Let me state right up front that this article is not the result of conversations with the Presidency. Neither Frank Chikane nor Mojanku Gumbi has anything to do with what I think about their boss.
If one dares to think about it, President Thabo Mbeki stands at the centre of the struggle for the liberation and empowerment of women in South Africa.
Some people may take me for a praise singer or an imbongi, but I believe Mbeki has played a pivotal role in the elevation and mainstreaming of women to leadership positions, especially in government, and he needs to be congratulated and applauded for his unconventional approach and thinking in an environment that is still hostile to women’s leadership and capabilities. I am actually surprised that no university has offered him an honorary degree for transforming the socio-economic landscape so that women are taken more seriously.
Through his intellectual leadership in both the government and the ruling African National Congress, Mbeki has defined and made central the commitment to women’s empowerment. Greater love has no man for women than one who blows open the doors that lead to equality, self-determination and equal opportunity. This sort of thing is unheard of in a society that is largely still patriarchal in how it sees women, treating them as mere objects of abuse and satisfaction.
Of course, Mbeki’s critics will be quick to point to his alleged ill-treatment of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, who is seen to have been fired because she was unpredictable and uncontrollable. And more recently there was the case of former deputy minister of health Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, who was dismissed for allegedly standing up to power and questioning things (see Ferial Haffajee’s “Feminist? Huh!”, August 10).
But compare these two instances of alleged ill-treatment with the scores of women who have risen to become deputy president, Cabinet ministers, premiers, members of Parliament, mayors, chief directors, directors, deputy directors and a host of other powerful and influential positions in government and the rest of the public sector. I doubt we can say that all these women are less intelligent, or issue a blanket condemnation of their leadership qualities. To do so would be insulting to them and women in general.
Mbeki has perhaps made a greater contribution to women’s emancipation than any other contemporary African leader. In fact, I cannot think of any African leader in the past 400 years who has made it the central part of his mission to elevate the position of African women to the decision-making centre of power. This political language speaks to us every day in a country where women are under attack for breaking out of their “traditional” roles.
Just as it is good for so-called critical voices to find fault with how Mbeki has allegedly ill treated several women, it is incumbent upon all of us, especially public commentators, to look at what he has done for countless other women, who have moved on to better opportunities in their lives. We have to ground our understanding and interpretation of Mbeki in how much he has changed government policy, influenced society and put his money where his mouth is in terms of women’s emancipation, rather than a few storms in a teacup.
Since the recent celebration of Women’s Day in Galeshewe Stadium in Kimberley I have sought to think through and critique Mbeki’s commitment to women’s struggle for self-determination, emancipation and empowerment. Perhaps it is the least that I can do as someone who has committed his life to pushing for the recognition and acknowledgement of women as equals among men. In fact, it is men themselves who owe it to this society to make sure that women benefit from the expanded opportunities afforded by the gains made possible by Mbeki’s leadership.
This is not intended as an opportunity for me to ingratiate myself with the government — especially the president, who I believe should hold strong views about freedom of expression. But some of us have the responsibility to reverse the perception that is being created that just because Mbeki has fired one or two women, he is neither a feminist nor genuinely pro-women.
Mbeki may have his faults — like any other fallible human being. But, at the moment, he has done more for women than any other African leader.
Mbuyiselo Botha is general secretary of the South African Men’s Forum