On National Women's Day, the FF Plus wants to honour and pay homage to the women of South Africa who have helped and are still helping to build up this country. Throughout the years, women have fulfilled a very significant role in our country and they have made their mark on the history of our people, the Afrikaner in particular.
A single, striking example is someone like Mrs Nonnie de la Rey, the spouse of the famous boer general Koos de la Rey. For eighteen months, she roamed the open veld with her children and succeeded in eluding the English authorities that were actively searching for her.
With her courageous actions, she moved out from the shadow of her famous spouse and became a heroin in her own right. The English would never taste the victory of capturing Mrs De la Rey and holding her in a concentration camp.
The Afrikaner nation thinks so highly of its women that a monument was erected to honour them – they are the first known nation to honour its women in this way. The National Women's Monument in Bloemfontein was unveiled on 16 December 1913 in memoriam of the women and children who suffered and died in the Anglo Boer War.
If one considers the level of violence against women and children today, it is clear that the ANC government is failing to protect them. South Africa has the highest rape rate in the world and it is also considered the most dangerous country for women who are travelling alone.
It is general knowledge that there are great shortcomings in the police service, particularly with regard to crimes committed against women and these types of crimes do not get the attention they ought to. The incidence of crime against women can, thus, be much higher than what the statistics indicate.
In the most recent tragic incident, the body of the 30-year-old Meghan Cremer from Philippi near Cape Town was discovered yesterday (Thursday, 8 August) near her home after she disappeared last week. She was presumably hijacked and then murdered.
Respect for women should firstly be cultivated at home where fathers and husbands must set the right example. Thus, attention must be paid to the social problems in the country that form part of the greater socio-economic problems in South Africa.
President Cyril Ramaphosa is adamant that decisive action must be taken in cases of violence against women and children, but the shortcomings in the police service leave them vulnerable and this must be addressed so as to ensure that our country's women are safe.
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