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Male
MP should extend apology to all Zimbabwean women
Women's Coalition
June 22, 2006
The Women’s
Coalition is deeply concerned about the statement ,"single
female MP’s should get married", made by the Honourable MP
of Mabvuku to female members of Parliament as highlighted in the
Daily Mirror of 17 June 2006.
At a time when
women are working hard and tirelessly to be in decision-making positions
they are being forced back to domestication, which in the past has
achieved very little for them. Analysed from a satirical, symbolic
and ironic point of view this and other statements coming from male
policy makers have serious implications for them in the near future.
At the moment
we are grappling with the reality that there is no gender equality
in all socio economic spheres of life and this one is but another
big hurdle in modern Zimbabwe. Women in and outside Parliament are
not married for various reasons chief among them are, loss of husbands
through death, domestic violence, childhood rape, death, childhood
rape, choice for careerism and activism and fear of risk of contracting
HIV and AIDS in marriages since statistics show that 60% of married
women in Zimbabwe are HIV positive. There are also a number of men
in and outside parliament not married for the same reasons and gender
sensitive female MPs have never interrogated them in public for
their marital status because being married or single is all about
choices. When a legislator directs that single women MPs get married
in a respectable House like Parliament one wonders what he wants
to achieve for them. The women and men who voted them into power
are fully aware that the MPs are single and in no way desperate
for any partnerships but for political activism and careerism.
The male MP
has already withdrawn his statement but not his negative attitude
towards women. This he has to do urgently and publicly and the Women’s
Coalition is organising for him to meet with women activists to
find out what the motive behind the statement is and was. The physical,
sexual, verbal abuse perpetrated against female MPs or any woman
in Zimbabwe regardless of political affiliation is abuse to all
Zimbabwean women.
The Women’s
Coalition feels strongly that female MPs need support in and outside
Parliament as issues they are bringing to Parliament on rape, domestic
violence and gender based violence affect the basic unit of any
society which is the family. Male MP’s have families and they stand
to directly benefit from the Domestic
Violence Bill, proposed child sexual offences bill and any legislation
protecting women and girls from gender based violence. The laws
protecting women and girls in Zimbabwe equally protects their own
wives, girl friends, daughters, aunts and grandmothers.
Zimbabwe like
the rest of the world is moving towards the 21st century
and attainment of the Millenium Development Goal number three on
Gender Equality needs commitment from policy makers. The Women’s
Coalition hopes male MPs do something about verbal abuse of women
in parliament as this has serious effects on the women’s self esteem.
If male MPs do not openly and publicly condemn the MP’s statement,
women in Zimbabwe will assume that they are not gender sensitive
and therefore ensure the next parliament is exactly the opposite
of the current one in terms of gender composition. Women in Zimbabwe
have endured gender stereotyping, physical, sexual and emotional
abuse for a quite a long time and this coming century they will
have none of it.
The Women’s
Coalition is sincerely grateful to the Daily Mirror for covering
this story and for demonstrating that the paper is fully committed
to women’s empowerment through a follow up commentary in the Daily
Mirror of 20 June 2006 . Such support to the women’s cause a lot
of times go unnoticed. We hope you continue with your efforts to
promote gender equality and equity. The paper has of late named
and shamed rapists, polygamists, wife murderers and all those who
abuse women and girls. This has gone a long way in promoting women’s
rights and minimised deaths, suicides, diseases and frustration
of women in key decision making positions in particular and all
women in general. Women’s Coalition hopes every newspaper joins
in gender activism and report on women and girls issues in an objective
and gender sensitive manner to minimise vulnerability of women and
girls to abuse.
Finally we hope
to meet with the male MP so that he further clarifies to women why
marriage on the part of female MPs should be mandatory.
Visit the Women's
Coalition fact
sheet
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