Under apartheid in South Africa, apartheid laws and social norms assigned black women a lower status, leading to what is now known as the “triple oppression” of race, class, and gender.

Before the colonial era, women held significant authority in many Indigenous African societies, including in agriculture. However, with the decline of farming, women lost their status and influence, leaving them with limited roles in society.

Gender discrimination in South Africa was based on traditional communal practices, where women were denied rights such as land ownership, custody of their children, and leadership positions. These practices reinforced apartheid ideology and colonial legacies that marginalized women as second-class citizens.

Following on from this history, and the history of South Africa's levels of inequality, unemployment and violence in general; it is noteworthy that rape and physical abuse against women is disproportionately common. South African society is unfavorable to women through both historically conservative society, acceptance of abuse that was tolerated by law, and the threat of violence.

History

Discrimination Non-discrimination was a key aspect of South Africa's first democratically elected government in 1994, which officially adopted a “gender equality” stance on decreasing discrimination. South Africa has signed the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as agreed to in the Beijing Platform of Action during the World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 to take steps to eliminate gender discrimination. Section 9(3) of the constitution states “The state may not discriminate against anyone using any of the following: race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ethnic group, social class, skin color, sexual orientation, age, disability, religious belief, culture, tribe, etc.”. The inclusion of both sex and gender as grounds for prohibiting discrimination is particularly significant as it protects individuals from discrimination based on biology or physical traits as well as the social or cultural background of the perceived role and position of women in society.

“Freedom cannot be achieved unless women have been emancipated from all forms of oppression... Our endeavors must be about the liberation of the woman, the emancipation of the man, and the liberty of the child.” 8 December 2013 – Nelson Mandela

Gender discrimination was prevalent within written law, as the access women had to properties was dependent on their relationships with men. Due to restrictive laws in the 1930s, black women were forced to use identity cards, regarded as passbooks, to move around the country, which limited their movement into cities and towns. Lots of women were unable to find jobs in urban areas, limiting them to brewing beer, being nannies, and doing casual work on farms owned by whites. It has been widely argued that traditional rulers suppress the acceptance of gender equality in society for the patriarchal power structures, and this has predominantly affected black women, as the power structure prohibited them from owning property, thereby reducing their role to that of mere mothers and housewives.

Employment discrimination is still prevalent in South Africa, as many women find themselves either excluded from the job market or restricted to the lowest-paying jobs. 57% of all employed South African women work as domestic servants or agricultural laborers. These positions often have little or no power when negotiating working conditions and wages. Apartheid denied African women the right to travel freely to seek gainful employment, which indirectly locked them in poverty without an escape route. Employers often take advantage of women by paying them lesser wages than their male counterparts, thereby violating the legal act put in place to protect worker rights.

Key laws and acts relating to gender discrimination In the post-apartheid era of South Africa, multiple laws and acts were put in place to reduce gender discrimination. These include

1. The Commission on Gender Equality monitors issues of gender in civil society. The functions are set out clearly in Section 190, which provides that “the evolving constitutional jurisprudence emanating from the Constitutional Court suggests a clear break from South Africa's ignominious legal past to one forged on principles of equality and non-discrimination”.

2. The Office on the Status of Women is responsible for mainstreaming gender in government departments.

3. The Women's Budget Initiative (WBI) examines the implications of the national budget on women.

4. The Labor Act of 1995 includes a Code of Good Conduct that compels workplaces to have formal sexual harassment policies in place.

5. The Basic Conditions of Employment Act ensures that there is a minimum requirement for maternity leave, which includes antenatal, postnatal, and family responsibility leave.

6. The Employment Equity Act (EEA) ensures women's equal access to the workplace.

7. The Skills Development Act ensures that women receive education and training to gain the necessary skills.

8. The Basic Child Support Grant: This gives financial support to children up to the age of 14.

9. The Maintenance Act of 1998: This law compels both partners to financially support their children. It also allows employers to deduct money from a parent's salary or wages to contribute financially to support the child/children.

10. The Domestic Violence Act (DVA) of 1998 – defends women's rights to bodily integrity and freedom from violence.

11. The Public Protector, the Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE), and the Electoral Commission—what is commonly known as ‘gender machinery—put in place to instill the Bill of Rights.'

12. The Constitutional Court, the Equality Court, the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA), special family courts, and labor courts were put in place to allow women to seek legal assistance if their rights were violated.

13. The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 1998 prevents the continuing disadvantage that women in customary unions encounter.

14. White women were given the right to vote in 1930.

15. The Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill (WEGE) 2013 allowed for the implementation of measures to increase equality, such as designing programs to ensure women held fifty percent representation in decision-making structuresWomen Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill, B 50B, (2013). https://static.pmg.org.za/bill50b_2013_1_1.pdf

The Bill of Rights All women in South Africa were not formally recognized as equal citizens until the establishment of the Constitution of South Africa in 1996. This Constitution included a special section for women called "Equality." Sections 9, 10, 11, and 12 of the Bill of Rights allude to women as equals and the basis for how they should be treated. Section 9(3) forbids discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, ethnicity, or culture. This is followed by Sections 10 and 11, which give the right to be treated equally and the right to life. One of the most significant sections is 12, which states the right "to be free from all forms of violence from either public or private sources." As domestic violence has been an issue for all women, this establishes that within the domain of a home or family, it is subject to public policy as well.

Education, marriage, consent, prostitution and the HIV epidemic amongst black women

Research by the Gender Advocacy Program (GAP) found that black women have fewer opportunities for education, employment, economic participation, and political participation. This is further exacerbated when looking at apartheid's effects on black women's social standing in South Africa. It caused separate development, and the differences caused by the migrant labor guidelines damaged the social makeup of South African families.Albertyn, Catherine. “Contesting Democracy: HIV/AIDS and the Achievement of Gender Equality in South Africa.” Feminist Studies, vol. 29, no. 3, Feminist Studies, Inc.,(2003)- 597

Education, unemployment, and poverty

Education is an important factor in breaking the cycle of poverty and unemployment in South Africa, especially for girls from struggling townships. Girls in South Africa may face challenges in feeling safe at school due to issues such as bullying, corporal punishment, and gender violence. “The Study of Violence Against Children” and articles written by the UN describe the nature and extent of the violence in and around schools. It looked mainly at bullying, corporal punishment, and gender violence in schools and the community, which has shown ways in which schools foster gender and sexual violence as well as corporal punishment. Girls' attendance in school in South Africa may face challenges due to various factors, including distance to schools and gender-based violence. One-third of rapes were perpetrated by schoolteachers, which creates a difficult process for these girls to make reports and claims to the police. Schools in rural areas are at a distance from each other, which directly exposes girls to high-risk situations when traveling to school. There is a disparity in attendance between males and females in education in South Africa, which may contribute to the cycle of unemployment and poverty for women. In recent legislative efforts, measures have been put in place to try and improve the number of girls in education by trying to break the cycle. In 2003, the South African Minister of Education set up the Girls’ Education Movement (GEM). GEM is an African movement, supported by UNICEF, where children and young people in schools and communities in South Africa work to bring positive changes in the lives of African girls and boys. GEM aims to:

Give girls equal access to education. Improve the quality of education, especially in disadvantaged schools. Make the school program and school books gender-responsive. Create schools that are safe and secure for children, especially girls. Work with boys as strategic partners. Decrease in gender-based violence. Abolish harmful cultural practices such as early marriage.

HIV epidemic, prostitution, and sexual assault

In South Africa, it is estimated that 5.5 million people are infected with HIV, and over fifty percent of those infected become infected before the age of 25. One of the main drivers for such large numbers is poverty and unemployment. Poverty is a contributing factor to the spread of HIV/AIDS in South Africa, as it can lead women to engage in prostitution for survival.Albertyn, Catherine. “Contesting Democracy: HIV/AIDS and the Achievement of Gender Equality in South Africa.” Feminist Studies, vol. 29, no. 3, Feminist Studies, Inc., 2003, pp. 598http://www.jstor.org/stable/3178725. Some women who engage in prostitution may not have access to sexual protection, which can increase their risk of contracting HIV. Sexual assault and rape can be a barrier to education for women in South Africa.Albertyn, Catherine. “Contesting Democracy: HIV/AIDS and the Achievement of Gender Equality in South Africa.” Feminist Studies, vol. 29, no. 3, Feminist Studies, Inc., 2003, pp. 600 http://www.jstor.org/stable/3178725. The effects of poverty and sexual health such as HIV and aids can lead to further economic hardship for women in South Africa. In 2017, 26% of women were estimated to be living with HIV, compared to around 15% of men.HSRC (2018) ‘The Fifth South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communication Survey, 2017’ [pdf]

Marriage and consent