intention to prioritise the eradication of violence against women through national dialogues and a public awareness campaign aligned with UN Women’s HeForShe initiative, which is intended to include men and boys efforts to end persistent inequality and violence faced by women and girls.

And yet, despite these formal efforts, the Commission is cognisant of the tremendous work that remains ahead, to achieve substantive equality and ensure a society wherein women and girl children lead lives of dignity.   These challenges are evident particularly in the area of women’s health and gender based violence.  HIV prevalence among women is nearly twice as high as men, while new infection rates among young women aged 15-24 are more than four times greater than that of men in the same age range.  Gender based violence, poverty and women’s unequal social status have been identified as reasons for this disparity in HIV prevalence between men and women in South Africa. There is a well-established connection between HIV and violence.  HIV infection rates are tied to women’s inability to negotiate safe sex or to refuse unwanted sexual advances.  Women in violent and abusive relationships are more likely to be infected by HIV and are more likely to discontinue treatment.  

The enormity of these and other challenges that face women in South Africa raise the need for all formal and social groups, and constitutional bodies, working collaboratively, to become agents of change in society if we are to successfully move beyond those obstacles to substantive equality.  

As we celebrate this important landmark in our history, the SAHRC pledges to continue to work in its own right to advance a range of human rights that challenge women, namely housing, health, water and sanitation, but also to support and work in collaboration the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) whose mandate more directly focuses on the rights of women.

Ends

Issued by The South African Human Rights Commission
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