"Gender equality cannot be universalised " By Themba Verenga

Though most societies are celebrating the emancipation of women in most sectors of their livelihoods, women in most societies are treated as second class citizens. They are enjoying limited benefits of development as compared to their male counterparts. Women and girls in most societies throughout the world are being oppressed by their respective societies. The legislative bodies of different nations are relegating women. Religious and cultural beliefs are also playing a major role in the subjugation of female members of societies. In many societies, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and other religions are indoctrinating men to treat women as the inferior sex in societies. This is accounting for the subjugation and oppression of the female subjects in the global society. However, because of the fact that societies are not homogeneous in terms of those variables including religion, culture, legislations which place the women group down the social hierarchy in societies, oppression of women differs. In some parts of the world women are joining together to advocate their recognition in societies and in some cases through fighting against the status quo in their respective societies. This then saw the rise of different numerous feminist groups across the globe. These feminist groups have different and diverse aims and agenda. This is because; the plight of women in different corners of the globe cannot be balkanised. Their grievances and the extent to which they are oppressed differ. This piece of writing shall explore the ways in which women and girls in different corners of the globe are being oppressed. The paper shall focus on women from Sub- Sahara Africa, the Middle East and North Africa and from America and Europe. Emphasis shall be put on how these societies are propagating the oppression of women in both the private and the public sphere.

Gender oppression can be defined as an unequal state of power relations between sexes characterised by domination and abuse of women by men.(Ritzer and Goodman,2004) This ranges from unequal power relations between men and women in both the  private and public sphere to subordinate and even abuse directed to women and girls by their male counterparts. Gender oppression is therefore a social and cultural construct which “presses” down the female member of the society (Thomas, 2006) and places the male member as the important and dominant member of the society.

In Sub-Sahara Africa the so called Africa traditional culture is pressing down the female members of societies down the social hierarchy. There are some socio-cultural practices which violate the rights of women in societies. According to Amutabi (2007) in Sub-Saharan African state, Kenya some tribes are practicing a certain practice of female circumcision called cliterodectomy. In this practice women are forcibly removed their outer genitals so that they can be easily identified as the members of the society. In these practices the female body is used as an object to shape the identity of a people in the society. Since this practice is practiced among female members of the society it can safely be regarded as an oppression of the women in the society. Women in this case cannot resist this oppressive and abusive cultural practice. The plight of women in Sub-Sahara Africa following insensitive cultural restrictions is also noticed through women pawning and forced marriages. In Ghana, West Africa for instance there is the practice of servitude. In this practice, young girls are put into slavery like life of servitude in animist shrines as compensation for crimes committed by their male relatives (The Woman Watch, 1999). This tends to treat the woman citizen as inferior. It tends to propagate the patriarchal view that women are the second class citizens. The issue can be hardly separated from the issue of appeasing spirits among the Shona speaking people of Zimbabwe (Cheater and Gaidzanwa, 1996). In this case, the female family member is used to pay the family of the wronged family following homicides committed by the male family members (‘kuripa ngozi’). This tends to put the female member of the society at the receiving end of the society. Forced marriages and the practice of servitude create a dark image of African cultural practices. Women in these cases are treated as less important citizens and used to correct or propagate the interests of men in the society. In all these practices, the interests of women in societies are not respected. Women in Africa in this case are used as property which can be sold or exchanged for the benefit of men.  Thus, African men are in this case using women as their mere appendages

The plight of African women can also be viewed by the issues to do with cases of violence against women and girls. In most African countries, women are the victims of domestic violence. According to a research carried out in Zimbabwe in 1996, out of 966 women, 37 percent reported experiencing sexual abuse by their husbands and family members (RDIRBC, 2002). This supports the view that women are treated as property of men in most African societies since they have limited rights to control their behaviour and lives in the private sphere. In the case of marital rape for instance, in Zimbabwe the men are tending to manipulate the rights of their female counterparts. This gives men power to control women in their societies. Though marital rape is stated in statutory instruments of most countries, they are not seriously implemented and monitored by the responsible authorities. In Zimbabwe for instance, in 2001 fines for domestic violence were at Z$500 which was equivalent to only US$10-US$20 (RDIRBC, 2002). This is also coupled with reluctance of dealing with cases of domestic violence among African police. The Zimbabwean Constitution for instance states that aspects of private life will not be considered discriminatory. This in other words is legalising domestic violence. This indicates that traditional beliefs and patriarchy are influencing the law and make it discriminatory against women in the society. This in a long run propagates the tendency of co modifying and dehumanization of women in societies.

In the political sphere, which is one of the most important sectors in the decision making of the society, women are being represented but not to the same level as that of men. By the year 2012 only a few countries in Africa South of the Sahara have reached the 30 percent representation in the government. A few like Angola, Burundi and Mozambique had reached the target agreed at the Beijing Fourth World Conference (Thomas, 2006). In the present day for instance out of all the countries in the Southern part of the African continent only one country has a woman as the head of state. In the recent Zimbabwean election no political party was represented by women as an aspiring head of state. It is also difficult to believe that the representation of women in governments is being driven by the need to improve the position of women in the community and is out of men’s generosity. This is because, in most instances women who assume high positions in politics are related to prominent politicians. The appointment of Comrade Joyce Mujuru as the Vice President of Zimbabwe was linked to the prominence and influence of her late husband Solomon Mujuru. In this case, since the appointment of women to these high levels in politics tends to be a matter of satisfying prominent male members of the society, women are still being treated as mere appendages of men. With this the potential of these women to effectively influence policies in the state remains highly debatable. Under-representation of women in politics also means less input in policies which are meant to improve the position of women in the society.

In the economic sphere the potential of women to improve the economic position of the countries is also being repressed by the patriarchal setup in Sub-Sahara Africa. Women in the post-colonial Sub-Sahara Africa have limited rights to property ownership. According to Gaidzanwa (1994) in the post colonial Zimbabwe only 2 to 15 percent of women got permits to land in the A1 Model in the post-colonial resettlement areas, most women only got usufructs rights to land. She vociferously attacked the African set up which gives women access to land through their husbands or male relatives. Given that land forms the basis of Third World countries like Zimbabwe, depriving women secure access to land means crippling their economic muscle. Failure to have secure access to land also means that women will not manage to freely practice in cash cropping. Even the much celebrated Fast Track Land reform in Zimbabwe have hardly addressed the asymmetrical power relations in terms of land ownership. With this women continue existing powerless in terms of decision making in the economic sphere. In formal employment, Sub-Saharan African women are in most cases occupying the shop floor levels in most formal organizations. Sadly the ‘privileged few’ who occupy the top management positions in formal organizations are targets of sexual abuse. According to the Women Watch (1999) among the 966 women interviewed 60 percent of the women who were working in top management have at one time been a victim of sexual harassment which was directed to them by their superiors and subordinates. This can results in frustration among women to get formal employment and thereby accounting for underrepresentation of women at workplaces. This tends to intensify poverty, suffering and material deprivations among women. With this women’s dependency on men continues. Thus women continue as mere appendages of men and their relegation in societies continues. This calls for unique body of feminism to protect the rights of African women and fight for their rights which are yet to be gained since the subordination of women in Africa is accounting for the poverty and material deprivation among Africans.

Patriarchal set up in Sub-Sahara Africa is also accounting for poor economic position of African women. According to the Woman Watch (1999) in Zimbabwe for instance, the Zimbabwean customary gives the girl child limited access to property of the deceased parent. This actually extinguishes the gains of the Legal Age of Management Act of 1982 which declare all women or men, African or White attain full adult status at the age of 18 and thereby grant them the right to own property. According to the Woman Watch (1999) people who reach the legal age of majority are capable of owning property, entering into contracts regardless of sex or gender. However the customary law which is being applied in Zimbabwean courts is dragging back woman in terms of economic wellbeing. This then indicates that African traditional cultural practices and patriarchy are taking precedence over the protection of women in the country and used to relegate women. This tends to call for the view from the radical feminist group which advocate for total delinking of women from oppressive institutions such as marriage. This is because in this case trying to protect marriage is leading to women’s oppression.

In the Middle East and North African religion plays a major role in the subjugation and relegation of women and girls. In the Middle East and North Africa, Islamic religion which dominates in most societies propagates the oppression of women in societies. Islamic holy book, the Quran explicitly relegates the female members of the society. According to Kristoff (2009) in the Quran, The Cow verse 282 states that, one man is equivalent to two women. This indicates that Islam propagates the subordination and relegation of women in the society and respecting men at the expense of women. Men in the Quran are also given the right to marry as many wives as four. In this case, women sexuality is not respected and thereby treated as dangerous and potential dangers to the society. This shows high levels of oppression and subjugation of women’s rights sexuality. This legalises the oppression of women. In Islamic countries like Israel, Yemen, Jordan and Saudi Arabia women can be sentenced to death by their male relatives (Kristoff, 2009). This indicates that men have extended power over their women counterparts in these Islamic countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In this case, women are deprived of their civil rights which have been and still being preached by human rights activists and organisations. This is actually oppression and dehumanization of women in the name Islam and religion.

In the Islamic world, in countries like, Israel, Palestine, Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia women are forced to put on the veil which covers the face and head. According to Kristoff (2009) the veil which women in Middle East and North Africa are forced to put on, delimits the physical boundary of women to protect men and the society. In these Arab countries, religion is used to propagate the relegation and subjugation of and also portray women as dangerous to the society. According to Kristoff (2009) the veil is worn because it is believed that women’s physical appearance can awaken feelings in a man and will probably lead him to want her which may lead to adultery. In this case, the female body as a medium to control the society and to prevent societal problems. Worse still some of the victims of this harsh enforcement of dress codes are young girls who were not given enough time to choose their own religion. This shows the abuse of women rights in the name of religion. Cases of loosing virginity among women and girls in the society are regarded as being influenced by the victim not the perpetrator of crime. This shows that, even if the world is involved in a number of summits and conferences to protect the positions of weak groups like women, some countries continue the oppression of women. Though the United Nations agreed that individual countries were supposed to work against the abuse of women, in the Middle East and North Africa are still being ill-treated and deprived of their rights as human beings in their societies. In countries like Iran and Israel, the legal age of a girl to marry is nine (Thomas, 2006). Under normal circumstances a nine year old is too young to choose her husband. This indicates that women under Islamic religion are being oppressed by the legal system which is being influenced by Islamic religion. With this, need is there for women in the Islamic world to make independent movement and advocate for their freedom.

In terms of political rights and freedom, in the Middle East and North Africa women’s position is in jeopardy. In some countries in the Middle East women are deprived of their political rights and freedom. In Saudi Arabia for instance, the first the first election ever held in the in 2005 did not give women the right to vote, to stand for election or to bring appeal before the judge without male representation (International Women’s Democratic Centre, 2013). That reflects the backwardness and poor progression of countries in the Islamic world. This is just but a reflection of Muslim religion which regards female members of the society as dangerous and inferior. In Saudi Arabia following the King’s decree, women were prohibited from driving (Crystal, 2005). This indicates that there is dehumanization of women in the Arab world. In this case women are being deprived of their civil rights which automatically deprive them from a proper economic potential. In the issue of prohibiting women from driving it means that women will not be able access some of the important resources in their societies because of these movement restrictions. Prohibiting women to vote and other political rights mean that women does not contribute much in the decision   making process in the society and thereby little will be done to improve their positions.

In terms of economic well-being, women in the Middle East and North Africa where Islam is dominant, their position is danger. Women are not recognised as important in terms of the economic well-being of the country. According Crystal (2005) women in the Middle East and North African countries are at a disadvantage when it comes to gaining access to the benefits of the state. In Saudi Arabia for instance follow a long process for them to have access to the national identity card.  This indicates that women are not considered as true citizens of the country. With this, it means that, they can hardly get access to state subsidised goods. This means that the legal system is used to relegate women and subordinate them in the economic sphere. With this, women continue depending on their husbands and male relatives to have access to precious state resources. These Middle East and North African countries are resisting the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) agreements which called for the total elimination of women abuse and subordination. The Basic Law of Saudi Arabia prohibits free movement among women. Women’s rights to movement are controlled by their husbands and male relatives. Women are also prohibited from walking freely walk in public places like public streets and food stalls which are designated as male territories (Crystal, 2005). This restricts women from economic productivity and thereby exposes them as the most economically vulnerable group in the society.

The economic potential of women in the Middle East and North Africa, Islamic countries is repressed by the legal and religious values. In Saudi Arabia for instance, women are not allowed into studying engineering and are not admitted to the King Fahd University for Oil and Minerals in Dhahran (Kristoff, 2009). This indicates that Islamic societies are failing to recognise women as equally important in their potential economic contribution to national income. With this the potential of women in these Middle East North African Islamic countries is disturbed. This may be the reason for slow economic and national development at large since investing in girls and women education is one of the best investments a society can make in its own development. This is because if these Arab Islamic societies were investing in female education they would in a long run improve the health and welfare of children. Since women spend most of the time with children, failure to make sure that women are educated is not only depriving women of their rights but slowing down the development of the society at large.

The emancipation of women and their well-being compared to their male counterparts is much celebrated and preached in Western Europe and North America. However, this does not necessarily mean that women in these countries are enjoying their rights to the fullest extent. In Europe, women are being oppressed through some hidden types of abuse. The pornography industry in which naked women are used is generating about $7 billion every year in Europe and about 20 million copies of porno magazines are produced in Britain alone. This is being necessitated by about 500 million women who are being employed and in some cases forced to work in that derogatory industry (Thomas, 2006). This shows that these Western women are still being used as sex objects and are still being advertised through the international media for male consumption. This indicates that, though the Western media and governments are claiming that they are fighting the oppression of women and have moved forward in emancipating women, there is still oppression of women. Thus the West is in this case is championing the oppression and commoditisation of women even though it is also found at the fore front of preaching the gospel of women emancipation.

In the United States of America and Britain, there is important right to access employment and paid regardless of sex and gender. According to Thomas (2006) there is still alarming cases of sexual abuse, and sexual harassment among the formally employed women and girls in the country. In a research conducted among female lawyers in United States of America, 60 percent of those who were interviewed stated that, they were sexually harassed. A third reviewed that they were sexually harassed by their colleagues, 40 percent by their clients and 6 percent by judges. Among the British Civil servants, 70 percent of female respondents indicated that they were sexually harassed by men at work (Thomas, 2006). This has the potential of driving women out of formal employment and forcing them into less paying and risky informal employment. Sexual harassment directed to women at workplaces indicates that, the Western Society is still failing to appreciate that women are equally important in driving societies towards development and well being. Since this is being experienced by the educated and better informed women the plight may be worse among the uneducated and unemployed rural women but is not being publicised.

In the political sector, women in the Western world have achieved the right to freely choose their political leaders and more importantly to hold political public office. According to Mitchel (1928) as early as 1928 women in Britain and America were granted the right to vote as men. This to some extent indicates a certain progress in terms of women who were once marginalised in politics traditional Western societies. In political representation in governments however, though the Beijing Fourth World Conference proposed that member states should reach a 30 percent mark of women representation in parliament, the United States of America had only 17, 7 percent women in parliament (Thomas, 2006). This shows that, though the United States of America and Western Europe are preaching the gospel of equal representation of women in politics, they hardly trust women. The underrepresentation of women in politics of the West has the potential of propagating the omission of policy making issues with something to do with the rights of women. This shows that in these countries women are being treated as second class citizens. Thus, preaching about women empowerment and politics is just but hiding of the reality about women oppression in the Western world. In Europe and America most states are being led by men as heads of states with the exception of a few like Germany, Denmark and Iceland which are being led by women. This shows that only a few countries in the Western Europe and America are trusting women and the rest are treating them as less important and inferior. This shows that the relegation of women and the propagation of patriarchy which is still driving women to the private sphere.

The Western world is also celebrating the achievement of women rights in the social sphere. This is because the Western nations are publicising the attainment of political, social and economic rights through a number of legislations and declarations. However, this does not mean that women in the West have achieved maximum freedom from oppression by their male counterparts. In the United States of America and Europe there is a tendency of overlooking cases to do with domestic violence and some forms of gender related abuse levelled against women. According to Dzodan (2011) there is harsh treatment, persecution and discrimination of Roma women across Western Europe. The plight of this group of women is more defined in countries like the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Croatia and Norway. In Bulgaria for instance in 2006 there was forceful sterilization of Roma women in order to slow down population growth without their consent (Dzodan, 2011). This indicates a harsh law on the part of the government. It also shows that these governments are not given platform to determine their will. Thus, though the Western media is used to attack Islam, as religion which is dehumanizing the female citizens of respective countries, the West is not perfect in respecting the rights of women. In this case, racial segregation is propagating the abuse, dehumanization and oppression of women in Western societies.

The legal systems of European and North American countries are in some cases porous in terms of their protection they guarantee to women in the society. In the United Kingdom for instance, the sentence for rape can be as low as 18 hours community service (Thomas, 2006). This shows that, in these Western states violence against women is not a matter of concern. With this, the cases of women, abuse continue to be high for instance, in the United States of America rape has been reported to be occurring every minute(Dzodan, 2011). This shows a high level of oppression and dehumanization of women while the government is remaining inactive. This indicates that while the Western world is celebrating freedom of women in their societies the plight of women is still evident.

In conclusion, the oppression and dehumanization of women is at its highest level in the Islamic Middle East and North Africa. This can be partly attributed to the oppressive doctrine which is propagated by the Muslim religion and the Quran used as an important tool in the oppression of women. Sub-Sahara Africa has also developed some legislations and cultural traits which oppresses and dehumanise women in societies. This can be partly attributed to the long standing traditional religions which relegate the female members of the society and praises men as the custodians of African society. Oppression of women in society can also be attributed to the colonial encounter which diluted Sub-Sahara Africa and indoctrinated Africans with Christianity which also treats women as second class citizens. Europe is fast in terms of implementing measures to improve the position of women in most of the sectors of living. However this does not mean that Europe is perfect in as much as the protection of women rights is concerned. In Europe the media is taking centre stage in cushioning the way in which the West is oppressing women. It is also of importance to note that these societies whether African, European or Asian are not homogeneous on their own and there is possibility of the creation of numerous subcultures which have different views towards the rights of women and their oppression.

           

 REFERENCE

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 Dzodan (2011) Roma Women in Europe: the silenced, underreported gender oppression tigerbeatdown.com/2011/11/10/roma-women

Gaidzanwa, R.B (1994) Women’s Land Rights in Zimbabwe: an overview. Harare: University of Zimbabwe

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