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Victory for gender reform as motion is passed in EC Legislature

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Dear Editor

The fight to ensure gender equality and the empowerment of women received a significant boost yesterday after a motion brought by the DA to establish an Eastern Cape gender reform policy framework was unanimously passed in the Bhisho Legislature.

The motion calls on the Office of the Premier and the multi-party women’s caucus to establish this policy framework to develop clear guidelines for the development of services, policies, procedures, and practices based on gender equality and the needs of women.

Women across the Eastern Cape remain locked out of opportunities due to an unequal society and are also the victims of violence and abuse daily.

More than 35% of South African women are unemployed – a clear sign that equality in the job market still eludes them.

Unemployment and poverty persist amongst young women in the Eastern Cape due to forced early marriages, teenage pregnancy and restitutive social and traditional norms and laws – preventing many from completing a secondary education.

The empowerment of women involves raising their status through education, awareness, literacy, and training to take up opportunities.

The motion also calls for the promotion of the United Nations sustainable development goals in policy and legislative reforms in the Eastern Cape. Promoting these goals will break barriers for the development of women and will assist in building inclusive systems for the empowerment of women in the province.

Today, we commemorate Women’s Day while women in the Eastern Cape are still victims of violence, abuse, and debilitating poverty due to being locked out of opportunities.

Through the adoption of this motion the Eastern Cape is taking a step in the right direction to create an equal society for women with a pathway out of poverty and into prosperity. Together, we can build a more just and caring society.

The DA will never give up the fight to protect our women and children – a battle that is not fought once a year, but daily.

Regards

Chantel King MPL
DA-representative on the Multi-Party Women’s Caucus

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Port Elizabethan

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