voter registration 2021

Twitter / IEC South Africa

Women Forward party aims to give a voice to South African women

The Women Forward political party is contesting the 8 May general elections.

voter registration 2021

Twitter / IEC South Africa

The leader of the party, Nana Ngobese-Nxumalo, told Qaanitah Hunter from Sunday Times that South Africa needs a female-orientated party because male politicians only use women as a front. She explained:

“Men make decisions, and they use women. The agenda, in general, is very patriarchal.”

Ngobese-Nxumalo, a long-time gender advocate and the granddaughter of Chief Albert Luthuli, formed Women Forward in 2009, but the party received just over 5 000 votes. A decade down the line and Ngobese-Nxumalo is back with a bang. She said:

“When you go to church, men dominate the space. In business, men dominate the space. That’s why Women Forward was created so that women will be represented in politics. We are not going to blame other people. We are going to do things for ourselves.”

Women’s agenda

She said that “a women’s agenda is the only agenda we have,” and welcomes members of the LGBTQI community, as well as men who are aware of women’s plight.

Back in 2009, when Women Foward was formed, Ngobese-Nxumalo told Laura Lopez Gonzalez from Gender Links that “women are naturally more caring and more inclusive,” and those traits need to be recognised as leadership qualities. She adds:

“Women’s issues are still seen as private matters, what happens behind closed door. When people talk about service delivery, they talk about what happens outside of the home. By the time you get to women’s issues, it’s like, ‘Oh, he slapped you on the face? It doesn’t matter.’ It matters to me, and it should be part of the agenda of government – if it is not, we are shortchanging 50% of the population.”

The Women Forward manifesto

The party hopes to reform the justice system in such a way that it is friendlier to women and victims of abuse. It will also tackle other issues women face, such as unemployment and extreme poverty.

According to their manifesto:

“We will strive to foster a society where we feel safe and protected. We want an end to all forms of physical, emotional and sexual violence against women and children.”

Read the manifesto here.