Secretary general Fikile Mbalula says the ANC’s top seven leaders will not automatically step down should the party lose the elections. Photo: Delwyn Verasamy, M&G
Delivering the party’s political report at the ANC’s 55th national elective conference, president Cyril Ramaphosa outlined that more needs to be done to address gender parity in the country and in the ANC.
He said that although much work has been done, more women need to be appointed to positions of leadership. These remarks were nothing new but this time around it was accompanied by an increase in the representation of women in the top seven of the party’s ranks.
Nomvula Mokonyane was elected first deputy secretary and Maropene Ramokgopa second deputy and Gwen Ramokgopa is the treasurer general, the first time a woman has occupied this position.
From a gender policy that spoke highly of the effective inclusion of women in leadership to positioning itself as a non-sexist liberation movement and having a 50% gender representation quota, but with little priority being given to the gender balance in what was the top six, this is a positive step.
The biggest credit for this shift is the women who rallied behind this conversation and pushed for effective representation despite the patriarchal system entrenched in the party.
Although they are not reflected in the top seven, it’s women like Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Lindiwe Sisulu and Baleka Mbete confirming the readiness and capacity of women to lead the ANC.
Ramokgopa said, “This didn’t come on a silver platter as women rallied to achieve gender parity”.
Dismantling sexist, patriarchal and misogynistic practices in male-dominated spaces is not easy because it becomes entrenched in the behaviour and practices of the women and men in that system — hence the dissatisfying behaviour of the ANC Women’s League in backing men during elective conferences.
Women’s involvement in the top seven positions may result in tangible gains for democracy, including greater responsiveness to citizen needs, increased cooperation across party and ethnic lines, and a more sustainable future. It helps advance gender equality and affects the range of policy issues that get considered and the types of solutions that are proposed.
The most important value that this brings is that it puts pressure on other political parties and institutions to consider gender balance as part of their mandates. The gender parity movement is not only about the ANC, it is about achieving effective representation in the legislature, the executive, the judiciary and any other decision-making institution.
The public ought to hold all these institutions accountable for lacking effective representation of marginalised groups — for example, women, persons living with disability, the LGBTI+ and diverse racial groups. This is the best way to ensure that issues like gender-based violence and femicide, hate speech and killings of LGBTI+ people, and infrastructure exclusions of persons living with disability — for example recognising sign language — are addressed as priority issues.
Shortfalls of the ANC gender outcomes
Although it is a moment to celebrate, it is equally an opportunity to identify the gaps in gender parity in the ANC’s elective process.
First, the creation of another deputy secretary general role is problematic. It can be argued that the ANC has created a new position to make sure that more women are represented.
This is not progressive because the deputy secretary general position has been viewed as the only position “acceptable” for women to occupy in the top six for the past 110 years.
Furthermore, constantly giving women deputy roles reinforces the idea that female roles are constructed as an opposite to an ideal male role and this perpetuates patriarchy.
Second, the aim is to have a 50%+ gender representation in the top seven. An increase from 16% gender representation to 43% gender representation is an achievement, but won’t ensure that this is the case at the next ANC national conference. The ANC should adopt a 50% quota policy for the top seven positions to ensure that this is sustained or extend their existing policy to state that it must reflect in the top seven.
If it does not, the party will repeat what happened when it elected Baleka Mbete as national chairperson at the 2007 and 2012 elective conferences together with a deputy secretary general (Thandi Modise and Jessie Duarte, respectively). In 2017, the party went back to only one woman being part of the top six.
Third, the ANC needs to create an enabling environment for women to contest top seven positions confidently and without fear. When women contest for top positions, unreasonable narratives are perpetuated about their capacity and abilities.
The men in the ANC need to be proponents of women’s effective inclusion in the top seven, not just in the general party or executive. This will include encouraging women to contest against them or stepping aside and backing women to occupy top positions.
Fourth, the women’s league needs to work on aligning its priorities with the gender representation movement. It is not only men in the ANC to blame for male dominance. The women’s league has been criticised for not throwing its weight behind women for the top positions.
For example, before the recent national conference, Sisulu and Dlamini Zuma were the women candidates for the position of president together with the men, Ramaphosa and Zweli Mkhize, but the women’s league chose to put their weight behind a man.
Last, it is important that the ANC limits the importance of finances in winning elections. Women continue to struggle against triple burden, including class, which translates to the economy. If money is the centre in winning elections, it is then disadvantageous to the majority of women as many are still economically underprivileged.
Public pressure will be crucial in ensuring gender representation. It is worth reminding the public that, as Samora Machel, the leader of Frelimo in Mozambique, said in 1973: “The liberation of women is a fundamental necessity for the revolution, the guarantee of its continuity and the precondition for its victory”.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Mail & Guardian.