Merit Rumema wrote to Kubatana about the constitutional process questioning why so few women are actively involved in shaping the debate and discussion. Here’s her contribution:
Are women just political cheerleaders?
To say I was shocked at the level of women’s participation in the ongoing constitutional reform process is an understatement. I was appalled, devastated and disappointed. After attending three meetings in Mashonaland West Province, I was forced to come back, sit on my desk and ask myself, “What exactly is women’s participation?”
Is it the high turn out of women at these meetings, after all, there are more women in rural areas than men? Surely how can 300 women attend a meeting, just to ululate and clap hands as four, yes, 4 men, dominate a three-hour discussion. Surely how can that happen? Is women’s participation simply cheering and ululating?
As an observer from a women’s rights organisation, I travelled hundreds of kilometres to see for myself if women were being given an opportunity to speak and make their demands known. I sat through the 26 talking points and waited for women to speak. Talking point 11 discusses empowerment of previously disadvantaged groups. At this point I became really expectant, thinking women would consider how they have been disadvantaged and make new demands in the constitution such as free adult education.
Talking point 19 discusses independent commissions. Not one woman though to talk of a gender commission. This really got me very worried. What will the draft constitution comprise of? What is going on?
Back in my office after three similar meetings I started to ask myself what a people driven constitution really is and who the people are. >From my limited experience, the people are the political parties, and it has become impossible to separate the political party influence from individual thinking, aspirations and desires.
And as usual, everything that has political connotations attached to it becomes a playing zone for men, while women are silent spectators or cheerleaders, depending which party reigns in the area. Whether it is fear, intimidation, lack of knowledge and political will, in rural Zimbabwe, the women’s role is to be used as stepping stones in the dirty game called politics.
Why are we as a nation spending time and resources on a process whose outcome will hinge only on politics party needs?
