Human Rights of Women
THE MINISTER for Women, Children and People with Disabilities, Lulu Xingwana, wants the proposed Traditional Courts Bill scrapped and the process started from scratch.
The bill seeks to regulate the traditional courts and customary law to bring them in line with the constitution, but Xingwana believes it is discriminatory and oppressive towards women.
“We fought to ensure that we have a right to speak and express our concerns. This bill will really be taking us 20 years back to a time when women in South Africa did not have any say in the running of their country and were silenced.
“We are saying this is not in line with the South African constitution, which gives women equality and clearly states that equality will supersede religious and cultural laws.
“We all know that there are cultural practices which are harmful to women and people with disabilities. For example, the practice of ukuthwala is a cultural practice where women and children are forced into marriages.
“In this day and age, we cannot entertain forced marriages, let alone child marriages that are forced by old men on children as young as 13 and 14 years of age, taking them out of school and denying them their right to education and freedom of choice. These are rights which are enshrined in the Bill of Rights.”
She was concerned that the bill would bring about separate legal systems for rural and urban areas, with women denied the choice of taking their issues to the magistrate instead of a traditional court.
“For example, some women get evicted from their homes when their husbands pass away, and in some cases this is allowed by the cultural laws in rural areas. They should be able to say I want to take these matters to the magistrate,” she said.
Xingwana also slammed the manner in which many women were silenced during the educational campaigns and public meetings at which the bill was discussed in areas such as KwaZulu-Natal.
“Many women were silenced, they were shouted down and told they are not welcome. In Mpumalanga and Eastern Cape during the education campaign many women were not even allowed; they were told they are not welcome.
“We have a concern that what has been achieved and the gains made in the past 20 years are going to be reversed. In the same way that the bill was withdrawn in 2008, we need to withdraw it and have proper consultation with people directly affected by it . We know that the majority of people in the rural areas are women.
“How do we come and impose a bill on them when really they have not been given a proper opportunity to express their views on a bill that will be governing their space, their lives and their daily activities?
“I have spoken to Minister (of Justice and Constitutional Development Jeff) Radebe about this, that women are not happy with the bill. He has said he is aware and that we will talk about it. Once we have completed the hearing, we will submit a report,” said Xingwana.
Her stance was welcomed by the Women’s Legal Centre, which said the passing of the bill would be to the detriment of women in rural areas.
“We are pleased to see the Ministry of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities and the Commission on Gender Equality reject this bill,” said centre director Jennifer Williams.
“We hope that these strong sentiments, together with the groundswell of objections to the bill, will be taken seriously by lawmakers.
“The Traditional Courts Bill contravenes our regional obligations in relation to women’s access to justice. Women should be represented equally in the body of the judiciary and be able to represent themselves effectively in courts.”
Williams said the bill was “infected with the racist divisions of the past, and riddled with contradictions and questions that cannot be resolved”.
“This is not a genuine attempt at reconciling customary law with the constitution, but a shoddy piece of politicking, trying to score points with traditional leaders while knowing that this law will fail constitutional muster,” said Williams.
Minister Lulu Xingwana says the proposed Traditional Courts Bill would be discriminatory and oppresive towards women. Picture : Sizwe Ndingane