National Assembly - 13 March 2008
THURSDAY, 13 MARCH 2008 __
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
____
The House met at 14:01.
The Deputy Speaker took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.
ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.
NOTICES OF MOTION
Mr G G BOINAMO: Madam Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that at the next sitting I shall move the following motion on behalf of the DA:
That the House debates the current high levels of violence at schools across the country and the inability of the Department of Education to deal with this problem.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Are there motions without notice?
Mr M J ELLIS: Madam Deputy Speaker, we proposed one motion, but we have other speakers who want to propose motions. You didn’t ask if there were any further notices of motion.
Mrs S V KALYAN: Madam Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice I shall move the following motion on behalf of the DA:
That the House debates the recently released report Every Death Counts that reveals that around 75 000 children die in South Africa every year before they turn five years of age.
Mr C M LOWE: Madam Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that I shall move on behalf of the DA:
That the House discusses the oversight role of Parliament, specifically the work of portfolio committees and holding government and Ministers to account.
DEATH OF CONSUMER JOURNALIST, ISOBEL JONES
(Draft Resolution)
Mr M J ELLIS: Madam Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House–
1) notes with profound sadness the death of food and consumer
journalist Isobel Jones on Tuesday, 11 March 2008;
2) further notes that she became renowned for fighting for consumer
rights in her television programme Fair Deal that aired for nine
years;
3) acknowledges that as a result of her fearless work the corporate
industry has become a more consumer friendly place;
4) expresses its gratitude for her tireless championing of South
African consumers’ rights; and
5) conveys its condolences to her family and friends.
Agreed to.
GOLD MEDAL WON BY GODFREY KHOTSO MOKOENA AT IAAF WORLD INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS IN SPAIN
(Draft Resolution)
Mr M J ELLIS: Madam Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes that South African long and triple jumper Godfrey Khotso Mokoena won a gold medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Valencia, Spain, on 8 March 2008;
(2) further notes that this is South Africa’s third-ever gold medal at a world indoor championship and the first in a field event;
(3) recognises that Mokoena celebrated his twenty-second birthday on 6 March, making him one of the exciting young talents in South African athletics; and
(4) congratulates him on his win and wishes him well for the upcoming Beijing Olympics in August 2008.
Agreed to.
[Applause.]
RAILROAD ACCIDENT AT KHAYELITSHA
(Member’s Statement)
Mr B M MKONGI (ANC): Madam Deputy Speaker, on Monday, 3 March 2008, three workers who were employed by the Light Bee construction company died tragically while on duty. The company is contracted to Metrorail to remove street-light poles for the extension of the Khayelitsha railway line to Macassar.
These workers were busy pulling out the poles, using a crane truck without supervision. A pole was hooked through a chain from the truck while the workers were holding it. The pole touched the live electric cables, resulting in the tragic death of three workers, two of whom died instantly while the third worker died later in hospital.
This incident happened a few kilometres from an Eskom substation. As a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of workers, the company could have asked Eskom to switch off the electricity before removing the poles. These workers were supposed to have been working under supervision.
There seems to be a growing problem in the townships in that construction companies which get state tenders employ inexperienced and untrained people, and even underpay them.
We call for an immediate investigation into this incident. The ANC conveys its condolences to the families of the deceased. I thank you.
TEMPORARY HIGH COURT BUILDING IN POLOKWANE NOT DEVELOPED
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs D VAN DER WALT (DA): Madam Deputy Speaker, the DA would like an assurance from the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development that the conversion of the vacant magistrates’ building in Polokwane to serve as a temporary High Court, will definitely be completed by the end of May this year.
As the matter stands now, the people from Limpopo have to travel to Pretoria to attend High Court sittings, and this has a negative effect on people being able to access justice services.
The great distance places an unfair burden on members of the public, and, in terms of the constitutional right to access courts, clearly something needs to be done urgently. How was it possible then that no work was done between March and August last year, given the urgency of the people’s needs? These matters need to be supervised closely.
We call on the Minister to monitor the developments closely and to guarantee that a High Court will be operational in Polokwane during the first half of this year. In fact, as planned, the people want to move in by the end of May. [Applause.]
DISSOLUTION OF LAND BANK BOARD
(Member’s Statement)
Mr N SINGH (IFP): Madam Deputy Speaker, last year the Land Bank became embroiled in a controversy as its board at the time was dissolved amidst allegations of misspending of about R1 billion. At the time the IFP applauded Cabinet’s decision to launch a forensic investigation into the board’s actions.
Recently the Minister for Agriculture and Land Affairs appointed a new board for the Land Bank, but what is of great concern is that six members of the previous board were reappointed. The IFP questions the wisdom of this step. Surely a board that had to be dissolved should not provide any members to a future board? What is even more disconcerting is the fact that the new board appears to lack persons with the experience and knowledge of agricultural matters.
The IFP welcomes the fact that some of the new members are banking specialists, but we have to question why there is no one from the agricultural community on the board. Even AgriSA, representing commercial farmers, did not succeed in getting its nominee appointed to the board.
These developments are seen against the background of ratings agency Fitch Ratings’ statement that there is a risk that the bank’s financial position might deteriorate even further because of the absence of a turnaround strategy and new senior personnel being employed. The bank is, for instance, still without a CEO.
Clearly the Land Bank finds itself in a precarious position that could have numerous negative long-term effects on the agricultural sector. The IFP therefore urges the Minister and the new board to speedily implement a turnaround strategy that will place the bank on a sound financial footing, enabling it to serve its core constituency: the farmers of South Africa. [Time expired.]
DEATH OF PRIMA BALLERINA ASSOLUTA PHYLLIS SPIRA
(Member’s Statement)
Mr H P MALULEKA (ANC): Madam Deputy Speaker, it was with deep sadness and regret that South Africa learnt of the untimely death of legendary prima ballerina Ms Phyllis Spira, who passed away in Cape Town on 11 March. In Phyllis Spira, South Africa was blessed with a highly gifted and creative artist whose life transcended manmade barriers to become a prima ballerina assoluta.
At the height of her career in 1984, Ms Spira won the highest accolade in dance in recognition of her presence and power as a mover and shaker who was destined to reshape and influence cultural trends, especially in dance. After her retirement in 1988, Ms Spira remained connected to dance. She continued to work as a teacher for the next 10 years, channelling her energies not only into nurturing new talent, but also into creating styles that had a distinctly South African rhythm.
Significantly, Ms Spira was the founding member of Dance For All, a pioneering creative project that introduced dance as a career option and a creative activity to countless youths in the Western Cape townships. Today there is a plethora of young stars that has emerged from this programme; young stars who fly the flag of a liberated South Africa around the world. Her passing is a tragic loss for the dance community and the cultural life of our country, but she remains a guiding light that will shine blessings on all our creative endeavours as South Africans. Our deepest sympathies go to her family. Thank you.
ROBBERIES AT O R TAMBO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
(Member’s Statement)
Rev K R J MESHOE (UCDP): Deputy Speaker, the ACDP notes with great disappointment reports that police are unable to find evidence to link the robberies to people who were followed from O R Tambo International Airport and to a crime syndicate operating from that airport. A number of people have fallen victim to the robbers after declaring their valuables at the airport. In most cases, the robbers knew exactly what valuables their victims were carrying and how much money they had.
Many of these attacks occurred outside hotels and guesthouses, in driveways and even on the side of the road. For the police spokesperson to call the robberies opportunistic, coincidental and random is insensitive to the victims, some of whom managed to recognise the assailants after seeing them at the airport.
The ACDP calls on the Minister to request the Scorpions to investigate the existence of an organised crime syndicate targeting travellers who enter the country through O R Tambo International Airport. I don’t doubt the fact that the Scorpions will be able to sting where the SAPS and other task teams have failed.
A decision not to require foreign nationals arriving at O R Tambo International Airport to furnish customs officials with their addresses in the country will not solve the problem of robberies. Criminals operating from there must be removed, even if it means by force, so as to minimise the damage to our reputation as a country in the eyes of the world. Thank you.
DECREASING BUSINESS CONFIDENCE
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs P DE LILLE (ID): Madam Deputy Speaker, according to the Rand Merchant Bank and the Bureau for Economic Research, business confidence has dropped to its lowest level in seven years. While the causes of this drop in confidence are partially global, the Eskom crisis, the related job losses and talk of a water crisis, amongst other things, all contribute to this decreasing business confidence.
The ID is extremely concerned about the effect this slump in our economic outlook will have on the ordinary South African and the poor in particular. Of primary concern to the ID is the job security of ordinary South Africans. Our people are facing hard times and we need to assure them that something is being done at the highest level to ease the increasing financial burden they face. Thank you.
SCULPTOR MS NORIA MABASA ACCLAIMED FOR GOOD WORK
(Member’s Statement)
Muf T E LISHIVHA (ANC): Ndo livhuwa, dzangano la ANC li khou toda u isa dzindivhuwo kha mushumo wavhudi we Vho Noria Mabasa vha itela lushaka lwothe. Vho Noria Mabasa vho bebwa Venda nga 1938 ngei Xigalo Vunduni la Limpopo. Ndi mutsila a sa ofhi we a shuma zwavhudi lwa minwaha ya mahumi mararu kha lifhasi la u tatisana nga vhutsila na mashangodavha.
Vho thoma nga 1983 vhe muvhumbi wa vumba. Nga nwaha wa gidi datahe fumaloina vho dzhia linwe liga la u dzhenelela kha zwithu zwiswa zwa u vhada nga thanda. Mvelelo dza vhutsila havho dzo vhonala sa muthu ane a khou vhangisa vhathu vhane vha tevhedza sialala na vhanwe vhatsila vha vhanna.
Vho Noria ndi munwe wa vhathu vha ndeme vhane vha kha di thogomela ndivho yashu ya kale na u vha mudededzi vhukuma o dinetshedzelaho u kovha ndivho na vhukoni havho. Vhunzhi ha mishumo yavho ya vhutsila yo taniwa kha miziamu ya vhutsila ya maduvha ano ngei United Kingdom, Germany, Miziamu wa Stodulky, Amsterdam, Holland, Italy na hunwe hunzhi-hunzhi.
Naho zwo ralo, mushumo wavho u di taniwa na fhano hayani. Sa ndila ya u takalela mushumo wavho une wa dzulela u tutuwedza lushaka, dzhango na lifhasi, mushumo wa vhutsila ha Vho Noria … [Tshifhinga tsho fhela.] (Translation of Tshivenda member’s statement follows.)
[Ms T E LISHIVHA (ANC): Thank you, the ANC would like to convey its gratitude for the good work that Mrs Noria Mabasa has done for the whole nation. Mrs Noria Mabasa was born in Venda in 1938 at Xigalo in the Limpopo province. She is a fearless sculptor who worked very well for thirty years in the world of art competitions - competing with the international community.
She started in 1983 as a potter. In 1984 she ventured into something new –that was art through sculpture. The results of her artistic brilliance made her look as though she was going against those who adhere to tradition as well as the male sculptors.
Mrs Noria is one of those important people who are the custodians of our traditional knowledge as well as being a good teacher who is dedicated to sharing her knowledge and expertise. Most of her works of art are displayed in modern arts museums in the United Kingdom, Germany, Stodulky, Amsterdam, Holland, Italy and many other places.
Nevertheless, her work is also displayed here at home. As a way of appreciating her work which always encourages the nation, the continent and the world - the artistic work of Mrs Noria … [Time expired.]]
DENUNCIATION OF DECRIMINALISATION OF PROSTITUTION FOR 2010 WORLD CUP
(Member’s Statement)
Mr L M GREEN (FD): Deputy Speaker, in little over two years we will be hosting the 2010 Soccer World Cup which is expected to draw 3 million international visitors to our country. South Africa is rich in many aspects in order to adequately meet the varied needs of our visitors. However, at one time there was talk of decriminalising prostitution as an added attraction to overseas visitors.
In fact, the former National Police Commissioner was in favour of such a move, and one member of this House is reported to have said, “Legalising prostitution is one of the things that would make 2010 a success because we hear of many rapes because people don’t have access to prostitutes.” [Interjections.]
Both these gentlemen were publicly lambasted for their positions. It is in echoing this denunciation by a broad sector of society that the FD, a partner of the Christian Democratic Alliance, calls for an end to speculation that the legalising of prostitution … [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, hon members, please!
Mr L M GREEN: … will be considered for 2010 or at any other time in the future.
We wish to remind this House that soccer is a beautiful game and any attempt to associate it with prostitution is to damage that reputation. The 2010 World Cup is more than soccer; it is intended to showcase the road this country has travelled in overcoming the past injustices, divisions and oppression. Decriminalising prostitution should not be viewed as a progressive act to be counted among the achievements of a free nation.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon member, your time has expired.
Mr L M GREEN: Thank you, Chair. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: In future, don’t break our furniture when emphasising your points. [Laughter.]
SCHOOLS REPORTED TO BE THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACES IN THE COUNTRY
(Member’s Statement)
Mr G G BOINAMO (DA): Madam Deputy Speaker, a report of the Human Rights Commission released this week shows that schools have become the most dangerous places in the country to be in. This situation must be addressed urgently and with energy. The DA therefore calls for a parliamentary debate in which the Minister of Education can explain exactly how she intends to deal with this crisis.
The DA has already made various proposals in this regard. Firstly, a reply to a DA question shows that the Department of Education has no database of violent incidents at schools. This must change if we are to know how to better deal with this problem. In addition, we need dedicated funding for security, counselling and education programmes for schools. The DA’s alternative budget for 2008 makes provision for R350 million to provide a budget of R23000 a year to each of the 15 most-at-risk schools to address their security needs.
We also need to ensure that each school has a code of conduct in place in order that provision is made to take violent learners out of the mainstream education system, that educators are trained in managing difficult learners and that the “Adopt-a-Cop” programme is rolled out in every school. Thank you.
INJURIES INFLICTED ON FARMWORKER
(Member’s Statement)
Mr S ABRAM (ANC): Madam Deputy Speaker, the media reports that a bakkie driven by a young person, accompanied by a passenger, dragged a farmworker, 38-year-old Willem Paulse, by his hair on a farm in the George district of the southern Cape, inflicting severe injuries on him, inter alia, by driving over his right leg. This alleged despicable deed again highlights the plight of farmworkers who are subjected by some in our society to inhumane treatment and abuse, at times with fatal consequences.
It is reported that the perpetrators, two brothers by the name of Oosthuizen, appeared in the George magistrates’ court on 7 March 2008 on a charge of attempted murder and were released on R2 000 bail each. What a pity; a life worth only R2 000. The ANC calls on the law-enforcement agencies to pursue this case relentlessly and to thoroughly investigate the motive informing this dastardly act. Vulnerable members of our society must be protected against all actions which infringe upon their basic human rights and dignity.
The ANC conveys to Mr Paulse its best wishes for a speedy recovery from his injuries, and calls upon all relevant stakeholders to assist and stand by him, his family and loved ones and other farmworkers who witnessed the attack in order for them to overcome this traumatic period in their lives. Hands off our vulnerable citizens! Thank you. [Applause.]
LARGE-SCALE CABLE THEFT
(Member’s Statement)
Mr H J BEKKER (IFP): Madam Deputy Speaker, on several occasions in the past I have raised the issue of the damage being done to our economy by large- scale cable theft. The seriousness of this situation forced me to introduce a private legislative proposal to declare cable theft a form of sabotage and to make it an economic crime that threatens the national security of the Republic.
Against this background, the IFP welcomes the arrest this week of 10 persons in Cape Town who allegedly stole copper bronze statues of two MK veterans. The arrests were made after a scrap dealer alerted the authorities. The IFP applauds the actions of the scrap dealer, proving that they are a vital link in fighting this crime. The IFP also welcomes the arrest of four members of an international copper theft syndicate operating out of Pretoria.
Police seized copper worth millions of rand and also seized hijacked and stolen vehicles. What is particularly disconcerting about this arrest was that two of the arrested persons were former police officers, underlining yet again the possibility that former and serving police officers are involved in organised crime, thereby unfortunately tainting the image of thousands of exemplary, dedicated and honest police officers. I thank you.
EXCELLENCE AWARDS FOR CORRECTIONAL SERVICES STAFF
(Member’s Statement)
Mr D V BLOEM (ANC): Deputy Speaker, on Friday evening the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, the chairperson of the Select Committee on Correctional Services and I had the honour of being part of the inaugural national excellence awards hosted by the Department of Correctional Services at Emperors Palace. The awards are one of many initiatives by the department, aimed at fully appreciating its best resource: the staff and officials.
From a parliamentary oversight perspective, the event will go a long way in improving service delivery and boosting staff morale. The awards also seek to inculcate a spirit of pride, dedication and commitment among public servants and are in recognition of their hard work.
These are men and women who toil hard to ensure that the department meets its constitutional mandate of providing a professional and ethical service. These officials are the ones responsible for sustaining the improvement made by the department in reducing escapes and in improving the overall performance of the department.
I speak on behalf of many when I say that we take our hats off in recognition of their excellent performance and that we trust that the awards will indeed inspire all Correctional Services officials. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
UNDERSPENDING BY DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT
(Member’s Statement)
Mr S B FARROW (DA): Deputy Speaker, the DA notes with concern the report to the Joint Budget Committee yesterday, that the Department of Transport has only spent 5,97% of its capital expenditure budget for the first three quarters of the 2007-08 financial year.
Underspending is a direct result of poor planning and management by those in charge. Those guilty of underperformance must be called to account. It must not be forgotten that it was under the hon Jeff Radebe, as Minister for Public Enterprises, that the problem at Eskom began to emerge.
The taxi recapitalisation project and the Gautrain form the nucleus of South Africa’s transport future, and the government cannot afford to underspend in this regard. It is unacceptable that the department has not made use of available funds to implement its overall programmes despite the fact that South Africa already has a transport infrastructure crisis.
The lack of expenditure puts into doubt the viability of the taxi recapitalisation project and the Gautrain, but equally important is the vast backlog on road and rail infrastructure, which is estimated at R200 billion and R25 billion respectively.
Transport is the backbone of the economy, and it is high time the Minister took heed of its importance in this country. His failure to do so will add to the current decline in the business confidence index, and as the Cape Times editorial of last month aptly put it, “We will be on a road to nowhere.” Thank you.
INCORRECT PRESS REPORTS OF POLICE NOT RESPONDING TO CALLS ABOUT MISSING CHILD
(Member’s Statement)
Mr G D SCHNEEMAN (ANC): Deputy Speaker, during the evening of Sunday, 9 March 2008, Gofaone Tyatya, the seven-year-old daughter of Evelyn Tyatya, was murdered in Zandspruit. On Monday morning, after having been informed of this tragedy and that residents were marching to the Honeydew police station, I went to the police station where I interacted with both the residents and police officials.
According to press reports, it is alleged that the SA Police Service from that Honeydew police station failed to respond to calls that the child had gone missing. This is incorrect, and the SA Police Service has issued a statement to correct the facts that had been incorrectly reported.
I have also had discussions with the station commissioner and the community policing forum chairperson, who have both indicated that it was incorrect that the police did not respond.
We would like to commend all those police officials who were involved in arresting a man in connection with this murder on Tuesday, 11 March 2008. Further, we would like to appeal to residents of Zandspruit to express their views within the ambit of the law. The blocking of Beyers Naude Drive, as happened this past Monday, is both illegal and unacceptable. We would also like to appeal to members of this House, and in particular to the hon Mike Waters of the DA, to make statements based on facts, and not on what they read in newspapers or on what they may hear on the radio. The ANC conveys its sincere condolences to the family and friends of the late Gofaone Tyatya. Thank you. [Applause.]
MILLIONS SET ASIDE FOR ROAD CONSTRUCTION IN EASTERN CAPE
(Member’s Statement)
Nksz N M MDAKA (ANC): Sekela-Somlomo obekekileyo, urhulumente oxhuzula imikhala nokhokelwa ngumbutho wesizwe i-ANC, nobambisene noluntu ngokubanzi, uya kuthi gqolo usebenzela ubomi obungcono bakhe wonke ubani ongummi weli lizwe.
Urhulumente wephondo leMpuma Koloni ubekele bucala izigidi zeerandi ezingama-240 zokwakha indlela eyaziwa njenge-Zithulele Hospital Road. Umsebenzi wokwakha le ndlela uqalile kwiveki le siyiphethayo. Lo msebenzi wenzeka kwingingqi yaseMthatha, phesheya kweNciba.
Kukholelwa ukuba olu lwakhiwo ludale amakhulu-khulu amathuba emisebenzi kubahlali bengingqi, kwaye lukwabonisa ngokuphandle ukuzimisela korhulumente okhokelwa ngumbutho wesizwe i-ANC, ukuphucula iindawo zasemaphandleni, apho kugquba indlala nentlupheko khona. Ndiyabulela. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa member’s statement follows.)
[Ms N M MDAKA (ANC): Hon Deputy Speaker, the government in charge, which is led by the national organisation, the ANC, together with the people in general, will, without fail, work for a better life for all the citizens of this country.
The government of the Eastern Cape has set aside R240 million for the construction of a road called Zithulele Hospital Road. The construction of this road began this week. This happens in the area of Mthatha, across the Kei.
It is believed that this road construction will create hundreds of job opportunities for the residents of the area, and it shows clearly the commitment of the government, led by the national organisation, the ANC, to better rural areas, where poverty and starvation prevail. Thank you. [Applause.]]
RAILROAD ACCIDENT AT KHAYELITSHA
(Minister’s Response)
UMPHATHISWA WEZEMISEBENZI: Somlomo, kubuhlungu kwaye kulusizi kakhulu ukufa kwabasebenzi kakubi kangaka, kude kuqatsele ukuba buhlungu xa belinyazwa besanzakaliswa ngabom, njengale ndlela imanyumnyezi nemasikisi abasweleke ngayo abasebenzi eJoji.
Kuloo makhaya ahlelwe lilifu elimnyama, egameni likarhulumente ne-ANC, sithi, “Ngxee!” “Lalani ngenxeba”. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[The MINISTER OF LABOUR: Madam Speaker, It is very sad that workers die in this horrible manner; it is even worse when they are deliberately exposed to danger, as shown by the gruesome manner in which workers in George died.
To those families who lost their loved ones, on behalf of the government and the ANC, we extend our heartfelt condolences.]
There is the Occupational Health and Safety Accord that was signed between government and the labour movement Business Unity SA on behalf of employers. It remains the responsibility of the employer to ensure the safety of his or her workers at the workplace.
Workers should not go to work to die. That is not their main objective when they look for jobs; they look for jobs in order to be able to pay their bills and feed their families. These are family members; these are our brothers and sisters.
Accidents can be prevented, and I’m almost certain that even the accident in Khayelitsha could have been prevented. I want to assure the hon member that we will leave no stone unturned. That is why the ANC is in government and will remain in government. [Applause.]
ROBBERIES AT O R TAMBO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
DECREASING BUSINESS CONFIDENCE
(Minister’s Responses)
The MINISTER OF FINANCE: Deputy Speaker, I’d like to respond to two statements by the hon Meshoe and the hon De Lille. Unfortunately, the hon Meshoe bases all of his statement on press reports that are very poorly founded.
The Border Control Operational Co-Ordinating Committee is chaired by the SA Revenue Service and that is why I am standing here to explain the position. We will leave no stone unturned, because there have been very many untruths told about the situation. Recently, a newspaper reported that a customs form was even found at the house, when that form had in fact never been submitted, but work is under way on this issue.
There was an issue that arose yesterday too - whether it’s related to the airport or not, we can’t say. But we will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that we can deal with this issue at the airport. You don’t need the Scorpions or anybody; it’s simply a matter of crime prevention and establishing exactly who might be involved in these matters.
In respect of hon De Lille, again, unfortunately, her statement is based on a very bad story in one of the newspapers this morning. The Bureau of Economic Research survey didn’t talk about a slump. In fact, 50% is a reasonable mark that you would get in most countries. We’ve come off very strong highs over a period now, and the valuation in this report is 48%. So the sensationalism in the Business Day today is completely out of order.
There isn’t any question about Eskom in the survey – I’ve looked at it myself. There isn’t any question. How does a journalist arrive at this story? Only by sucking it from her thumb.
Similarly, the question about the political impact, namely “What constraining impact does the political environment in South Africa have?”, only went to a subsection of the total of 3 300 surveys, and that only went to manufacturing. And the only answers that you can give to this question are: “Not at all”; “slightly”; or “very much”.
So, when a journalist takes all of this because they are ill-informed and a subeditor smokes something that they shouldn’t smoke in a newsroom, and they put this together, ordinary people think that we are in a slump in this economy - not true now, and not true for this year. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
SCHOOLS REPORTED TO BE MOST DANGEROUS PLACES IN THE COUNTRY
(Minister’s Response)
The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Deputy Speaker, I haven’t as yet had sight of the report that the hon Boinamo quoted as fact in the statement he made. I would want to read the report. I don’t know if the hon Boinamo has read it. I suspect that he read the headlines in the Cape Times and based his statement on that.
I do wish to look at the report, because I’m told that the report indicates that one in four children do point to schools as places where they feel most scared or where they have experienced violence, while three out of four children cite other spaces in South Africa, primarily the home and the community.
Now, any danger to children is something all of us should act upon. It is not quite accurate to give an impression that the Department of Education is not doing anything.
The Department of Education is addressing this matter. We are working with institutions that are assisting us to address the question of violence in schools. For example, we have begun a process of collecting information on incidents in schools. Secondly, we have said that we are addressing the matter of educational support services, which include the counselling and psychological services that are referred to.
Since 1996, the Schools Act has required schools to have codes of conduct. Therefore all of us should be working with schools to ensure that every school has a code of conduct, and the majority of schools I visit do indeed have codes of conduct.
The removal of learners is something I myself have spoken of in this House, and it is something we are addressing. The Adopt-A-Cop programme is a programme of the Department of Education and the Department of Safety and Security, and that exists and is working in many schools.
The matter of violence in our schools is not one that we should bring to this House and glorify; it is a very tragic and worrying situation. And all of us must work with our schools, work within our communities and work in our homes to ensure that children in our country are protected and treated with the safety and dignity that every child deserves. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
DEATH OF PRIMA BALLERINA ASSOLUTA PHYLLIS SPIRA
SCULPTOR MS NORIA MABASA ACCLAIMED FOR GOOD WORK
(Minister’s Responses)
The MINISTER OF ARTS AND CULTURE: Deputy Speaker, I am responding to two statements about two South African artists – one from the far south of our country and the other from the far north. Both of these South African artists were women.
Ms Phyllis Spira was indeed one of South Africa’s greatest dancers and, to her eternal glory and memory, she ploughed back into society what it had given her. Dance for All, a programme she established here in the Western Cape, will be a monument to her memory. Regrettably, she left this existence on 11 March 2008 after a short illness.
Noria Mabasa is a wood sculptor from the Limpopo province. She too has become a world-renowned artist and she derives her work, she says, from visions and dreams of the people. I don’t know whether or not they are induced by the substances that Minister Manuel was referring to!
She too ploughed something back into her community and established a studio from which she taught a number of apprentices. When we discovered that the workspace she was using was both inadequate and ill-equipped, the Department of Arts and Culture assisted her in establishing a proper studio which is now the site from which she operates a training programme for the youth of her community. I think both these women deserve to be honoured by this country and, in the case of Ms Mabasa, she was actually awarded one of our leading awards in
-
Thank you. [Applause.]
EXCELLENCE AWARDS FOR CORRECTIONAL SERVICES STAFF (Minister’s Response)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES: Deputy Speaker, I would like to respond to the statement made by the hon Bloem. Firstly, I thank him as the chairperson of the portfolio committee - and the hon Kgoshi Mokoena as the chairperson of the select committee - for gracing the occasion of the excellence awards on Friday evening. I am sure he can confirm that fun was had on Friday night.
Secondly, I would also like to agree completely with the contents of the statement made by the hon Bloem. I have always said that money is not the only thing that can be thrown at people. Simple recognition and acknowledgment go a long way. Also, I want to reiterate that not all public servants, as I have said before in this House, are corrupt and lazy. Many of them, the majority of them, actually go the extra mile in the execution of their duties and service delivery to the relevant government departments.
I also want to congratulate all the award recipients. We urge them to do even more and to encourage their colleagues to do likewise, not just in the Department of Correctional Services, but across all government departments. Lastly, I just want to confirm that the Department of Correctional Services is indeed a place of new beginnings and we can honestly say that we serve with pride. Thank you. [Applause.]
INCORRECT PRESS REPORTS OF POLICE NOT RESPONDING TO CALLS OF MISSING CHILD LARGE-SCALE CABLE THEFT
(Minister’s Responses)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF SAFETY AND SECURITY: Deputy Speaker, firstly, I would like to respond to the statement by hon Schneeman.
I would like to welcome and commend him for his work in making sure that he corrected and went on a fact-finding mission at Honeydew police station instead of depending on the media, which tends to distort information from time to time. I agree with the hon member about the hon Mike Waters of the DA. Unfortunately, the DA is a party which tends to depend on newspapers. [Interjections.] All that they are saying in this House is based on newspapers and, unfortunately, the newspapers are hellbent … [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members, please!
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF SAFETY AND SECURITY: … the newspapers are hellbent on not reporting the truth about the good work done by the police. [Interjections.]
Hon member, you were doing your constituency work, hence you were able to go to the Honeydew police station to verify the facts. We welcome the truth at all times where it happens.
I have one more issue. Hon Bekker, I would like to bring to your attention that the issue of cable theft or copper theft in South Africa is an issue of concern for us as the SA Police Service. We take this seriously. We are very aware of the syndicates. Currently, we have set up a working group on the theft of nonferrous metals in our country.
We agree with you that it creates a lot of economic suffering among our people. The issue I want to raise, though, is that I am not sure whether the route you are taking - through your Private Members’ Bill - of introducing the subject of treason to this House will indeed assist us. I must assure you it is an issue which we are busy with. We intend to make sure that, at all times, we are seized with it. We are hopeful about the work done by the police. This does not only concern syndicates. A lot of people have been arrested in our country who were involved in cable theft. Thank you. [Applause.]
MANDATING PROCEDURES OF PROVINCES BILL
(Second Reading debate)
There was no debate.
Declarations of vote:
Ms C B JOHNSON: Madam Deputy Speaker, hon members, the Mandating Procedures of Provinces Bill is a constitutional requirement and deals with certain procedural matters in the National Council of Provinces.
Section 65(2) of the Constitution requires that there must be an active Parliament to provide for a uniform procedure in terms of which the provincial legislatures confer authority on their delegates to cast votes on their behalf in the NCOP. There is currently no uniformity in the various provinces on how such provincial legislatures confer this authority on their delegations to cast votes on their behalf.
Item 21(5) of schedule 6 to the Constitution does, however, provide that until such time as this legislation has been passed, each provincial legislature may determine its own procedure, and therefore what provincial legislatures have done up to now is to set the procedures out in their respective standing rules. The proposed uniform procedure, as required by the Constitution, is now set out in the Mandating Procedures of Provinces Bill, which is the Bill before the House today.
The Bill aims to set out the procedures to be followed by provincial legislatures in respect of legislative mandates, voting mandates, negotiating mandates and final mandates. Initially, the Bill only provided for mandates in respect of Bills. However, the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development, in its deliberations, found that there may be other matters or questions for which the NCOP may require mandates, such as the election of a chairperson or when a mediation committee has to be convened. For that purpose, the portfolio committee inserted the definition of a question, and we’ve defined a question as being, “any matter affecting a province which requires a decision by the NCOP”. All other amendments effected by the portfolio committee are purely technical and/or consequential in nature.
Finally, it should be noted that all nine provincial legislatures, and the SA Local Government Association, have been consulted in the drafting of the Bill. Having said that, the ANC supports the Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr L K JOUBERT: Madam Deputy Speaker, hon members, this piece of legislation is long overdue. Provision for it was made in the 1996 Constitution, by section 65(2). And why it took so long – more than 12 years – I do not understand. Nevertheless, the DA welcomes this Bill and we will support it.
It is a very short Bill; it has only has nine clauses and the body, excluding definitions, is but one page. We also approved it in record time in the committee. Although it took a long time to come to Parliament, this Bill comes at a very opportune time. Up until now mandates were not very important, since the ANC controlled all the provinces and the mandates could, for all practical purposes, be decided in Luthuli House. However, this is going to change.
With the elections around the corner and the real possibility that the DA will in the near future govern some provinces, mandates will become very important from next year. [Interjections.] The Speaker and the premier in a province will no longer be able to take decisions on mandates on their own. There will have to be a debate and the smaller parties will have an opportunity to voice their views, which is more in line with the open and democratic society that we stand for.
I also envisage that open debates will in future open the opportunity for bargaining issues between parties, which will also enhance democracy. The DA supports this Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr N SINGH: Madam Deputy Speaker, the IFP feels that it is appropriate to deal with the mandating procedures of provinces in legislation. The mandating procedure is fundamental to the work of the National Council of Provinces and cannot be left to ad hoc arrangements or decisions by officials.
We are dealing with two types of mandates in this Bill, the negotiating mandate and the final mandate. And I want to concentrate on the final mandate. The IFP’s position is not to prescribe the content of the final mandate given by the provincial legislatures to the permanent delegates, but that the detailed procedures that are to be followed in arriving at the final mandate should be prescribed in law, so that the end product is owned jointly by the provincial legislature and the NCOP.
One of the features of the final mandate is its validity and compliance with procedure. In this regard, the IFP supports the provision that the Speaker of a provincial legislature or a designated person must sign the final mandate after carefully checking that all formal procedures have been followed correctly.
Hon members must remember that it is the traditional role of Speakers in parliaments around the world to ensure that the correct procedures are followed in House business. The IFP therefore believes that it should be so in this case. The role of the Speaker would therefore be to certify that all formal legal steps have been followed, including public participation, advertising and public hearings. This would ensure the validity of the final mandate and full compliance with the legal procedures set out in this legislation.
At the same time, while we support the Bill, the IFP also wishes to emphasise that it is the responsibility of the Speaker to ensure that due cognisance is taken of public sentiments on issues. The case in point here is the Matatiele issue in terms of which the public overwhelmingly gave a certain view and the committee of KwaZulu-Natal went against that particular view. I hope that matter is reopened in this particular House at some time.
Also, being a finance person and being in the provincial parliament at one time, the unnecessary cost that is involved when members have to travel from their respective provinces to Cape Town for five or ten minutes is something that has to be looked at. I do hope that the Chairperson of the NCOP will look into this and that more use is made of video conferencing, because I understand that video conferencing facilities have been made available at certain committee rooms in this Parliament. We will support this Bill. Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker.
Mr S N SWART: Madam Deputy Speaker, the ACDP has no objection to the contents of this Bill. Our concern, however, relates to the delay in the passing of this Bill and the constitutional implications of this.
The enabling constitutional provision, item 21(1) of schedule 6, states that where, as in this case …
the Constitution requires the enactment of legislation, that legislation must be enacted … within a reasonable period of the date the new Constitution took effect…
which we know was 4 February 1997. The question then arises whether the passing of this legislation in March 2008 can be said to have occurred within that reasonable period.
In the UDM-ACDP floor-crossing case, the Constitutional Court held that: “In determining what was a reasonable period, it was necessary to have regard to all relevant facts and circumstances.” The court went on to find that having regard to all the circumstances, an amendment passed more than five years after the Constitution had come into force, was not passed within a reasonable period.
Even setting aside that court decision, by what stretch of the imagination can it be said that this Bill, passed more than 12 years after the Constitution took effect, will be passed within a reasonable period?
The reasons given for the delay by the officials, for what is a relatively straightforward piece of legislation, are not convincing, and we as the ACDP also did not get a satisfactory answer to this legal issue. Therefore, we believe that this Bill could be open to constitutional challenge, which would possible, in turn, open all legislation passed by the NCOP to challenge.
However, notwithstanding our reservations, the ACDP appreciates the need for a uniform procedure for provinces, and we will support this Bill. I thank you.
Declarations of vote made on behalf of the African National Congress, the Democratic Alliance, the Inkatha Freedom Party and the African Christian Democratic Party.
Bill read a second time.
QUALITY EDUCATION, HEALTH AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES ARE KEY TO SHAPING AFRICAN WOMEN’S ADVANCEMENT IN THE 21ST CENTURY
(Debate on International Women’s Day)
The SPEAKER: Madam Deputy Speaker, ladies and gentlemen, hon members, good afternoon. I propose, firstly, to talk about International Women’s Day: its history, its background and its significance. I would also like to touch on some new activities that focus on women, using the opportunity presented by International Women’s Day every year. Lastly, I will talk about the recent Pan-African Women’s Organisation congress to which this Parliament sent 15 delegates.
It is important for us to note that the background to International Women’s Day is a very progressive one, in that in the early years of the 20th century the labour movement in North America and Europe was preoccupied with issues of better working conditions for all workers, but, in particular, there were also demonstrations. And the particular demonstration from which this day comes was a demonstration in New York on 8 March 1908, at which 15 000 women, led by garment workers who were fighting for better conditions in their workplaces, demonstrated for their rights.
The day grew to become a focal point for progressive mankind, womenkind included. In 1910, at a conference of the Socialist International, a resolution was adopted that this day be observed every year. This is a very important day and has since developed into a day on which different countries and international forums come together around different themes, depending on the preoccupations of that time.
This year the theme for International Women’s Day is “Shaping Progress”. You may have seen our own women, led by our comrade, Minister Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, also in New York, raising issues that relate to the women of South Africa, because the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women has been creating a space for countries and member states of the UN to report on the progress they have made in terms of addressing the issues of women in their countries.
We must also remember that from 1975 to 1985 the whole world, under the United Nations, observed a decade for women. It was during that time that the world agreed that it was necessary to put in place a system whereby countries would be compelled to give regular reports on progress in the various member states.
In particular, countries have to report on the United Nations’ Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination, Against Women. Unfortunately, we can’t be proud when it comes to our reporting track record. We have reported once to the United Nations.
I must say that we are proud that we are one of the countries that ratified Cedaw without any reservations whatsoever. However, we have only reported once, and yet we are supposed to report more regularly. We owe the UN two reports, and there is a third report coming up.
I believe that we have to make sure that, through our own Joint Monitoring Committee on Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Women, we follow up on this matter in terms of our oversight role as Parliament, to check as to when we are going to have another report and to make sure that the next report comes to this Parliament so that it can be scrutinised before it is again submitted to the United Nations. This was an issue, actually, that came up among ourselves here in Parliament on Friday, 7 March 2008, when we were celebrating International Women’s Day.
I take this opportunity to also ask hon members in the different portfolio committees to take responsibility for looking at what is happening within their portfolios, at what we have committed ourselves to in terms of Cedaw, in terms of the Beijing Platform for Action and other African instruments. This would enable us to use the opportunity of Parliament and the oversight played by various portfolio committees to look at the extent to which we are complying with the commitment we have made internationally.
I now wish to turn to the question of the Pawo congress that I mentioned earlier. The theme of the 9th congress of Pawo, which took place in Boksburg from 14 to 17 February 2008, was “Shaping the future of African women for the 21st Century”. If you look at the international theme, which is “Shaping progress”, this Pawo theme corresponds well with that particular theme. Today we, ourselves, are debating the issue, having decided on our own theme but picking up on some of the issues that were raised at the Pawo congress.
Perhaps I should go back to the question, “Who is Pawo?” Pawo is the Pan- African Women’s Organisation, formed in 1962. South African women, proudly so, are founder members represented by PAC women as well as ANC women.
The Pawo congress that was held in Boksburg has not yet come up with a report, and we promise that the report will be tabled here in this Parliament. However, we have circulated and ATCed the declaration from the Pawo congress.
The Pawo congress, among many issues that it looked at, talked about the inaccessibility and inadequacy of social infrastructure in Africa in terms of women’s participation and women’s access to some of the services and the rights.
The second issue was the ongoing challenges faced by women in accessing quality education, health and economic opportunities. Those are the issues we have highlighted in terms of the theme we decided on for our own debate today. The third issue is the challenges faced by rural women living in abject poverty and the inaccessibility of information and technology. The other issue concerns the challenges faced by women in the area of representativity of women in decision-making processes.
The last issue concerns the large numbers of women who are still subjected to hunger, humiliation, pain, conflict and other forms of violence, and the impact of the HIV/Aids pandemic on the survival status and quality of life of African women. These are some of the problems that are still rampant on the African continent, where women are really the main victims.
To this end, resolutions were adopted to address the aforementioned issues of which the following speak specifically to the advancement of health, education and economic opportunities for women. These were, one, jointly to work with the African Union in addressing obstacles inhibiting the economic development of women and to put in place necessary mechanisms designed to advance women’s economic development.
Secondly, another resolution dealt with working in partnership with governments, the private sector and civil society in ensuring the development of a capacity-building project for Pawo members and bodies in encouraging the usage of information technology.
The third resolution is to continue lobbying for the total eradication of illiteracy amongst women in Africa and to have access to education by, in particular, girl-children; fourthly, to monitor and to evaluate the impact of all mechanisms created for credit and funding for women.
The last resolution is to continue to popularise, monitor and evaluate the implementation of the AU, African Union, health strategy by member countries, to establish the African infrastructure development fund and encourage compulsory reproductive health education amongst women.
These are some of the resolutions that were adopted by the 9th congress of Pawo. May I, again, take this opportunity to say that South Africa must congratulate itself because at the end of its deliberations, the Pawo congress elected a new structure, and in that new structure South Africa has been given the responsibility of becoming secretary-general of Pawo for the next five years.
I also wish to take this opportunity to propose to the House that it sends a congratulatory message to Angola on having housed Pawo for the past 22 years, throughout the years of the war and up to this day. It is now the turn of South Africa to consider being the headquarters of Pawo while it is secretary-general.
Of course, we have the next five months to deliberate on this matter, to apply our minds and to take the correct decision in terms of our responsibilities to the continent. The Pawo secretariat approached us with an offer to become secretary-general, it said: “South Africa, it is now your turn to take responsibility and to make sure that Pawo does not die.”
Lastly, I believe we owe it to the woman who has kept Pawo alive, has worked flat out and has been away from her own home country, Senegal, for all these years, taking her seat in a war-torn Angola. This is the woman who has been secretary-general for many years; she is Assetou Koite from Senegal. Assetou was then elected president of Pawo by the Boksburg congress, which we hosted.
Briefly, we are tabling that verbal report on the Pawo congress, but we will subsequently, of course as soon as we have the report, formally table it. Thank you very much, Madam Deputy Speaker. [Applause.]
Ms C N Z ZIKALALA: Madam Deputy Speaker, before the 21st century, traditionally and culturally, women’s so-called place was in the kitchen, bearing and raising children. Thankfully because culture and tradition are dynamic and not stagnant, things have changed drastically. Today, women can be found at all levels of government and the private sector occupying positions from the bottom to the top. Even better is the fact that men and women are equal and share the same human rights.
Our Constitution, reinforced by pronouncements by the Human Rights Commission, makes it very clear that every woman has the right to education and other primary human rights such as proper health care and work. Without quality education, a woman’s world is very limited. Many are still subjected to obstacles that will hinder progress in their wellbeing as women and in their families. The enjoyment of the right to health is very important in all aspects of a person’s life and wellbeing.
Having women in boardrooms, female astronauts, female Ministers and so many female Members of Parliament in South Africa has enabled us to tackle the issue of educating women.
Every woman has the right to a source of income and work and norms and standards that guarantee women full equality in all aspects of economic life. The increased participation of women in the labour force has the great potential to contribute to economic development, but only if the jobs in which women are employed are fruitful and positive. To its credit, our government is continually considering ways to improve the economic conditions of women, including a wage subsidy to help bring low-income workers into the economy and by creating jobs with its Expanded Public Works Programmes.
It is my party’s position that the advancement of women on the African continent is still in its infancy, and progress is slow. There are still millions of women in Africa without access to quality education, health and economic opportunities. While International Women’s Day is an important celebration of women’s rights and achievements, it would be remiss not to draw attention also to the fact that a long way still lies ahead of us.
Women’s advancement can only be accelerated if it remains at the top of the political, social and economic agendas of the women of this world, women governments and leaders. If the necessary political will exists and appropriate policies are aggressively implemented, we will see faster progress in years to come.
Before I leave this podium, I would like to invite and request our male parliamentarians to join us whenever we invite them to our meetings, because at a certain stage we have to sit together and try to solve some of the problems that affect our women, such as domestic violence. I thank you, Deputy Madam Speaker. [Applause.]
Ms N C NKABINDE: Chairperson and hon members, the annual celebration of women’s rights provides us with the opportunity to assess our progress in the fight for gender equality. Unfortunately, this process always forces us to recognise recent topical events, and then we realise that there is still a long road ahead of us.
I say the road ahead is still long because four young men, barely older than boys, can film female workers eating food from bowls like animals, on their hands and knees, and, in the ensuing outrage, the obvious gender abuse is only a small footnote. Yet it is exactly the fact that they are women that contributed to them being picked as likely victims.
I say the road ahead is still long because taxi drivers can harass and beat a woman, even strip her naked, because they do not like the skirt or the pants that she wears; because, once again, as we saw during the patronising debate on the appropriateness of a kanga, what a woman wears determines weather her inherent dignity or human rights will be respected.
I say the road ahead is still long because rape in this country has become so endemic that a recent Human Rights Commission investigation found that our children play games at school called “rape me” in which they chase each other and pretend to commit this despicable crime.
We have achieved many great things since the advent of democracy, and we have many outstanding female role models. But the road ahead is still long. We would be foolish to think otherwise when evidence to the contrary is seen around us every single day. I thank you. [Applause.]
Ms B T NGCOBO: Chairperson, as we celebrate this day, women are looking back and reflecting on the struggle to participate on an equal footing with men.
The day itself came into being as a result of the different experiences of gender-based violence at different levels by ordinary women, including the student massacre at Montreal where a young student shot 14 women because they were doing courses on engineering.
The United Nations has generated its support and proclaimed gender equality as a fundamental right. Gender-based violence is a global phenomenon which, among other topics, has been discussed at four United Nations’ conferences, namely in Copenhagen, Mexico, Nairobi and China.
Gender-based violence and efforts to prevent its spread need more collective efforts and a response that will support violence-prevention initiatives, and sharing and partnership-building between men and women.
Gender is what helps us to conceptualise violence in broader terms, and understanding gender is the key to developing strategies of personal and social transformation and to ending violence and achieving state-related development goals.
While encompassing other descriptions of violence, it is framed in broader terms with the understanding that causes and solutions are personal, political and structural. Gender-based violence may take many forms, occurring in both private and public domains. Men, women and children fall prey to this gendered form of violence. It is predominantly men’s violence towards women, children, other men and the self. It is indeed warfare: wife- beating, bullying, child abuse and rape as well as gay-bashing.
Men are primarily the ones who use violence and men, especially young men, are implicated the most in other types of violence as victims and as those who use violence. Among other things, women never sit at a round table to plan which country to wage war against, but men do.
Gender-based violence is distinguished from other types of violence in that it is rooted in prescribed behaviours, norms and attitudes based on gender and sexuality. It plagues every society in the world regardless of culture, class or location. No one is immune to its devastation; it spreads fear and self-loathing like a virus. It further restricts the achievement of peace, justice, equality and development.
Son preference affects many people in many countries, particularly in Asia, with consequences that can be anything from fetal to female infanticide and to neglecting the girl-child over her brother in terms of nutrition, health and education.
The problem of son preference is present in many countries. Asked how many children he had fathered, the former US boxing champion Mohammed Ali told the interviewer: “One boy and seven mistakes”. Those were girls! Early marriage, especially without the consent of the girl, is another form of human rights violation. Early marriage followed by multiple pregnancies can affect the health of women for life.
Rape is still used as a weapon of war whenever conflict arises between different parties. Women and children are frequently victims of rape from all sides of a conflict. Soldiers impregnate women of different groups and abandon them when it is too late to get an abortion. Rape in times of conflict is regarded as a war crime and under certain circumstances could be considered genocide, as declared by the Beijing Platform for Action.
In 1994, the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women focused on three areas in which women are particularly vulnerable: in the family in the form of domestic violence, traditional practices and infanticide; in the community through rape, sexual assault, commercialised violence in the form of trafficking in women, labour exploitation and female migrant workers; and in the state through violence against women in detention in situations of conflict and against refugee women.
In this millennium the need to work with men to end gender-based violence is a necessary component of effective prevention. It is important to work with men and women. Men are central to most acts of violence and violence is central to being a man in many cultures. Most political, cultural and religious leaders around the world are in better positions to influence change. Working towards strong partnerships with men and women and the various acts to end violence will have the benefit of improving lives and relations between men and women and children and communities and will improve development gains. Working with men will further help to move away from seeing men as part of the problem and begin to envision them as part of the solution, thus representing them in prevention and intervention strategies.
As a response to the epidemic of gender-based violence, initiatives, programmes and policies have been put in place over the past decade to help prevent violence. These include international conventions and campaigns, national prevention and equality policies, advocacy and media coverage - media that is nonbiased – organisational policies, gender-focused civil- society organisations, local and community-based interventions and individual activism. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mrs C DUDLEY: Chair, quality education, health and economic opportunities are without doubt key elements in shaping African women’s advancement in the 21st Century. Of particular concern, however, to the ACDP is the fact that South Africa’s progress is marred by rising infant and maternal mortality rates, with more than 1 600 mothers dying every year due to complications from pregnancy and childbirth.
While the Health Minister’s arrogant attitude toward HIV and Aids is clearly responsible for much of this, there is much more to the story and the ACDP calls for a thorough investigation. This impacts on women directly and seriously misshapes progress.
According to medical doctors, two-stage abortions are a significant cause of the increase in maternal mortality. Let me give a real life example: doctors from a hospital in KwaZulu-Natal revealed that five mothers, not those undergoing two-stage abortions, but in labour, recently died within a 10-day period at their hospital. During that same period, about 50 women required theatre time, having used Mysoprostil to induce their abortions. In total, they required 40 pints of blood to resuscitate and took up to 50 hours of theatre time - an average theatre operates only 40 hours a week. The result was that women with complications during labour could not be rushed to theatre and five died. Similar scenes are sadly repeated in one state hospital after another in rural areas.
Wherever you go, you find that critical staff shortages are made far worse by abortion overloading. Many, if not most, South African abortions nowadays are initiated by Mysoprostil - a prescription medication for peptic ulcers with a side effect of inducing labour. The ACDP has called on government many times over the years to ban the use of this drug for abortions. Mysoprostil does not normally kill the baby, it merely expels the child. The drug is provided by general practitioners, pharmacists, legal and backstreet abortionists. Women and girls are told how to take the pills and to visit a clinic if bleeding persists after the baby is delivered - often that baby is flushed live down a toilet.
Apart from the trauma of those many unsuspecting women and girls, the constant hijacking of theatre time, hospital beds, blood and hospital staff, which are all in short supply, impacts heavily on already overstrained health services. Government has chosen to turn a blind eye and women are paying with their lives. Women’s health needs serious attention as we try to shape this 21st century in favour of African women. Thank you.
Ms M M MDLALOSE: Sihlalo, i-Nadeco iyafisa ukwazisa nokumukela inkulumompikiswano ngosuku lokugubha usuku lwabesifazane emhlabeni wonke. [Chairperson, Nadeco accepts and acknowledges this debate which takes place on the International Women’s Day.]
As women we pride ourselves on the fact that we have a Constitution that guarantees the right to gender equality and a Commission on Gender Equality and the Office on the Status of Women located in the Presidency, tasked to oversee the implementation of women’s rights. South Africa has reached its target of 30% women parliamentarians and has a Cabinet made up of 40% women, including the Deputy President.
There are numerous other achievements which South Africa can be proud of. We are all aware of major obstacles hampering the empowerment, security and growth of women in South Africa.
The South African government needs to focus immense energies on education. According to Statistics SA, only 26% of students enrolled in tertiary institutions to study science, engineering and technology are women. To ensure that more women pursue these careers, we need to equip young women with the most powerful tool and that is education. By increasing spending on education and skills development, especially on further education and training in science, we will contribute to more rapid economic growth and higher levels of employment. Thus, educated young women of this country will be fully aware of the economic opportunities available to them.
According to the Labour Force Survey: Statistics 2007, the unemployment rate among women, in particular black African women, is substantially higher than that of their male counterparts. Women’s empowerment agencies such as the Progressive Women’s Movement, gender focal points and the Office on the Status of Women need to ensure that there is no duplication of tasks, but a progressive approach towards empowering women.
The gender focal points are also currently taking various forms. For some departments, it is an individual effort. In other departments, it is the whole unit catering for the cause of women. Also, in this Parliament, to further the cause of women, the women’s caucus will be having the much- awaited launch of the Multiparty Women’s Caucus, which will be held on Tuesday in the Old Assembly dining hall on 18 March 2008, and all Members of Parliament are invited.
We are saying that we need to focus more on the health of women. A healthy woman has an energy-empowered body. For progress in South Africa, we need to enhance girl-children and women’s health to be at its highest form so as to be productive in our country. I thank you.
Nk M D NXUMALO: Sihlalo, oNgqongqoshe abakhona, amalungu ahloniphekile, amaqabane nabangani, ngibonga leli thuba elihle kakhulu ukuthi ngethule inkulumo yami kule nkulumompikiswano emayelana nokulwa nendlala, inhlupheko nezenhlalakahle ikakhulukazi emkhakheni womama.
Kuzokhumbuleka ukuthi le nkulumo yenzeka ngesikhathi esibaluleke kakhulu okuyinyanga kaNdasa, njengoba omama emhlabeni wonke begubha usuku lwabo olwalwelwa omama eMelika. Sigubha inzuzo eyenziwa omama eminyakeni engamashumi amaningi edlule bekade belwa nezinto eziningi ezingenabo ubulungiswa, njengezimo ezingezinhle zokusebenza kanye namaholo aphansi komama.
Kuningi osekuzuzwe uhulumeni waseNingizimu Afrika kanye namanye amazwe kepha ububha buseyinselelo enkulu ezweni lakithi ikakhulukazi komama. Ububha buchazwa njengokungakwazi komuntu ngamunye nomndeni kanye nemiphakathi ukuziphilisa mayelana nokuba nezinsiza. Ezinye zezinto esizibalayo njengobubha komama, imfundo engeyinhle kanye nezempilo. ENingizimu Afrika ububha nokungalingani bunobuhlobo obuqinile nebala kanye nobulili, futhi into ebonisa ukuthi abantu baphila endlaleni noma emnothweni kuba yimisebenzi abayenzayo kanye namaholo abawaholayo.
Emva kweminyaka eyishumi nanye yentando yeningi, abantu baseNingizimu Afrika basabhekene nenselelo yamazinga aphezulu obubha nakuba imithetho nemigomo ithi akube namathuba namalungelo alinganayo ngokulandela uMthethosisekelo.
UMongameli waleli lizwe enkulumweni yakhe yokuvula iPhalamende waphawula ngalokhu esikubiza nge-Apex Priorities okuyizinhlelo ezibhekiswe ebantwini abampofu nokuqedwa kwendlala. Lokhu kusitshela ukuthi indlala kumele kube wudaba oluphezulu ezinhlelweni zethu.
Izinhlelo zikahulumeni kumele zigxile kubo bonke abantu abangavikelekile ikakhulukazi omama nabantwana. UMongameli wakubeka kwacaca ukuthi asibe sempini yokulwa nobubha banoma yiluphi uhlobo inqobo nje uma lubhekene nomama. Umgomo kahulumeni uthi imali ewumxhaso ovela Emnyangweni Wezokuthuthukiswa Komphakathi ayibe nje usizo okwesikhashana ngaphandle uma kuthiwa umuntu usemdala noma ukhubazekile ngangokuthi yokuthi akakwazi ukuthi azisebenzele.
SinguKhongolose siyaluthokozela lolu suku enyangeni yomame emhlabeni jikelele ngenxa yegalelo esilibonile komama baseNingizimu Afrika kanye ne- Afrika yonkana emizabalazweni eminingi eyehlukene. Singabala omama uBertha Gxowa, Lillian Ngoyi nabanye abaningi.
Siyalibonga ihhovisi likaMongameli ngegalelo lalo entuthukweni nasekukhululweni komama baseNingizimu Afrika emaketangweni endlala, ukucindezelwa, ukubukelwa phansi ngokobulili nezinye izenzo zokungalingani. Siyalibona iPhini likaMongameli lezwe ligijima zonke izinkalo lisiza omama baleli lizwe. Kungaba isemakhaya noma emadolobheni kodwa uthi i-Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, i-Asgisa, ayibahlomulise omama nentsha yaleli lizwe. Siyalibonga futhi iPhini lika Mongameli ngegalelo lalo empumelelweni yesi-Vande Women’s Fund.
Uhulumeni kumele akhe umkhankaso wokufundisa omame izifundo zezibalo nezobuchwepheshe kusuka emabangeni abasebenzi basendlini kuze kufike kubasebenzi basemapulazini. Omama abaningi nabantwana bayohlomula ezinhlelweni ezivela nohulumeni oholwa wuKhongolose. Singabala imali engumxhaso yesondlo sabantwana, nemali yesabelo sabakhubazekile, kanye nemali eyisabelo kwabaphila negciwane lengculazi nezinye izinhlelo eziningi zokuthuthukiswa komama nentsha yaseNingizimu Afrika. Ngiyabonga [ihlombe]. (Translation of isiZulu speech follows.)
[Ms M D NXUMALO: Chairperson, Ministers present, hon members, comrades and friends. I am thankful for this good opportunity to present my speech in the debate on the fight against hunger, poverty and social injustices against women.
It must be remembered that this speech is presented in this very important month, March, as it is the time when all women in the world are celebrating the International Women’s day which was fought for by women in America. We are celebrating the benefits that were achieved by women many decades ago; when they were fighting against many injustices like unfavourable working conditions and low wages.
Much has been achieved by the SA government and other countries but poverty is still a great challenge in our country, especially against women. Poverty is defined as the inability of an individual, a family or a community to provide for their needs with regards to services. Other factors contributing to poverty on women, are insufficient education and health. In South Africa poverty, inequality, colour and gender have a strong connection. And the factors indicating that people live in poverty or in riches, are the kinds of work that they do and their wages.
After 11 years of democracy, people of South Africa are still facing high levels of poverty although laws and policies state that there must be equal rights and equal opportunities as per the Constitution. The President of this country in his state of the nation address spoke about the Apex Priorities, which are programmes that are directed at poor people and the eradication of hunger. And these tell us that hunger should be the top priority in all our programmes.
Government programmes should concentrate on all vulnerable people especially women and children. The President stated very clearly that we must be at war and fight against any form of poverty as long as it is directed against women. The government policy states that the grant from the Department of Welfare and Social Development must only be of a temporary nature except for the aged or people with disabilities who cannot work for themselves.
As the African National Congress, we are very grateful for this day in the women’s month throughout the whole world because of South African women’s role and that of Africa as a whole for being involved in many different struggles. Here we can mention women like Bertha Gxowa and Lillian Ngoyi and many others.
We are grateful to the President’s office for the role it played in developing and freeing South African women from the chains of hunger, oppression, being looked down upon because of gender and other acts of inequality. We have also seen the Deputy President of the country going all over the country and helping South African women. She is all over; be it in rural areas or in towns. She is saying the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, Asgisa, must empower women and the youth of this country. We are also grateful to the Deputy President about her role on the success of the Isivande Women’s Fund.
The government must be engaged in a campaign of teaching women mathematics and technology, from domestic workers to farmworkers. Many women and children will benefit from the programmes of the ANC-led government. Here we can mention the child support grant, the disability grant and the grant for the people living with HIV/Aids and many other programmes which are meant to develop women and the youth of South Africa. Thank you. [Applause.]]
Mr R B BHOOLA: Chairperson, in 2005 the hon Minister Dlamini-Zuma reported that 70% of the world’s poor were women. She also pointed out that no matter how much the world had been trying to instil democracy, women remained victims in society, living under harsh conditions, being victims of domestic violence and having limited access to education, health and political decision-making.
We are pleased to acknowledge though that in 2008 we have a large percentage of women in government in South Africa and the economy. However, challenges do still exist and the way needs to be paved for women to explore their full potential in boardrooms.
While legislation allows for equality in education and equal access to health care in South Africa, we need to realise that both departments remain challenged in many parts of South Africa in terms of inadequate resources and facilities in order to operate effectively. Further, we need to realise that in turning around this inaccessibility to health care in the country we need to see a reduction in infectious diseases and deaths. Education, on the other hand, will also benefit by female skills being resourced, skills that have been dominated by males, and we will perhaps even assist in the skills shortage.
As we rid ourselves of the inequalities of the past, let us liberate South Africa by endorsing the potential of both sexes. Let us address the shortfalls experienced by women. Let us tackle the poverty that keeps our families separated and our women harnessed in disgraceful lifestyles.
Parliament has a pivotal role to play in drafting legislation and policies that will further benefit the advancement of women in South Africa. We celebrate our women on this great Women’s Day as we commemorate the heroines of the past. Let us applaud the future female leaders of South Africa.
This progress promises a domino effect on the progress and development of health care, education and the economy as a whole for both sexes. Thank you. Dr S E M PHEKO: Chairman, on this important Women’s Day, the PAC of Azania honours the millions of women who lived at a time when women’s rights had no name. There are still women whose names will never be known. They fought injustice so that their daughters and granddaughters could live in the sun.
There are still many untold stories of these courageous women who inspire and remind us that women can act to make change. The PAC believes in the importance of investing in women’s leadership, because we know that the kind of change we want to see in the world can only evolve from the joint efforts of both men and women. Our women, in particular, must be given educated en masse. As the Pan- Africanist Women’s Organisation, Pawo, has said so consistently “to train a woman is to train a nation”.
Our efforts to fight the scourge of HIV and Aids in our country must gain a new impetus. Women and young girls must have access to HIV and Aids medicines, both mainstream and African traditional remedies. There must be a renewed political will and leadership aimed at combating the epidemic holistically by not only distributing affordable drugs, but also by empowering women and young girls with the rights, access and power to protect themselves. Then only will the ravaging rates of infection decline. I want to honour all the women. [Time expired.]
The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Chairperson, allow me to begin by congratulating Madam Speaker on bringing this important subject to the House.
International Woman’s Day provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the progress of women, particularly in South Africa and Africa, with respect to achieving full gender equality. It is a time to celebrate the progressive policy framework that we have put in place to support transformation in South Africa. And it is a time to reflect on the positive changes that have taken place in our education system, while also acknowledging the challenges that we still have to confront.
It is important that we distinguish between gender parity and gender equality at school, at college and at university. We have achieved gender parity in school enrolment figures in South Africa. This has been the positive case for many years now. While this is welcome, it masks some areas of inequality at provincial and district levels. Nevertheless, our achievement of parity in school enrolment is a substantial achievement for South Africa.
However, we do need to look beyond the equality of participation to areas of general concern. Overall, a greater percentage of boys still pass the Senior Certificate exam and more boys achieve endorsement outcomes than girls. However, in some provinces there are pockets where girls achieve better pass rates than boy learners. So, the overall picture we see masks a diversity that exists in the entire system.
At the highest performing level – that of candidates who achieve distinctions – girls tend to do better than boys overall. So we, as Parliament, need to analyse these figures more closely to obtain a much more nuanced picture of what is happening in education and other sectors as it is likely that social class does play a role in high-performing groups.
In education, we are also addressing the need for greater numbers of young women to do technical subjects in our FET colleges and in the higher education system. We are very unusual on our continent in having such equal participation rates between boys and girls, and, as I have indicated, in some cases, strong performance by girls.
We have to begin, though, to move towards gender equality in all our institutions. This means we must tackle the social issues that keep girls away from school and make sure that our policies do not discriminate against girls and women in education.
We need to tip the balance in favour of girls and do this, for example, by addressing issues of security, sanitation and girl-friendly institutional cultures. We must also make the content of education much more helpful and interesting to girls, as indicated in Goal 5 of Education For All. In response to this, South Africa does have a number of programmes in place that are addressing the qualitative aspects of the experience of girls in our schools. The child-friendly schools framework concept, a partnership with Unicef, is being implemented in a number of our schools. The Hlayiseka model, a model that encourages learners to report bullying and other forms of physical intimidation at school, is being extended throughout all the provinces in our country.
Another serious aspect of the qualitative experience of girls in the education system relates to a broader social problem which is endemic in South Africa, and that is violence against women. It is one of our most grave social problems. Violence against women, including sexual harassment in all forms, features prominently in many of our educational institutions.
We have to empower women and girls at all levels in our institutions to understand and confront problems of sexual harassment and violence, so that it is seen as something that everyone must take responsibility for.
Schools are located in communities, and to a certain extent the problem within schools mirror broader social problems. Our education system cannot be the only place for addressing these problems. We have established welcome partnerships with other government departments such as the Departments of Health, Social Development, Correctional Services, Justice and Constitutional Development, and Safety and Security.
Now, it is possible for us to put in place as many controls and mechanisms as we have in the world. This may improve the qualitative experience of young people, but, without community action, without community support for all these interventions, we will make no difference to the lives of girls and women in education.
In the higher education system, women’s participation has improved since the advent of democracy in South Africa. There have been significant changes in the race and gender profile of the student body in our higher education institutions.
The proportion of female students in universities rose from 43% in 1993 to 54% in 2003. While this is a positive shift, we have again begun to focus on the deeper, underlying inequalities that are often masked by these positive statistics. It is a matter of serious concern that the spread of women students across different programme areas remains uneven, with women students clustered in the humanities and underrepresented in science, engineering, technology and in postgraduate studies.
We are also focusing on attracting women students to areas of particular underrepresentation. We have many women students who do enter science, but 25% of them are in the life sciences. So we need to have many more in the mathematical sciences, many more in engineering and many more in computer science, Deputy Minister Hanekom.
The overall figure for women in health sciences and in commerce has shown significant improvement, but black women are underrepresented in almost every discipline in our higher education system.
We also know, of course, that there are very few women in the management echelons of our universities. Recent studies have shown us that, while women are increasingly entering the labour force, we don’t see them entering the senior management levels in the labour sector.
This, of course, means that we must do much more to ensure that our policies of employment equity and affirmative action increase women’s participation at senior levels of appointment.
The female share of employment has increased from 39,1% in 1995 to 46,8% in 2007 - a significant shift. But, again, this is in the services sector. It is underrepresented in nonservice sectors, underrepresented in mining management and not at all recognised in other areas, particularly the financial sector.
The financial sector is one of the fastest growing sectors of employment in South Africa. So it is disconcerting that women haven’t enjoyed opportunity of employment in this particular area of formal economic activity.
So it is vital that we recognise that progress has been made in our country with regard to the issues facing women in education and several of the issues that confront women as far as entry to the labour force is concerned. But, while we mark this progress, let us not be complacent about the areas that still need to be addressed. Hon members speaking in this debate have indicated the important attention we must give to infant mortality, the important attention we must give to health services for women, the important attention we must give to the impact of HIV and Aids on women and girls in particular.
Many of us know that in a home left without parents, it is the girl- children and their schooling which is most affected by a child-headed household. It tends to be a girl, whether young or old, who is the one who has to remain at home to care for the siblings in the home. Therefore the HIV/Aids situation is one in which we do face the danger of reversing the gains of parity before we’ve even achieved equality.
It is thus vitally necessary that we do give attention to the impact of health on the advance of young women and women in our society.
I’d also like to recognise, as the hon Pheko did, the contribution of the women and men in the struggle for liberation in South Africa. In particular, I’d like to acknowledge the heroines who struggled for equality in all spheres of life, but who were not able to see the benefits of their struggle in the huge improvements that have been made in women’s lives.
Chairperson and Madam Speaker, as you are present here, I think it is very positive for us to be able to say, both in South Africa as well as in all other countries on the continent, that due attention is being given to ensuring that in education, in health, in the provision of economic opportunities, more and more girls and African women are beginning to feel that International Women’s Day does make a difference to their lives. [Applause.]
They are beginning to see that they can enter what were fields that were denied to them in the past. It is absolutely incumbent on our Parliament to ensure that it keeps on, on a regular basis, paying attention to measuring the progress that girls and women are making through the very modern policies that our Parliament and country have adopted in the past 14 years of democracy.
The advance of women cannot be left to chance. This does require studied attention by policy-makers. It does require that executive action has, at the forefront of action, attention to equality and the advancement of women. As I began, we are making strides. There is progress, but the challenges remain immense, the challenges are for us to confront. I am sure that this Parliament, and this House in particular, will ensure that women are not left behind and that we do not take 200 years to ensure that parity translates into equality. Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
PEACE-BUILDING AND RECONCILIATION FOR A BETTER WORLD FOR ALL
(Debate on Inter-Parliamentary Union topic)
Mrs S M CAMERER: Chairperson, in view of the fact that we are focusing on women today, I will speak about the role of women in relation to peace and security which is increasingly being acknowledged internationally. The UN Security Council Resolution 1385 adopted in the year 2000 on Women, Peace and Security has become the reference point also for the Inter- Parliamentary Union.
Last week, prior to International Women’s Day, over 50 women leaders from around the world met in Brussels to discuss the role of women in stabilising an insecure world still ravaged by conflict and violence.
Why this is important is that women are disproportionably affected by violence and conflict. Eighty per cent of all refugees are women and children, and sexual violence and rape are still used as weapons of war in conflict situations, in spite of a UN resolution that this should be treated as a war crime.
This meeting followed a number of other high-profile get-togethers last year with the same focus of acknowledging the importance of women’s voices in building lasting peace and security. Emphasis was also placed on the problem of viewing women as victims rather than as active participants in the process of building a more stable and secure world.
Coming closer to home, it is essential that we women in South Africa also shed the victim posture, fight back and become active participants in building a more secure country, for ourselves, our daughters and our granddaughters. But we have a steep mountain to climb.
Almost like no other country, women in South Africa bear the brunt of violence of all kinds. Police statistics show that nearly 53 000 cases of rape were reported last year, making South Africa once again the rape capital of the world. All government efforts so far, including the annual 16 days of activism, have failed to get us off this plateau of between 52 000 and 55 000 rapes a year, and up to 75% of these rapes are estimated to be gang rapes. But most rapes go unreported and the NGOs estimate that at least 500 000 women and children are forced every year to have unwanted sexual intercourse. Not only does this place an impossible burden on our justice system – only 7% of reported rapes result in a conviction – but also a psychological and emotional burden on the nation as a whole.
It is encouraging therefore that there are signs that women in our country are beginning to make a stand. The rape of 21-year-old Jessica Foord 10 days ago, resulted in a 1 200-strong furious crowd of women and men of all races demonstrating outside the Pinetown magistrates’ court demanding justice when five of the alleged rapists appeared in court.
The assault and sexual molestation by taxi drivers of Nwabisa Ngcukana at the Noord Street taxi rank merely because she wore a miniskirt, sparked a nationwide protest by women’s groups. An intervention by the Commission for Gender Equality, as well as the Human Rights Commission, eventually forced the SA National Taxi Council to apologise after nearly four weeks.
Yes, women are beginning to find their voice about this national scourge, but it seems we are being let down by our courts. Recent reliable research by UCT’s Gender Health and Justice Unit has shown that judges are still dishing out light sentences to rapists, although the law requires minimum life sentences, in other words 25 years, for cases in which a victim is raped more than once or is younger than 16 – this, unless the judge can make a finding that there are substantive and compelling circumstances for imposing a lesser sentence. This discretion was further curtailed last year by Parliament to exclude certain so-called “compelling circumstances”, such as the victim’s previous sexual history, among other things.
But in spite of this, recent judgments exposed by this study give cause for concern. For example, Judge Hendrick Musi - who the Judicial Services Commission recently recommended as the new Judge President of the Free State - sentenced a man to only 13 years in 2004 for raping five under-age girls on the basis that, as he said, “The rapist intended no harm other than to satisfy his sexual lust.”
I am a member of the Judicial Service Commission and I believe that if this unreported judgment in Ntholeng v the State had come to light we would certainly have challenged Judge Musi to justify his suitability for a leadership position in the judiciary.
Judge A J Visser, another example, sentenced Joseph Ntuli to only eight years in jail for raping a 14-year-old girl twice, commenting that the victim, “being the pretty girl she is, might have brought out the animal in the accused”.
Also Judge Jeremy Pickering sentenced a man to only 15 years last year for raping his six-year-old daughter, which he did, said the judge “on the spur of the moment” – as if this is an excuse!
Many other cases are listed by the unit which is to be congratulated on naming and shaming these judges and for bringing to light these flimsy excuses made by judges for imposing light sentences and thus getting around the minimum sentence legislation. The unit could lodge its report with the Judicial Service Commission as a complaint against the judges concerned.
We women in our country are not secure and at peace. The law is there to protect women from the scourge of rape and we should not continue to tolerate presiding officers in our courts sidestepping it. Thank you, Mr Chairman. [Applause.]
Mr M J BHENGU: Chairperson, as a result of our violent past and gross violations of human rights, we as South Africans are bound to make an immense contribution in restoring world peace and reconciliation. Nowhere is this experience of peace-building and reconciliation more acute than in South Africa.
South Africa is seen as a beacon of hope by many countries and peoples who are crippled by conflict and violence. Despite the daily realities of poverty, joblessness, crime, hunger, HIV/Aids, racism and sexism and poor education, our country has made a lot of gains towards peace and reconciliation.
Our country can highlight a number of important changes, including a new democratic order with the right to vote and elect representatives in free and fair elections and a new Constitution with guaranteed political, civil and socioeconomic rights.
However, we still have to make our own home-made starting point to concretise this. And this would actually revolve around the revival of the African concept of ubuntu not only in the South African milieu, but throughout the whole world. We recognise ubuntu as the foundation of all human interaction.
This means that no person or country is an island. We are part of one global village. We must respect and treat everyone with compassion and empathy and in a manner that recognises their intrinsic human dignity. For example, what we saw at the University of the Free State recently is indeed indicative of the fact that we haven’t actually been able to ensure that peace and reconciliation amongst our races and our cultures are indeed put in place.
All the noble values come with the spirit of ubuntu. Therefore we recommend, as the IFP, that we consider putting this into place. We must embrace our differences and accept the notion that we are all equal under the law, and that, of course, the world and its countries are nonetheless made up of many different cultures, groups, races, religions, communities and peoples.
Reconciliation demands openness, dialogue and space. There are occasions that bring peace but not reconciliation. For instance in Rwanda, people look to peace and reconciliation as the only way to have hope in the future of a country, a country that has undergone genocide. Peace for South Africans at this current juncture is an end to violent crime, racism and gender violence.
But the effort to secure international peace and reconciliation is a task that concerns everyone. Individual countries cannot simply leave it to the UN to find solutions that do not directly concern them. All countries are morally obliged to work for international peace and reconciliation, especially in cases in which the UN and the Security Council are not able to solve the problems on their own. We are all aware that conflicts in neighbouring and even distant countries increasingly have a direct effect on domestic security, for example, through the increased flow of refugees, organised crime and growing terrorism.
Political conflicts in countries such as those of the Middle East, the Sudan, Somalia, Sri Lanka, etc, stretch back many years but solutions can be found if parties to the conflicts and international communities join forces and pull in the same direction. It is our belief that global poverty is the biggest threat and stumbling block to sustainable peace and global reconciliation.
If we don’t eradicate poverty and inequality, sooner rather than later, we must recognise that the movement towards building human dignity in peace and reconciliation is fragile.
We must therefore deepen our democracy, promote fair trade, promote respect for the sovereignty of nations and spread the prosperity of all our people with what we have in our country. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr G T MADIKIZA: Chairperson and hon members, building peace and reconciliation is an often-spoken-about objective. But the reality is that South Africa is one of the few examples of this being achieved in what seemed a genuinely intractable conflict and over relatively short span of time. Other modern examples, like the situation in the Middle East, are demonstrations of a never-ending cycle of recrimination and retaliation.
There was a golden era for a few years in the early 90s when the apartheid and other oppressive regimes collapsed and the Berlin Wall came tumbling down, that it seemed the world was on the cusp of an era of peace and reconciliation and when it seemed that indeed the dangerous and needless power struggles and conflicts of the Cold War would give way to a time of negotiation and consensus-seeking. That multilateral spirit infused many initiatives and found expression in such grand schemes as the Millennium Development Goals.
But, alas, the spirit of that short golden era has been swept aside by the persistence of longstanding conflicts as well as the emergence of a new dangerous polarity based on religion, conquest and terrorism.
What we are seeing is a return to the politics of division and conflict in international affairs. It is our duty as a member of multilateral institutions such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union to remind our fellowmen and women of the South African experience and of the inherent value of genuine negotiation and reconciliation. We cannot sit by and watch the world slide back to the dangers of mutually assured destruction.
The UDM commends the government of South Africa for the role it has played in Africa in particular and abroad in efforts to marshal the very elusive peace in the world. This has been in the form of facilitating political settlements; military assistance in the form of peace-keeping operations; the IEC and observation missions to ensure credible and fair elections on the continent. This we have done for no price but the price of continental and world peace. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mrs C DUDLEY: Thank you, Chair. Hon members, due to unforeseen circumstances this debate bounced my way at the very last minute. So here goes! It has been said that the fundamental mission of building peace is to create a stable society in which the surfacing of new disputes does not spiral into future violence and war. In today’s world, conflict within nations is as devastating as conflict between nations if not more so.
Forgiveness, of course, is a vital first step to ending conflict - not only in our families and communities but between nations before there can be any hope of reconciliation. Most conflicts start because one person or group feels they have been wronged by another person or group. Saying sorry is a nice gesture, but the real power lies in forgiveness.
Learning to let grievances go and to forgive isn’t always easy, but when we truly forgive, it is largely for our own benefit: it helps promote better health, better relationships, a deeper sense of purpose and self-worth and a feeling of connection to others.
The healing power of forgiveness reached international attention after the end of apartheid in South Africa when the then President Mandela modelled this critical gesture and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission attempted to bring together a bitterly divided nation after decades of segregation and violence.
Holding on to hurt creates bitterness and hatred and harms the person, the community and the nation that does not forgive as well as all those around them.
The quest for peace and security is a universal challenge. No individual state, of course, can alone bring peace because co-operation and partnership are needed in order to reach common goals. Compromise is important, and agreeing to disagree is a critical ingredient.
There will be no lasting peace, however, if human rights are abused, if people are hungry, and if children are dying or deprived of equal opportunities.
There is much we can do as individuals and collectively, and, as with most things, when we get it right close to home, we have a greater chance of getting it right on a broader scale.
To conclude, Maya Angelou said, and I quote:
We cannot change the past, but we can change our attitude toward it.
Uproot guilt and plant forgiveness. Tear out arrogance and seed
humility. Exchange love for hate – thereby, making the present
comfortable and the future promising.
I thank you. Nk M M MDLALOSE: Mphathisihlalo, siyiNadeco sithi ukwakha ubuzwe nesizwe kuqala enhlonipheni. Ukuhlonipha ukwehluka kosikompilo; ukuhlonipha ubunikazi bezinto; ukuhlonipha isiqu somuntu; nokwemukelana njengabantu baseNingizimu Afrika ngokwehlukana kwethu, ngezilimi zethu nangamasiko ethu kuwukwakha ukuthula. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[Ms M M MDLALOSE: Chairperson, we in Nadeco believe that nation-building starts with respect for one another. Here we mean respect for other people’s cultures; respect for other people’s property; respect for another human being and the acceptance of other people’s cultures and languages in South Africa. And this we call the building of peace.]
Holding ourselves and our fellow citizens in high esteem is the start of peace and reconciliation. To recognise that we are all different and that we are all deserving is a start on the road to peace. Peace is equivalent to neighbourliness.
Ake siphile kahle futhi sazisane lapha ePhalamende … [Let us respect and recognise each other here in Parliament …]
… as parliamentarians, neighbours and families.
Esikwenza sisodwa lapha kunomthelela ezweni. Ngingabeka nje isibonelo njengase-Newcastle qobo lapha ngihlala khona impi yobuhlanga isekhona futhi inkulu. Nakwezinye izindawo iyabonakala futhi nakhona inkulu lapho ilwa khona buthule. Ake siqale ukuzihlonipha futhi semukele nabanye abantu ukuze sibe nokuthula nenhlalakahle ezweni lakithi. Ngiyabonga. [Ihlombe.] (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[What we do here in Parliament alone has an impact on the whole country. I can elaborate more on that and use Newcastle where I come from as an example. The war on racism is still rife. Racism is also evident in other areas but it is very subtle. We must start by respecting ourselves and accepting others so that we can have peace and social cohesion in our country. Thank You. [Applause.]]
Mr I S MFUNDISI: Motlatlegi Motsamaisa tiro e … [Hon Chairperson …]
… the world is beset by conflict and the only resolution thereto can be found if the ravaged hearts and minds acknowledge it. For peace to take root, antagonists have to put their past behind them.
In many countries, the ways of the antagonistic groupings finding one another have been contrived. The SA Truth and Reconciliation Commission is being used as a benchmark in most countries in their quest to find peace, as the moral, political and legal questions generated by the TRC remain the subject of many a debate.
Research has indicated that successful reconciliation between alienated groups can take place only when there is a genuine dialogue and conflict analysis of a mutual, interactive nature. It calls for eyeball-to-eyeball and heart-to-heart communication and discussion.
Such interaction is to be facilitated by a neutral third party, someone acceptable to both groups. The example of former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan facilitating the current “toenadering” [rapprochement] in Kenya is a classic example.
The South African model of the TRC has achieved much in the time given to it. We all know that transformation or management of any change has those who readily accept, those who remain in doubt, while others reject it outright. However, the majority do accept the need for reconciliation and living in peace.
The Biblical injunction that, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God,” should be the guide to all peoples of the world. We accept that building sustainable peace in societies that have suffered protracted conflict calls for long-term societal transformation. We have to seek peace all the time, because if that is not done the collective trauma left behind by violence is passed from generation to generation, perpetuating cycles of violence.
Appeals should be made to alienated groups to demilitarise after being demobilised. Situations such as the one in the eastern part of the DRC, where General Laurent Nkunda is hard-put to go to the discussion table, have played themselves out, even in South Africa, where racism is still the order of the day, though in benign fashion.
We in the UCDP maintain that peaceful coexistence can be realised if we love and respect one another and are ready to serve, consult with and be tolerant of one another.
Masithandaneni, sihloniphane, sisebenze ngokuzimisela, sixoxe, sibonisane, kwaye sinyamezelane; singacaphukelani. Ndiyabulela. [Let us love one another; let us respect one another; work diligently; discuss, share views, and be tolerant of one another; and not hate one another. Thank you.]
Mr R B BHOOLA: Chairperson, for a vision of Africa I turn to J Obi Oguejiofor’s words:
Africa is one continent of the world which has acquired the image of a conflict zone. With the numerous colonial and postcolonial wars, political instability, oppression, economic stagnation, farming, crop failures and other natural disasters, pandemics of malaria, HIV/Aids and other deadly diseases one may be pardoned if he were to doubt the possibility of peace under such conditions. But those who really know Africa know that there are other sides to the continent. They know the bad news catch the eye and the interest of all more easily, and these are very often deliberately highlighted to reinforce an already negative image. Such a scenario has the natural tendency to hide very positive aspects of the life of the continent, a continent with rich traditions. Among such traditions must be counted the tradition of peace that is connatural with the African world.
I truly believe that many may have thought progress in South Africa would never take place, not with the calamities and retardation left by both colonialism and the apartheid regime. But we have stood up and we are walking to a successful democracy.
Reality does, however, set in when we find the crevices of racism and sexism still evident in our communities, but we need to deal with these situations as a civil nation. We need to take this behaviour as a reminder of what we don’t want, and correct it. But this correction is not through stereotyping race, as this is itself reverse racism. We need to dig deep into African culture and tradition that firmly, in its proverbs, speaks of ubuntu and the nation-building we so deserve.
As the Dalai Lama so aptly put it:
There is nothing new about the new millennium if the people of the world
do not adopt new attitudes and ways of thinking.
There is so much truth in these words. If only it was as easy to put into action. We, however, pray for peace on the African continent, for respect of life and for the elimination of poverty and greed. I thank you.
Dr S E M PHEKO: Chairman, there is no nation that can prosper without peace. Peace is the mother of prosperity. King Moshoeshoe was right when he said, “Kgotso ke kgaetsedi” – peace is my sister. His mentor, King Mohlomi, had taught him the philosophy of peace.
The world suffered in two world wars when peace was disturbed. A number of wars have caused suffering in Africa when there was no peace. Palestine has suffered since the Balfour Declaration of 1917. Burundi has just emerged from a situation of genocide. Kenya shocked everybody just recently.
Let us also be reminded in this world of multipartism, that rights are derived from citizenship, not from membership of a political party. Therefore, jobs, houses, education, honour, etc, must not be given on the basis of membership of a particular political party. Such acts lead to discrimination, discontent, revolt and, ultimately, disturbance of the peace.
On reconciliation, let me say that genuine reconciliation cannot happen when there is no justice, equal sharing of resources or equal and affordable opportunities. Reconciliation is not appeasement. Reconciliation is not the friendship of a jackal and a lamb or a hawk and a dove. In reconciliation we are either all hawks or all doves. Reconciliation is not a one-sided exercise. That is why I repeat that Robben Island is the wrong place for honeymoons. Let us respect our former freedom fighters. These honeymoons are desecrating their memory. This is like dancing on their graves. Izwe Lethu! [Our Land!]
Mr L M GREEN: Chairperson, building peace and building reconciliation are interventions which unfortunately, in most cases, happen only after wars or conflict have caused vast injury and the deaths of people and devastation to infrastructure. The great challenge in building peaceful societies is to put in place preventative mechanisms which may help in reducing the possibility for situations of conflict.
There are a glut of treaties and conventions, which a number of states have signed, to uphold human rights, democratic governance and developing peaceful societies. These have not prevented ongoing wars and conflicts around the world. Surveys state that as at mid-2005, there were eight major wars and about two dozen lesser conflicts worldwide, of which most were being fought on racial, ethnic and religious grounds. Africa, suffering from more wars than any other continent, has been marred by more than 20 major civil wars since 1960.
The energies and efforts of relief and mediating organisations are usually focused on reparation and working out reconciliation packages in postconflict or ongoing war situations, but too little resources and time are put into designing preventative mechanisms that may help to allay potential conditions of conflict.
The FD is of the opinion that governments must call for action to reduce conflict worldwide; submit to a universal code of humanitarian values which seeks to address the problems associated with ownership of resources among nations; and aim at bringing nations and governments together to work towards world peace.
Finally, the FD suggests that a preventative policy framework be put in place, gaining worldwide support, requesting that governments develop legislation to this effect. Chairman, I thank you.
Mr W J SEREMANE: Chairperson and hon members, I am of the opinion that our debates and discussions should take place within the context and the need and meaning of the International Women’s Day focus and concerns. I am happy to mention that.
That being the case, allow me to borrow from the Beijing Platform for Action, as quoted in the Karam 1999: Without the active participation of women and the incorporation of women perspectives at all levels of decision-making, the goals of equality development and peace cannot be achieved.
We are aware that equality, development, peace and reconciliation are not necessarily givens, or manna from heaven, conditions that merely happen on their own like the undisputable fact that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. These essential societal building blocks or constituents have to be laboured for consistently and persistently, like the women’s battle song in the villages: Re a leboga, Motlotlegi. Dilo tsena dia sebeletswa. [Thank you, hon member. These things you must sweat for.]
We cannot just proclaim, “Peace, peace” and merely mouth rhetorics such as reconciliation, reconciliation, where there is no peace nor reconciliation. We have to create conducive conditions in which peace and reconciliation can sustainably and convincingly be seen to be having an impact on the entire social fabric and on spheres of our society.
Building peace and reconciliation demands that there be, inter alia, prerequisites such as justice, a willingness to forgive and to accommodate other beings and their viewpoints. Tolerance and forbearance seem mundane issues, but they are of fundamental importance in peace-building and reconciliation. I do admit that simple and trite as they may be, they are indeed very elusive but we must strive for building peace and reconciliation, defusing tensions and conflicts in our societies to realise a better world for all.
The modern world, ourselves included, boasts of enlightenment, of being progressive and of being guided by democratic imperatives and tenants as found in our various constitutions, embodying fundamental human rights. Why then is it that these almost sacred values have been trampled upon willy- nilly from time to time in human history?
Kofi Annan - if I may quote him - in his assertions towards culture for preventing deadly conflict, maintains that –
There are in my view three main reasons for failure of prevention of deadly conflict when prevention is so clearly possible.
Thank you very much. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr O E MONARENG: Hon Chairperson, hon members, my intention was to speak for 50 minutes, but all the hon members who spoke before me have made my job much easier. I would like to congratulate them. They did not focus on party politics, but on nation-building and making sure that their inputs were as constructive as possible. Thank you very much.
I just want to say that the ANC has applied its mind in making sure that there is peace-building and reconciliation in South Africa, and in the African region and the world. So it is very important that we should reiterate the positions we have taken before.
The world today has become complex and is characterised by inequalities and conflicts. Hence, the case for peace and reconciliation has become relevant more than ever before. The hegemony of superpowers has given rise to exploitation, imperialism and violent global conflicts. South Africa is not the first country in the world to confront racism and exploitation, nor will it be the last. It is not the only country to have achieved resounding progress in securing peace and working towards reconciliation. It is seen by many people as a symbol of hope - that what is desirable in human affairs can also become possible. It is an indication that there is a way out of conflict; an answer to hatred; a bridge for every gap.
This does not mean that South Africa has overcome the many problems of its colonial and apartheid past. There still exists a massive gulf between black and white in South Africa. The black majority is overwhelmingly poor while, on the other hand, the white minority is generally perceived to be affluent. Unemployment, poverty, underdevelopment, crime, violence and racism continue to make life an ongoing battle for the majority of people.
However, since the 1994 democratic breakthrough, South Africa as a nation has become well positioned to tackle the terrible legacy of colonialism and apartheid. The democratic breakthrough created opportunities for all South Africans to enjoy equal rights, which lay the foundation for peace, stability and harmony. So at least in South Africa there is progress. South Africa is a beacon of hope and it is a microcosm of those people prepared to fight for peace and reconciliation. We should applaud South Africans in the various roles they are playing.
It is important that we should continue with the effort, because in our Cabinet in Parliament our contribution is important. In the process of budgeting, it is important that Parliament take the lead in guiding its country and its citizens in making sure that contributions are made in the most appropriate way. If there are lessons to be learnt for other parts of the world from the South African experience of resolving conflict and initiating reconciliation, they are lessons in principle rather than in actual detail.
This means that each case has its own merits, yet if there is one lesson which South Africans have learnt and which is probably applicable to many similar situations, it is that freedom cannot be imposed on a people. In fact, for freedom to be meaningful and sustainable, the people must be the agents of their own liberation. It is they who must free themselves. This is a great lesson: that the people are at the centre of this liberation and reconciliation.
During the long struggle against apartheid the people of South Africa had many friends around the world who did much to hasten the demise of apartheid. Yet it was the South African people themselves who directed this global campaign and turned out in their millions to challenge the force of the apartheid state. The South African people sat down among themselves and negotiated an end to the violent apartheid system. South Africans wrote the country’s new democratic Constitution and worked together to build the institutions of the new democratic state with a view to creating, building and sustaining a society founded on peace and reconciliation.
It is true that what has been achieved in South Africa would not have been possible without the active assistance of many people around the world. In this discussion and topic it is imperative to note that the people who are oppressed are their own liberators and, at the same time, the manner in which we mobilised and galvanised the international community was very good in the sense that it assisted in making sure that our liberation was made possible. That is why, since the 1994 breakthrough, South Africans have taken it upon themselves to spearhead and be the mainstay for the fight for peace, harmony and reconciliation.
It is important to also remember what Comrade O R Tambo said: that no true alliances can be built on the shifting sands of illusion. What we want to say, relevant to the topic today, is that no true peace can be built on the shifting sands of illusion. It is important that whatever we do in our deployment elsewhere in the world, we make sure that we don’t entertain any illusions and issues which will result in our not being glued together and that we make sure that we fight for peace.
In diversity there is more that unifies people as humans than could possibly divide them. The challenge is to find and nurture those values which are shared by all the people, despite their differences, while creating a space for the culture, history and experiences of all to be celebrated. In a society recovering from conflict, tolerance of differences and the accommodation of all are critical to reconciliation. However, it must be acknowledged that reconciliation is not simply about the oppressed being willing to accommodate the oppressor. It is also about the oppressor acknowledging the errors of the past and relinquishing the privileges that have kept their fellow citizens in servitude and consigned them to underdevelopment.
South Africa has taken many important steps towards reconciliation, yet this reconciliation can only be fully achieved once the very material inequalities which divide South Africans into rich white and poor black are overcome. True reconciliation requires the dismantling of the entire economic basis of apartheid, racially based exploitation and a wholly skewed distribution of resources. It requires that those who, for decades, been forced off their land, who have been excluded from beneficial participation in the economy, who have been denied access to education and skills development opportunities now have the chance to partake in the economic life of their country.
Be that as it may, inequalities are noticeable and are widening among South Africans, because only the few, or the minority, are in better paying positions since the 1994 democratic breakthrough.
Given the historical denial, South Africa’s black majority needs to be empowered economically, because this is central in the search for lasting peace and reconciliation. South Africa may have one of the highest levels of income inequality in the world, but the situation in which the country finds itself is not unique.
Huge inequalities in wealth within and between nations are one of the defining features of the world today. Much of the conflict and instability which plagues the world, much of the prejudice and the hatred, much of the xenophobia, racism and sexism are borne of global and national inequality and a fierce competition for resources – rampant imperialism. The wars being fought and the terror attacks witnessed are not so much caused by culture clashes or religious fundamentalism as they are caused by the failure of humanity to find fair and equitable ways to manage distribution. I thank you one and all. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
COMBATING OF POVERTY – INVESTING IN WOMEN
(Debate on IPU topic)
Ms M R MORUTOA: Hon Chairperson, hon Minister and hon members, I feel honoured to speak to our constituencies during the period of celebrating International Women’s Day. Malibongwe! [Praise!]
HON MEMBERS: Igama lamakhosikazi! [The name of women!]
Ms M R MOROTOA: The ANC’s objective is to improve the lives of all. In this case, we particularly focus on the women who are most affected by poverty, and they are the sector that is left out of the first economy.
Hence, the President of the country, in his state of the nation address, stated clearly how this government, led by the ANC, focuses on the identified Apex priorities, which are meant to accelerate progress towards the achievement of the objectives the people of South Africa have mandated us to pursue.
In South Africa there are challenges facing women in trade, international agreements, the World Trade Organisation, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the first and second economies and their instruments.
Escaping the poverty trap and translating trade into higher national income is a challenge for African women. The economic task is to move the economy from a path of continued debt towards a growth trajectory. Noteworthy is that the expansion of trade does not automatically improve human wellbeing.
Ndifuna ukwenza umzekelo apha, ngeenkqubo zeSebe lezoRhwebo noShishino. Ohloniphekileyo uSekela-Mphathiswa uElizabeth Thabethe wenza umsebenzi omhle kakhulu kumaphondo ngokuqokelela oomama abafundise iindlela zokurhweba ngaphakathi eMzantsi Afrika naphesheya kweelwandle.
Mna ke ndikhe ndiye buqu xa enembizo. Uyayichaza into yokuba kufuneka uzilinganisele xa uqala, ungalumi umthamo omkhulu ze ukome, uphele ungabi nangeniso. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[I want to give an example here of the programmes of the Department of Trade and Industry. The hon Deputy Minister, Elizabeth Thabethe, is doing a very good job in the provinces by bringing women together and teaching them how to trade in South Africa and abroad.
I usually attend when she has an imbizo. She explains that one has to start small at the beginning, and not bite off more than one can chew and then end up not being able to make any profit.]
Economic growth should generate more resources that can be used for poverty eradication programmes. Indeed, while the promotion of trade can benefit the poor in general, not all trade-related ventures that have a bearing on poverty are positive. In general, changes have the potential to disrupt social stability, leading to unsettled conditions, particularly for those on the margins of society.
Another key intervention strategy is the Expanded Public Works Programme, EPWP. This programme will be expanded beyond its original targets. It will entail about R4,5 billion in additional funds, which will be spent on women.
The focus will be on human resources training, ensuring that women have access to finance across the board, fast-tracking them out of the second economy, ensuring their significant participation beyond small, micro and medium enterprises, SMMEs, improving their access to basic services, and increasing their participation in the EPWP.
IKomiti yezeSini yalapha ePalamente ikhe yandwendwela eThsoreni, apho sathi sadibana namakhosikazi esenza imisebenzi yezandla. Omnye kula makhosikazi uneshishini lezitena zokwakha. Usebenzisana nabakhi abakhulu apha eNtshona Koloni. Loo mama uthi wafundiswa yile nkqubo ibizwa ngokuba yiNkqubo yeMisebenzi yoLuntu eNatyisiweyo.
Kwalapho eThsoreni saya kubona intokazi eyayithengisa ezitalatweni zalapha eKapa, ihlupheka. ISebe leMisebenzi yoLuntu layinika iiakilana zomhlaba – phofu owawusele wonakele – ukuze ilime kuwo iintyatyambo ezibizwa ngokuba ziziqwane okanye iiprotea. [Uwele-wele.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[The Gender Committee of Parliament recently visited Oudtshoorn, where we met women engaged in handicraft. One of the women has a brick-making business. She has a working relationship with big construction companies in the Western Cape. She says she got training through the Extended Public Works Programme.
Again, in Oudtshoorn, we went to see a woman who used to sell in the streets of Cape Town, being poor. The Department of Public Works gave her a few acres of land – which were already damaged – to plant proteas. [Interjections.]]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): Hon members, please lower your voices. We couldn’t hear what the hon member has just said. Please continue, hon member.
Nksz M R MORUTOA: Yhuu! Sihlalo, samangala xa isibonisa eso sixa somhlaba isilimileyo ngoku, kunye neentyatyambo esele izithengise phesheya kweelwandle. Viva, makhosikazi, viva! (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[Ms M R MORUTOA: Gosh! Chairperson, we were surprised when she showed us the piece of land she has cultivated now, and the flowers she has already sold overseas. Viva women, viva!]
How does globalisation impact on the poor and vulnerable groups, especially women? Policy responses by individual African countries to globalisation have included economic restructuring, technological upgrading, skills training, the relaxing of exchange controls, the reinsertion of national economies into international financial markets, focusing on export and growth, the lowering of budget deficits, and focusing on the growing inability of governments to independently shape their national economies.
The economic policy responses to globalisation have not been gender-neutral and have had a direct impact on the lives of vulnerable African women.
There are three important factors to note when looking at the globalisation process: One, the process is gendered and is a social construction; two, production and reproduction are intrinsically linked and are constituted through relations of power; three, women and men often enter into, and participate in, trade on differential terms. Though globalisation has opened up avenues for development, the benefits have not been equally distributed, thereby impeding efforts to promote the advancement of women, particularly those living in poverty.
The negative impact of globalisation on the world economy is disproportionately borne by women. As the economy becomes linked to global markets, it often leads to a reduction in public spending and social programmes, thereby pushing the cost onto the family, where it is often the women who shoulder the added burden.
Kwekhu, ndiyavuya ngokuba ndinikwe ithuba lokuba ndithethe ngezi nkcukacha. Siya kuphinda sibuye. Gee! I am happy to have been given the opportunity to speak about these details. We shall come back.]
Thank you very much, Chairperson. [Applause.]
Ms J A SEMPLE: Chairperson, women in South Africa are deeply affected by poverty. I will argue that the education of women and girls is probably the best investment in combating poverty this country can make. Education is a basic human right, and gender equality in education is essential for sustainable development. As a result, education in general and girls’ education in particular are priority issues in the Dakar Framework for Action and the Millennium Development Goals.
Educating women is more productive than educating men, according to Dr Alan Hedley, the Professor of Sociology at the University of Victoria. This especially applies to developing countries because of the universal sexual division of labour in which women are assigned the primary responsibility of nutrition, health and raising children. The results of education are more immediately translated into tangible benefits, yet, throughout the world, again more so in developing countries, men are given significantly more opportunities to learn than women.
It is widely accepted that a low level of literacy amongst the female population not only has a negative impact on the women’s lives, but also on that of their families and their country’s economic development. Numerous studies show that illiterate women have higher levels of fertility and very little autonomy within the household, so they cannot take control of their reproductive functions, for example. A woman’s lack of education also has a negative impact on the health and wellbeing of her children. For instance, a survey in India found that infant mortality was inversely related to the mother’s educational level, while the pervasive influence of traditional beliefs and practices was often harmful to the promotion of the education of girls and women.
For development to be sustainable, it has to recognise the full value of woman’s work – paid and unpaid - in all spheres of life in which women’s contribution is currently invisible and not valued. At the International Social Security conference held in Cape Town this week, Dr Jean Triegaardt pointed out that there is an assumption by government and other role- players that the role of women as caregivers is taken for granted.
There is also a tendency to depend on women’s reproductive role of caring for children and family members with HIV/Aids, so much so that when the chips are down and the older women in the family are not available for the role, it is the young girls who are taken out of school to take up the caregiver role. They are then unable to complete their education or gain a skill and so begin a lifelong cycle of poverty.
The same applies to school-going girls who fall pregnant. In reply to my recent question to the Deputy President as to how we could incentivise young women not to have babies before they finish school, she talked about continuing their education after the pregnancy. Yes, they must be encouraged to do this, but we also need to prevent pregnancies in the first place. Dr Triegaardt demonstrated how the labour market in South Africa has become more feminised. Women hold more lower paying jobs than men and unemployment rates are higher for women. Similarly, the patterns of poverty are generalised. Women are generally poorer than men and girls are more vulnerable than boys.
The benefits of the social grant system are also felt more by women. Ninety percent of the child support grants are given to mothers. The positive effects of social grants in South Africa are seen in the developmental benefits. Social grants facilitate what is called “prime age women” entering the job market. Some would argue that this is why young women fall pregnant in the first place because they actually need the money. This is, surely, a good argument for another form of a universal cash grant, which is not reliant on having a baby.
The opposite side of the coin is that social security grants empower women and assist in alleviating poverty, as women are mostly responsible for taking care of their children, grandchildren, foster children, family members with disabilities and HIV/Aids and aged family members. A minimal level of education, such as more than that of five or six years, must be achieved before any significant improvements can be seen in female autonomy. Primary education may not be sufficient to meaningfully improve the status of these women. Even if school attendance is free, the cost of books, uniforms and transport can be too much for poor families.
Poor families are more likely to keep girls at home to care for their younger siblings, the aged or those suffering from HIV/Aids, including their parents, or even to work for the family in the fields or in the family business. If the family has to choose between educating a son or a daughter because of financial reasons, typically it is the son who will be chosen to go to school.
The DA welcomes the formalisation of early childhood development in the recently passed Children’s Amendment Bill. New analysis by the Global Campaign for Education suggests that if all children received a complete primary education, the economic impact of HIV/Aids could be greatly reduced and thousands of HIV/Aids cases in young adults could be prevented each year.
The problems of promoting the education of girls and women are not just educational problems, neither are they just gender problems; they are intimately linked with the wider issues of national development and economic growth without which we cannot eradicate poverty. Thank you. [Applause.]
Ms C N Z ZIKALALA: Hon Chairperson, to educate a woman is to educate a nation. So, giving them a chance to acquire knowledge and skills is just like planting a seed and nurturing it throughout, because you will get a rich reward at the end of the day. In the eradication of poverty, women can be used as examples and vehicles because they have a history of being able to fight poverty despite all the odds.
Women can play a very important role in eradicating poverty. Empowered with the necessary knowledge and skills, women can do wonders. A woman can function in all different walks of life and still be able to fulfil her duties as a mother, wife and successful businessperson. She is able to embrace several children at the same time, and give them hugs that can heal anything from a bruised knee to a broken heart, and she does all this despite the fact that she is wealthy or poor.
Women have supernatural powers, I think. She is able to multiply her earnings no matter how low they are. She is also able to provide for a big family and still have remaining cash for other household necessities. It is high time that women came together and formed clubs, such as society stokvels, in order to get to know each other in our respective communities. We need to plan our way forward in eradicating poverty.
Asivuke sizenzele futhi sisebenzise ubuchopho bethu kanye nezandla zethu singalindeli ukukhangezwa. Masingalingi sizifanise namaphuphu enyoni okhamisa ngithele. Kufanele lapho siqinise ngempela. Masilime futhi sitshale imifino okuyiyona esinikeza umsoco osisiza kakhulu nasekuvikelweni ekuhlaselweni yizifo kalula. Siyazi ukuthi nalaba abakhungethwe igciwane lengculazi kufanele badle kakhulu imifino. Ngiyabonga. [Ihlombe.] (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[Let’s get up and do things for ourselves. Let us use our brains and hands and not wait to be fed. Let’s not dare to compare ourselves with hatchlings that wait to be fed. We must put more efforts there. Let us plough and grow green vegetables which give us nutrients which in turn help us a lot from being easily affected by diseases. We also know that those who are affected by Aids must eat lots of green vegetables. Thank you [Applause.]]
Ms S N SIGCAU: Chairperson and hon members, we know that in this country and in every other country that poverty and gender are linked. We know that whenever economic, military or natural disasters strike, it is women who are left to fend for themselves and their households. We also know that in most societies patriarchy still plays a role and that women are less likely to have equal access to opportunities and resources, even in times of prosperity. Finally, we know that if you uplift a woman, automatically she will uplift her family, community and, of course, the whole nation.
In light of these facts, it goes without saying that no attempt at fighting poverty can succeed if women are not at the centre of that policy. Regrettably, we do not see this awareness actually being put into practiced in policy. Indeed, it is one of those things that is always said: Women are at the core of this or that effort.
But what is actually being done specifically to assist women in poverty eradication? Is there a means test that identifies women in need? Is there a grant that is aimed at women in need specifically? Indeed, are there any mechanisms in place to ensure that the poverty assistance women receive is not afterwards taken or exploited by men? In South Africa, we are far away from achieving gender equality but we know that, in comparison with other countries, we are still relatively well off. In the long run, we need to acknowledge that social and cultural equality must be achieved without delay so that we can pursue economic equality and so bring about a permanent end to poverty instead of relying on poverty relief, which does not resolve the actual problem. I thank you, Chairperson.
Ms M M MDLALOSE: Chairperson, democracy will not be achieved unless we see in visible and practical terms that the conditions of women in our country have radically changed for the better and that they have been empowered to intervene in all spheres of life as equals of any member of our society. This was said by the former President of South Africa.
Poverty relief is closely connected to unemployment and the scarcity of skills, and this phenomenon mostly affects women. Reducing joblessness remains South Africa’s most critical challenge. With unemployment at 25,5% and the highest amongst black women, government needs to create greater labour-intensive programmes in order to address the unemployment challenge.
As we all are aware, South Africa faces skills shortages and needs to step up investment in training while shifting production towards more labour- absorbing activities. It is therefore imperative that South Africa establish a platform for educational programmes to be facilitated in strategically built empowerment centres that are closely located to poor women in order to deal with the poverty of education that many African women are still grappling with today. In order for poor women to create a new culture of education that they can pass on to their girl-children, it is imperative for them to actively take part in educational and empowerment programmes, to build themselves up and to change the face of poverty and the future of girl-children in South Africa.
Empowerment programmes for poor women are imperative and should be jointly administered by the Departments of Education, Social Development, and Trade and Industry. Programmes ranging from entrepreneurship to various career opportunities can be offered in order to curb a dependency syndrome on social grants by beneficiaries. Empowerment programmes for poor women will definitely push forward the process of bringing women into the mainstream of economic activity. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr I S MFUNDISI: Chairperson and hon members, one of the Millennium Development Goals is to condemn discrimination against women. We also know that Goal 3 of the Millennium Development Goals calls for the empowerment of women and for gender equality. Women are a good investment and that is why sages of old said, “If you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a nation.”
The “Women Deliver” conference held last year summed it up well. Its theme was: “Invest in Women; it pays”. If you invest in women, education levels increase, economies grow and political participation widens as women are central to the economic, social and political health of nations. Women have always come up as the vulnerable group. It is unfortunate that in the African context they would rather invest in educating their sons, regardless of their aptitude, than invest in educating women. In this case we need to be reminded of the Setswana saying that goes “Mo tshware gantle ke galase e a thubega”. This simply means that women deserve tender care as they are fragile. The UCDP has always put it clearly that women were not made from the crumbs of dust that fell from the Master’s table when He created man. Women are human beings in their own right and have to be accepted as such.
It is pleasant that the leadership qualities of women are gradually being recognised across the globe. They run governments after beating men in national elections. In the 14 years of this democratic Parliament, the National Assembly has been run by Eve’s descendants and it is growing in leaps and bounds.
In the rural areas women are known to face poverty squarely in the face. They know what has to be done in the home when there are no basics, be they food or clothing. In fact, in child-headed families girls always come up head and shoulders above boys.
Most burial societies and stokvels are run by women and they turn these women into agents of change and architects of their own destiny. In instances in which men have their burial societies, whenever the male has to host he can’t even do it without a woman, his wife or someone else if he’s unattached, but where the woman is a member in her own right, the husband may go away and all will run well.
It is a known fact that in most cases family businesses collapse on the deaths of wives of men who run such businesses, but if the head of the family who ran the business dies, the business prospers under the new management of the widow. With such natural talent of nurturing people and events we cannot agree more that natural abilities need pruning by study. Let us support our womenfolk as this is an investment in the future. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr R B BHOOLA: Chairperson, it has been pointed out that 70% of the world’s poor are women and that in South Africa it is the rural women who are struggling the most in the battle against poverty. While we acknowledge that we have in place legislation that will turn around the aggression of poverty in our country, the reality still shows that rural South Africans still face poor education and health facilities and minimal economic growth.
Of this, women still benefit the least by this as they fend for their families from the little they take home. While legislation is in place and in line with global trends, one expects a quick turnaround in circumstances but we soon realise that overcoming poverty it is not easy fight and that we have quite a battle up ahead. While it is reported from the South African Survey of 2006-07 that South Africa is becoming more urbanised, we need to embark on a campaign to empower women in both urban and rural communities in terms of the rights and the opportunities that they should seize.
Whilst South Africa is promising in talent, we need to expose this potential to the outside world so that the private sector may invest in this development. We have had a number of facilities set up to teach skills to women, but we believe that these skills should expand beyond sewing and vase-making and teach all skills that will facilitate a growth in skilled labour.
We need to realise that women make up a large percentage of the South African population and that if we invest in this human supply we stand to benefit as a nation and further progress in liberation in terms of gender equality. We need to abandon the patriarchal system of tradition and culture and realise that in the modern South Africa women have as an equal voice and valid input as us males. We further need to realise that the patriarchal societies in which the men were always the heads of households, it was the woman who was the neck. I thank you.
Ms S D MOTUBATSE-HOUNKPATIN: Chairperson, hon members, today’s debate opens another window for us to reflect on and assess how we are faring on gender issues. All three topics today have really helped us as a nation to look back at where we came from and to look ahead to where we are going.
With regard to the first topic: International Women’s Day, we know that this was about women fighting for better working conditions. But what is interesting about women’s battles is that there is the humane side to them. This is because when you ask these women why they were fighting for better working conditions, they will tell you that they also want to have more time for their loved ones as well – meaning taking care of their children and their husbands.
With regard to the debate on peace-building, we know peace is a prerequisite for development. And what women are concerned about is development. If any state or developing state puts resources aside and invests in women, it is guaranteed that it will be alleviating poverty. And surely changes can be seen in that society.
As women we also know that peace starts in our homes. Doing away with women and child abuse; doing away with violence against women and planting some resources will definitely make a huge difference in society and in the communities at large.
We cannot deny that there are certain virtues which women possess and that as women we cannot shy away from these. To name just a few: there is service and compassion and women naturally have that love, and women care; they care a lot. If you look at the nature of women, at how they do things, they are very embracing; they always embrace. It is very seldom that you would find women talking about “I, I, I” and “I want”. You always find women talking of “we”: “We need this”. And that is what makes women different from men, in most cases.
We should also agree that women, much as they serve their nations and much as they do all these things, they do these things because they care about the nation as a whole and not just about individual needs.
In many homes you will find a wall hanging that states: “What is a home without a mother?” This shows that if there is a woman in a house, the house becomes a home, but if you have a house with no women there is no home.
I also want to speak briefly about the girl-child. We have heard from previous speakers how girl-children are sacrificed in most cases to take care of sick people in the homes, to help the younger children when parents die. This is also because of the strength - the virtues - that I spoke about in that the girl-child, when the mother is sick, is the one that will think of giving her tablets and water. We are saying that if we invest in these children, opening opportunities for them, we can definitely do away with poverty as a nation.
The South African government under the ANC has actually opened up opportunities for our womenfolk. The previous speaker, the hon Semple, spoke about the education opportunities that are there. We must also take these opportunities seriously and ensure that our girl-children are being enrolled in the FET colleges, the nursing colleges and the teachers’ colleges to ensure that they have professions. We know it is only through this that they can have stable jobs; have job security. And job security means a guaranteed income and a guaranteed income means doing away with poverty.
We also have a programme from the Independent Development Trust that the hon Morutoa spoke about. But I think it is important for us to monitor the implementation of this. We have also passed laws here. Hon members will remember the Preferential Procurement Act. But I don’t think that we share information on how this is implemented and whether it is yielding the results that we envisaged when we passed this law.
We should also hold our government departments responsible for showing in their statistics if and how the services they render - their output - are benefiting women from them, because we know that if we invest in women we change the face of our continent. We know that if we want to build a better, a better world can only be realised if women are free. And freedom of economy is what is important.
I am from the school of thought that says economy is decisive. It is decisive because it determines your place in society. It is decisive even if you go look at other levels. Take, for instance, the UN, which is a family of nations, we know that the poor countries normally don’t have much say and are dominated by rich countries because of poverty.
I think our nation should really invest more in women - and women do reciprocate. If there is investment in women, results will be very clear and will be seen from afar.
I must conclude by saying that the country at the moment has given us a chance to bring all those IPU countries here to share with us, and also for us to give something for them to go back with. I think that if those countries, which are coming here, descending on our shores next month, if they take the importance of women seriously and invest in women, the developing countries will definitely change, the face of Africa will change, the face of our homes will change because women will command more resources and will make a difference.
Lastly, I must also thank all the hon members who participated in this debate. Surely, we will also be teaching some of the IPU participants on how, as Members of Parliament coming from different parties, we can work together and ensure that there are changes in our society and in our nation.
Ge ke ruma polelo ya ka, re a tseba gore mmagwe bana o swara thipa ka bogaleng le gore ge legae le se na motho wa mosadi ga nke e ba legae le le feletšego ka ge mosadi e le yena a tsebago gore ge letšatši le dikela go swanetše go be le seo se yago ka teng. Ge go se na seo se yago ka teng, ke yena a kalokanago a dira gore bana le mokgalabje ba be le seo se yago ka teng. Ke a leboga, Modulasetulo. [Legoswi.] (Translation of Sepedi paragraph follows)
[In conclusion, I will say that we all know that women are very brave and they can do anything for their families. They play a very important role in the family and without them nothing will ever go right. They are the cornerstone of the family and they always make sure that they provide for their families even when life is tough. Thank you. [Applause.]]
Ms J L FUBBS: Hon Chairperson, I just want to switch my phone off, if you don’t mind.
Hon Chairperson and hon members of this House, when you look at the title of this debate, “Peace, investment and women”, it clearly manages to encapsulate the two core areas facing our world today and the world of women. I think, as we come to this part of the debates, the Inter- Parliamentary Union debates, we look at issues …
Ms J A SEMPLE: Chairperson, on a point of order: May I just remind Ms Fubbs that actually what we’re talking about is, namely “Debate on Combating Poverty – Investing in Women”.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr B M Skosana): Please, that’s not a point of order. Continue, hon member.
Ms J L FUBBS: Well, I think, in all honesty, the Speaker will realise herself – that’s why she smiled – that I said, “poverty” … you know, “campaign”. It really is all the same thing. [Interjections.] If you’re talking about poverty and you know that, the point I wish to make in this short debate is this: that at this time in our world history women remain among the poorest of the poor. That’s the one aspect.
The second aspect is in terms of the Millennium Development Goals. Internationally, the world took a decision that, as a group of nations, we need to actually transform and turn around that situation.
One of the ways in which this can be done is not simply through pure financial investment, because that is often what investing is seen as, but actually the investment of resources by respective countries: South Africa, African countries and other countries internationally, and including the institutional orders. It is that kind of investment that I wanted to talk about and not a pure financial investment.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr B M Skosana): Hon member, just a moment. Is that a point of order, sir?
Mr C M LOWE: No, Mr Chairman. I wonder if the hon member would take a question.
Ms J L FUBBS: Well, normally I don’t, hon Chairperson, but if the member has a question.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): So you would take a question now?
Ms J L FUBBS: I will at the end.
Mr C M LOWE: But not now? All right.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): Continue then, hon member.
Ms J L FUBBS: I certainly will. Thank you, hon Chairperson. Members of this House, I think all of us have realised - those of you who at least take serious cognisance of what the debate is about - that these debates before us are not simply about the issues facing one country, but about the issues facing women internationally, women in Africa, women in Brazil, women in India, women in America, women in Britain.
An HON MEMBER: … women in Zimbabwe?
Ms J L FUBBS: I sat today … Indeed, in Zimbabwe, although I’m not sure why that is always your favourite topic, hon member.
But the reality is this: that today the poverty that we see is not a poverty created purely by floods, by international anathema and so on, it is often because of wars of one kind or another. And it is these wars on various continents – some of a country’s own creation, but many, many of the wars that are fought today - are invariably wars to impose another’s ideology of one kind or another or in fact to access the resources of a respective country.
The people who are the greatest sufferers, who are most vulnerable, are the women in that particular country or territory. Being as vulnerable as they are, very often - unlike our own country, which has a Constitution of which we can be proud and certainly if it’s fully implemented - women will be able to transform their situation into one of genuine economic equality and not one purely of political equality.
My appeal to all members, my own comrades and indeed also my colleagues with whom I have a very, I would call it, pleasant engagement from time to time … And I am aware, knowing from where they come, that the members who are on my left here equally support the idea that we must, as a country, contribute to the resource transformation that is currently impeding the development of women. I don’t think there’s anyone on my left who would disagree with that.
Having said that, I think if we look at our papers today, internationally as well as nationally, we become aware that the gap economically continues to rise between men and women. Now I don’t want to get into a debate as to whether economically good or bad.
What I do want to get into is to say that in most developing countries you find that women carry the greatest burden in society economically in raising families and extended families. Yet, with the huge expenditure that that would demand, in time, effort and financial resources, women do not have or enjoy the same opportunities in practice, internationally and indeed in our own country, although we have gone a long, long way with the legislation that we have enacted in the past 13 years to achieve this. Not only have we gone a long way to achieve this, we have undertaken audits that can identify the more critical challenges that face us, whether on the health scene, the education scene, the social scene and indeed in the corporate sector itself. What has this got to do with peace? As anyone will tell you … [Interjections.] As anyone will tell you, peace and poverty are linked, gentlemen on my right! I suggest you do your reading. [Interjections.] Well, at this stage, they are on my right. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr B M Skosana): Order! Order, please!
Ms J L FUBBS: But if I may continue, hon Chairperson, as I was saying, peace and poverty are linked. Without peace you will indeed have poverty, but you may also have poverty even while there is peace.
And may I say that on the financial side, the practices that have currently prevailed in this country, that have only recently been directly addressed by legislation in terms of credit, are very important instruments in ensuring that those women who are employed are not among the thousands who find themselves taking home a deduction, instead of taking home a pay- cheque. And there are people in companies and wherever else who have actually fallen victim to this kind of practice. I want to appeal to this House, finally, that we take …
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): Hon member, your time has expired.
Ms J L FUBBS: Thank you very much. I believe there is a question, hon Chairperson. [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): No, your time has expired. [Interjections.]
Ms J L FUBBS: Well, there we are! Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr C M LOWE: Hon Chairperson …
Mr M J ELLIS: Mr Chairman …
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): No, hon member, the time has expired; she’s no longer at the podium.
Mr C M LOWE: I just wanted to ask the hon member how she could make such a wonderful speech without speech notes. [Interjections.] Congratulations! [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr B M Skosana): Hon member Fubbs, I must say that you brought some life and I give you credit for that! [Laughter.] [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
The House adjourned at 17:23. ____
ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
The Speaker and the Chairperson
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Draft Bills submitted in terms of Joint Rule 159
1) Refugees Amendment Bill, 2008, submitted by the Minister of Home Affairs. Referred to the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs and the Select Committee on Social Services.
2) Prevention of and Treatment for Substance Abuse Bill, 2008, submitted by the Minister of Social Development. Referred to the Portfolio Committee on Social Development and the Select Committee on Social Services.
3) Expropriation Amendment Bill, 2008, submitted by the Minister of Public Works. Referred to the Portfolio Committee on Public Works and the Select Committee on Public Services.
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Introduction of Bills (1) The Minister of Home Affairs
a) Refugees Amendment Bill [B 11 – 2008] (National Assembly – proposed sec 75) [Explanatory summary of Bill and prior notice of its introduction published in Government Gazette No 30835 of 4 March 2008.] Introduction and referral to the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs of the National Assembly, as well as referral to the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) for classification in terms of Joint Rule 160. In terms of Joint Rule 154 written views on the classification of the Bill may be submitted to the JTM within three parliamentary working days.
TABLINGS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
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The Minister of Trade and Industry
(a) Proclamation No 47 published in Government Gazette No 30594 dated 14 December 2007: Commencement of the Corporate Laws Amendment Act, 2006 (Act No 24 of 2006).
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The Speaker and the Chairperson
(a) Report of the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers for 1 January 2007 to 31 December 2007.
(b) The Speaker of the National Assembly and the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, as co-chairpersons of the Joint Rules Committee, present the Second Report of the Joint Rules Committee for 2007, as follows:
SECOND REPORT OF JOINT RULES COMMITTEE, 2007 The Joint Rules Committee, having on 28 February 2007 considered the report of the Joint Subcommittee on the Review of Joint Rules regarding Order in Joint Sittings and Rules of Debate, recommends the following amendments to the Joint Rules: 1. Joint Rule 11 pertaining to “Relief of presiding officer” is substituted as follows: Relief of presiding officer 11. An elected presiding officer of either House must take the Chair whenever requested to do so by the Speaker or the Chairperson of the Council. 2. A new Chapter 2A entitled “Order in Joint Sittings and Rules of Debate” is inserted as follows: CHAPTER 2A ORDER IN JOINT SITTINGS AND RULES OF DEBATE Part 1: Order in joint sittings Conduct of members 14A (1) Every member, when he or she enters or leaves the Chamber or moves to any other part of the Chamber during a debate, unless the presiding officer directs otherwise, shall bow to the Chair in passing to or from his or her seat. (2) No member shall pass between the Chair and the member who is speaking nor stand in any of the passages or gangways. Members not to converse aloud 14B During debate no member shall converse aloud. Member not to be interrupted 14C No member shall interrupt another member whilst speaking, except to call attention to a point of order or a question of privilege. Order at adjournment 14D When a joint sitting rises, members shall rise and remain in their places until the presiding officer has left the Chamber. Precedence of presiding officer 14E Whenever the presiding officer addresses members during a debate, any member then speaking or seeking to speak shall resume his or her seat and the presiding officer shall be heard without interruption. Irrelevance or repetition 14F The presiding officer, after having called attention to the conduct of a member who persists in irrelevance or repetition of arguments, may direct the member to discontinue his or her speech. Member ordered to withdraw 14G If the presiding officer is of the opinion that a member is deliberately contravening a provision of these Rules, or that a member is in contempt of or is disregarding the authority of the Chair, or that a member's conduct is grossly disorderly, he or she may order the member to withdraw immediately from the Chamber for the remainder of the sitting. Referral of member’s conduct to House 14H If a presiding officer is of the opinion that a contravention committed by a member of either House is of so serious a nature that an order to withdraw from the Chamber for the remainder of the sitting is inadequate, the presiding officer may refer the matter to the Speaker or the Chairperson of the Council, whichever is relevant, for appropriate action. Expression of regret 14I (1) A member who has been ordered to withdraw from the Chamber may submit to the Speaker or the Chairperson of the Council a written expression of regret. (2) A written expression of regret approved by the Speaker or the Chairperson of the Council shall be recorded in the Minutes of Proceedings. Reflections upon judges, etc 14J No member shall reflect upon the competence or honour of a judge of a superior court or of the holder of any other office (other than a member of the Government) whose removal from such office is dependent upon a decision of either House. Grave disorder 14K In the event of grave disorder at a sitting, the presiding officer may adjourn the sitting or may suspend the proceedings for a period to be stated by him or her. Part 2: Rules of debate Member to address Chair 14L At a Joint Sitting a member may only speak from the podium, except — a) to raise a point of order or a question of privilege; and b) to furnish a personal explanation in terms of Rule 14R; c) if the member is unable to do so due to a physical disability; or d) with the prior consent of the presiding officer, when he or she may address the Chair from a microphone on the floor of the Chamber. Calling of members 14M A member shall be called in a debate by the presiding officer in accordance with a list of scheduled speakers. Time limits for speeches 14N Members shall be restricted, in regard to the length of time they speak, to the times allocated to them in the list contemplated in Rule 14M. Reference to member by name 14O No member shall refer to any other member by his or her first name or names only. Offensive language 14P No member shall use offensive or unbecoming language. Matters sub judice 14Q No member shall reflect on the merits of any matter on which a judicial decision is pending. Explanations 14R (1) An explanation during debate is allowed only when a material part of a member's speech has been misquoted or misunderstood, but such member shall not be permitted to introduce any new matter, and no debate shall be allowed upon such explanation. (2) A member may, with the prior consent of the presiding officer, also explain matters of a personal nature, but such matters may not be debated, and the member shall confine himself or herself strictly to the vindication of his or her own conduct and may not speak for longer than three minutes. Points of order 14S (1) When a point of order is raised, the member called to order shall resume his or her seat, and after the point of order has been stated to the presiding officer by the member raising it, the presiding officer shall give his or her ruling or decision thereon either forthwith or subsequently. (2) A ruling to be given after the sitting has adjourned shall be given in the National Assembly or in the National Council of Provinces, depending on which House the offending member belongs to. (3) A ruling to be given in accordance with Subrule (2) may, by agreement of the presiding officers, be delivered and enforced by a presiding officer of the House to which the offending member belongs on behalf of a presiding officer from the other House. Acting for absent member 14T A member may take charge of an order of the day in the absence of the member in charge, provided he or she has been authorised to do so by the absent member. Right of members to speak 14U A member may speak - (a) when called upon to do so by the presiding officer; or (b) to a point of order. When reply allowed 14V A reply shall be allowed to the member introducing a subject for discussion (except in the case of the President's state-of-the-nation address) or to the member in charge of an order of the day. Debate closed 14W A reply to a debate closes the debate.Report to be considered.
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National Assembly
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The Speaker
(a) Reply from the Minister of Education to recommendations in the Thirty-Fifth Report of the Committee on Public Accounts (Department of Education), as adopted by the House on 21 November 2007.
Referred to the Committee on Public Accounts.(b) Report of the Public Service Commission (PSC) on the Oversight Report on the Verification of Qualifications in the Public Service – November 2007 [RP 6-2008].
c) Report of the Public Service Commission (PSC) on the Implementation of the Performance Management and Development System for Senior Managers in the North West Province – January 20087 [RP 13-2008].
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National Assembly
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Report of the Portfolio Committee on Environmental Affairs and Tourism on the National Environmental Management: Integrated Coastal Management Bill [B40-2007] (National Assembly – sec 76), dated 12 March 2008:
The Portfolio Committee on Environmental Affairs and Tourism, having considered the subject of the National Environmental Management: Integrated Coastal Management Bill [B40-2007] (National Assembly – sec 76), referred to it, and classified by the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) as section 76 Bill, reports the Bill with amendments [B40A-2007].
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