Women’s League Message for International Women’s Day

8 March 2026
Abahlali baseMjondolo Women’s League press statement

Women’s League Message for International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day emerged from the working-class socialist women’s movement in the early twentieth century. For more than a century it has been a day to honour the struggles of women across the world and to affirm feminist socialism and internationalism.

Today, as we commemorate International Women’s Day, we remember our heroes who have fallen in the struggle, including Nqobile Nzuza, Thuli Ndlovu, and Nokuthula Mabaso. We also honour women across the world who have fallen in struggle, including Marielle Franco of Brazil, Berta Cáceres of Honduras, and Fikile Ntshangase and Babita Deokaran of South Africa.

The struggle for land and housing is also about confronting patriarchy. Patriarchy shapes our lives through interpersonal violence, economic injustice, and the exclusion of women from decision-making and leadership.

South Africa has terrifying levels of interpersonal violence, including murder and rape, and women and girls carry a terrible burden within this crisis. The state has repeatedly failed to respond to this crisis with the seriousness. The middle classes retreat behind private security while poor communities are left exposed to violence every day. Across our country women continue to face extreme levels of gender-based violence, sexual assault, and femicide. At the same time the justice system repeatedly fails women. Powerful men such as Timothy Omotoso, Thabo Bester, Shepherd Bushiri, and Cat Matlala have all been linked to serious allegations or crimes, yet justice remains slow or incomplete. Everyone can see this, and it deepens the sense that powerful men can abuse women with impunity.

Even today we still do not have justice for Nokuthula Mabaso.
The conditions in shack settlements deepen these dangers. Poor lighting, overcrowding, and the absence of safe infrastructure expose women and girls to daily risks. In many settlements there are no safe toilets, and women must walk to unsafe places at night. This places them in constant danger.

Land continues to be controlled by the rich, by the state, and increasingly by criminal mafias, while the poor are pushed to the margins and face extortion from these criminal networks.

The austerity policies imposed by the ANC for almost thirty years have weakened the institutions that people rely on. Hospitals, schools, and public transport are denied resources. These conditions place enormous pressure on poor households, and it is women who are expected to carry the heaviest burden.

In our communities we organise to defend life and dignity and build systems of care. We have communal gardens that produce fresh, healthy food. We organise community kitchens to ensure that no one goes to bed hungry. We run projects for skills development and a choir that gives women a space for art and collective expression through uBuhlalism. Through this work we build solidarity and togetherness.

We call on the government to stop taxing sanitary towels. Menstrual necessities are a basic need and must be freely available in schools, clinics, and communities. They must also be safe and non-toxic so that women and girls are not exposed to harmful chemicals.

Women must be able to own and manage land. Women must be able to participate in decision-making and leadership at all levels of society. Women must be safe in their homes, in the streets, and in all aspects of their lives.

We are women enough even when we are not married. We are women enough even when we are poor. We are women enough even when we face very difficult situations.
We are committed, and will remain committed, to socialist and internationalist feminism that builds the power of impoverished and working class women in struggle, across organisations, and across borders.

Contact:

Zipho Maphela +27 69 572 1094
Snenhlanhla Mcanyana +27 73 832 3331