Gender relations and women's livelihoods in the post-mine retrenchment era : a case study in Mafeteng, Lesotho

Lesotho has been a source of migrant labour for many years, with men crossing the borders to work on South African mines. Men left their homes in pursuit of mine work, leaving behind their wives to look after the household. Women would receive remittances from their husbands, which they used to survive, and for the upkeep of the home while husbands were away. As Lesotho is an agricultural society, women were involved in farming for subsistence, with some women being able to sell their produce. Men were the breadwinners and women the housekeepers, according to prevailing gender norms. With the mine retrenchments that took place in the 1980s and 1990s, many men returned to Lesotho, with no job prospects due to the employment deficit in the country. Many women are no longer receiving remittances, and are now looking after their households with their husbands being at home, unemployed. This mini- dissertation delves into the livelihoods of these women whose life circumstances have changed now that their husbands have returned. It looks at the changed gender relations within the household as well as economic strategies of survival that women employ in these trying times, given their culturally determined positions in Basotho society. AFRIKAANS : Lesotho is al ‘n bron van migrasie arbeiders vir baie jare, met mans wat die grense kruis om op die Suid-Afrikaanse myne te gaan werk. Mans het hulle wonings verlaat met die vooruitsig op mynwerk, terwyl hulle eggenote agterbly om na die huishouding om te sien. Vrouens ontvang finansiële hulp van hulle mans, wat hulle gebruik het om te oorleef, en vir die instandhouding van die huis terwyl hulle mans weg was. Aangesien Lesotho ‘n landbou gemeenskap is, was vrouens betrokke in bestaansboerdery, met sommige vroue in staat om produkte te verkoop. Volgens die oorhoofs aanvaarde norm was mans die broodwinners en vrouens die huisopsitters. Hierdie mini-verhandeling kyk dieper na die veranderde lewensomstandighede van vrouens wie se mans teruggekeer het. Dit kyk na die veranderde geslagsverhoudinge binne die huishouding, asook die ekonomiese strategiee van oorlewing wat vrouens toepas in die moeilike omstandighede, veral in die lig van hul kulturele posisies in die Basotho samelewing. CopyrightDissertation (MSocSci)--University of Pretoria, 2010.Sociologyunrestricte

'Resting’, AIDS-affliction and marital constraints : engendered livelihood issues in the aftermath of Lesotho mineworker retrenchments

Since the late 1990s retrenched Basotho mineworkers have been returning in steady numbers to the rural areas of Lesotho. While marital and household relations have been rekindled in the process, there is currently much curiosity about how the large-scale presence of men in rural areas is reconfiguring married women’s livelihood strategies and their striving for financial autonomy. The Legal Capacity of Married Persons Act of 2006 has been celebrated as a victory for married women, but customary practice and societal perceptions of the legitimacy of men’s marital powers continue to restrict women’s activities and livelihood efforts. This reflection on ethnographic research in Mafeteng, Lesotho, illustrates key constraints, in particular gender ideologies and debilitating health conditions that aggravate rural households’ economic crises. It is argued that more institutional interventions are required in order to socialise the values and promote the cause of gender equality between married partners and to tackle persisting familial and cultural impediments affecting women’s lives.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cdsa20hb2016Sociolog

Prevalence of emotional, physical and sexual abuse of women in three South African provinces

Introduction. There is growing recognition in the ranks of the South African government that violence against women is a serious problem facing us all. Until now data on the epidemiology of violence against women in South Africa have been scanty. This report presents the findings of the first major community-based prevalence study.Objectives. To describe the prevalence of physical, sexual, financial, and emotional abuse of women.Methods. A cross-sectional study conducted in the Eastern Cape (EC), Mpurnalanga (MP) and the orthern Province (NP). The sample included one randomly selected woman aged 18 - 49 years living in each of 2 232 households. The sample was drawn using stratified, multistage, random methods, and 1 306 questionnaires were completed, giving a,90.3% response rate after adjusting for households without an eligible woman.Results. The prevalences of ever having been physically abused by a current or ex-partner were 26.8% (EC), 28.4% (MP) and 19.1% (NP). The prevalences of abuse in the last year were 10.9% (EC), 11.9% (MP) and 4.5% (NP). The prevalences of rape were 4.5% (EC), 7.2% (MP) and 4.8% (NP). Considerable emotional and financial abuse was also reported, e.g. the prevalences of a partner having boasted about or brought home girlfriends in the previous year were 5.0% (EC), 10.4% (MP) and 7.0% (NP). The prevailences of physical abuse during a pregnancy were 9.1% (BC), 6.7% (MP) and 4.7% (NP). The proportions of abused women who were injured in the year before the survey were 34.5% (EC), 48.0% (MP) and 60% to (NP).Conclusions. This study is the first large-scale, communitybased prevalence study to be undertaken in South Africa The main findings are that emotional, financial and physical abuse are common features of relationships and that many women have been raped. Physical violence often continues during pregnancy and constitutes an important cause of reproductive morbidity. Many women are injured by their partners and considerable health sector resources are expended providing treatment for these injuries