Comments on: World would be a better place if women took charge

By: Dumisani

Dumisani — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 16:23:51 +0000

Prof Gumede this is quite an article and I wish everyone, (women and youg girls in particular) was reading it.I (for one) believe that there is a lot women can do and they have displayed that in many ways e.g raising children single-handedly, managing office and family matters, etc and i can safely say that they have done so in most cases with utmost success. I am however quite disturbed by the level of high school drop out on the part of the girls. Another factor that we seem to forget is child-trafficking, because it expose young girls to all sorts of of abominable acts at a very young age. I am however glad that the international community is joining hands in fighting against such acts.Young girls should really utilise opportunities that come about as a result of change in laws and in the way in which society view the role played by women. I wholeheartedly agree with Prof Gumede and i would like to add that boy-children should also be groomed at a young age on how to treat and respect women. This will contribute in creating a better and caring society and enable women to take charge and tackle challenges without fear and favour

By: samantha tesner

samantha tesner — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 22:08:22 +0000

Education. Where it all begins. We need to change the manner in which girls/women are portrayed by society. The only way to put an end to this stigma is to begin at an early age, educating children that both sexes play a vital role.
I don’t think one can over-emphasize the value of completing compulsory education, i.e. in 2004, 40% of girls dropped out of school before reaching grade 7! Of course, factors such as poverty play a vital role here; which brings me to my next point – there is also a dire need for skills development programs aimed at young girls and women from rural communities. Such programs must be structured in such a manner that, upon completion, these girls may in turn take their newly-learned skill back to their communities/neighbors, pass it on to them which will thereby facilitate job creation. These are only just 2 points touched on, but I believe, a good place to start.

By: Amuzweni

Amuzweni — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 20:33:11 +0000

Ah, Prof. I think you too, are responding to the social constructs that have made women of a lesser position in life. Notwithstanding I support this view – GREATLY!

By: Tarig

Tarig — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 00:11:19 +0000

I may sound extremly naieve or even simple, but if you would allow me ask that question again. There is enough for all of us. so, where is the problem? Is it the human nature? International community relationship, education, cultures? If we manage to adress this question, I gues we would be heading twoards healing all the past wounds!!!

By: Bridgeman Ndelemane

Bridgeman Ndelemane — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:26:42 +0000

vusi this is a subject very to my heart ! when teenagers indulge in premarital sex ,girls are always the ones left to reap the rewards they have to stay at home and look after the babies facing the challenges of early motherhood,when mothers have babies girls are always the ones told to stay at home and look after after the younger siblings,when men go to work in the mines they women stay behind and wait for them,only for the men to return with viruses,when men start being violent women and children are always the victims there are countless examples i can narrate but look at the world now ! despite all mothers have managed to raise children and better .mothers have managed to keep societies going,abused mothers have raised leaders and scientists ,abused mothers have kept families from falling ,protected their children from the injustices of society ,they have been the first teachers .what would the world be without women .the world would surely be a better place if women took charge

By: Kizito Okechukwu

Kizito Okechukwu — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:04:15 +0000

Interesting piece doc, i happen to refer to this blog on my recent post on blog spot-am afraid some might view me as a non-believer, books like the bible potrays some kind of pernicious teachings and counsel that over the years has encouraged some kind of abuse against women. In order to eliminate ignorance and mitigate the rising tide of abuse against women-i think our religous leaders got to accept and treat both sexes as equal as lots of people base their decision on what these religous leaders say.

Good piece again!

By: Thabileng

Thabileng — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 21:01:44 +0000

Excellent article Dr. Vusi. I’ve always wondered if the world would really be a better place if women took charge. Would the world have experienced World War I and II, Cold War and many others after that. But then i came to realise that women are capable of the same sort of violence that the world has endured under the leadership of man,they are no less different than we are. The reality now is that it was shaped by a “genius” who wrote the bible and koran amongst others for them to be so oppressed. We should also acknowledge that strides have been made in putting women in positions of power and if am not mistaken there are about 14 countries around the world that have women as presidents or heads of state, so such strides should really be acknowledged nd also taking into consideration that those women led countries haven’t suddenly improved from where they were before.

The next article Dr. Vusi may it please acknowledge the contribution of men to this world.

By: Faith

Faith — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 14:02:33 +0000

Excellent piece Vusi. But we (men and women) need more than talk …”to save many women who are killed while they are alive”

By: MLH

MLH — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:01:11 +0000

I recently read (can’t remember the source) that about 42% of SA families are single-mother headed. Only a day or two later, some nice man on talk radio said women should raise the children at home and jobs should be reserved for men. I can’t imagine what the single-parent families would live on…especially since getting any maintenance is so difficult for so many single mothers. Talk radio (in this case SAFM) can be defamatory and inflammatory; decent programming would be better!

Statistics about the percentage of women in top management are a ridiculous waste of time; most mothers would prefer to give the top job a miss in order to be a better parent. They would like equal pay for equal labour, it’s true, but don’t necessarily want to be promoted through the glass ceiling. They can’t find wives to organise their dry cleaning.

I generalise: women are natural workers, but sometimes micro manage. Men are usually delighted to leave someone else to do the work.

An anecdote: a DoT director was offered a cup of tea by a colleague when we were working over a long weekend. He made a huge fuss over the fact that she is multi-skilled and thought himself hysterically funny. I’d have put arsenic in the tea!

By: Joy-Mari Cloete

Joy-Mari Cloete — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 10:49:57 +0000

“I am, however, of the inclination that the world might be a better place if women took charge in a rigorous manner.”

What makes women better than men? We’re as capable of war, violence, and murder as men. The two sexes need to work together.