South Africa Marks 70 Years Since Women’s March—But the Fight for Safety and Equality Is Far From Over
South Africa is marking 70 years since the historic 1956 Women’s March, but activists and leaders say the struggle for gender equality and safety is still unfinished.
On August 9, 1956, more than 20,000 women marched to the government buildings in Pretoria to protest apartheid-era pass laws that restricted the movement of non-white South Africans [215125]. The protest, led by Lillian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph, Rahima Moosa, and Sophia Williams-De Bruyn, became a turning point in the anti-apartheid movement and is now commemorated annually as National Women’s Day [215125][215188].
This year’s anniversary comes as President Cyril Ramaphosa issued a direct appeal to men to take a stand against gender-based violence, a crisis that has seen thousands of women and children attacked each year [215856]. Ramaphosa said the fight cannot be won by government action alone, insisting that men must play a central role in changing social norms and intervening when they witness abuse [215856].
Organizers of this year’s commemoration say the event honors the legacy of the 1956 march, but they stress that the goals of equality and safety remain incomplete [215188]. Many point to ongoing issues such as gender-based violence, economic inequality, and limited access to education and healthcare for women [215188].
During the National Women’s Day commemoration, Ramaphosa also spoke about the Taliban’s systematic oppression of women and girls in Afghanistan, drawing a parallel to South Africa’s own history with apartheid [218445]. Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai stood beside him and urged governments to officially recognize the Taliban’s system as “gender apartheid” [218445]. Human Rights Watch has documented how the Taliban have banned girls from education beyond sixth grade and severely restricted women’s employment, movement, and participation in public life [218445].
Afghan women are leading the push to have gender apartheid recognized in international law, with support from Human Rights Watch and other civil society groups [218445]. So far, seven state delegations back the inclusion of gender apartheid in a new treaty on crimes against humanity [218445]. South Africa has been urged to use upcoming treaty negotiations to strongly support adding gender apartheid as a crime against humanity [218445].