We must use the freedom to choose
SPEAKING OUT | YASANTHA NAIDOO asked five women, including a celebrated peace activist and an award-winning restaurateur, to add their comments to our Voices of Women collective to mark Women’s Month
MY job allowed me to empower women. I am now retired and no longer part of the work environment, but I can see there is much that still needs to be done to enable women to work and take care of their families, which are their chief responsibilities, whether they are single mothers or have a husband.
Being a woman in South Africa is challenging. South African women enjoy many rights and protection by law, but entrenched traditions and practices keep them bound to the kitchen, children and home.
Women’s Day and Women’s Month offer us a time to reflect on how far we have come and how much still needs to be done, who will ensure that the dreams of women are realised and how they will go about it.
Women in South Africa are, undoubtedly, far more active, vocal and clear about their demands than before.
My definition of success is the visible transformation of society.
A woman who has made a great impact on my life is an aunt who lived in India and defied the traditional barriers. She moved to a deep rural area, where she worked to improve the lives of women and girls. The odds were against her, because this was a patriarchal society in which women were not allowed out of their homes. She persisted and won the respect of the entire village.
My belief about feminism is that men and women should be equal and have equal access to the same opportunities. Society should be responsive to the child- and home-caring needs of women. That to me is feminism. Instead of competing with men, women must be free to pursue their aspirations and receive support and encouragement from society.
The greatest lesson I have learnt from a woman is that nothing is beyond us, but we have to work hard to achieve recognition and success.
Women in the media are the biggest culprit in promoting women as sex symbols. And, as long as that remains the primary image of women, we will remain subordinate and oppressed. Women in the media have to learn to change this image.
Women who are strong are able to rise above labels and barriers that are socially designed to oppress them. That does not mean they should give up cooking, knitting and sewing. It means they do what they choose to do, instead of accepting roles imposed on them.
Gandhi is a celebrated peace activist