MDC Assemly of Women Press Statement

The MDC Women’s Assembly joins billions of women the world over in commemorating 16 Days Of Activism Against Gender Based Violence. Women play a critical role in the development of our society and ironically continue to receive a raw deal in Zimbabwe today.

Gender equality remains a pipe dream under the failed regime that continues to impose itself onto the people in Zimbabwe. Whilst progressive societies are moving forward in advancing gender equality and working toward the eradication of violence and abuse against women, the Zimbabwe government continues to use primitive and archaic, modern and up-to-date tools of oppression to further enhance abuse and oppression of women.

All that could have gone wrong in terms of women empowerment has indeed gone wrong. All that we fought for in the liberation war, where women again played a crucial role, has been put to waste by a government that is not accountable to the people but to itself. Recently innocent women of old age were frog marched and forced to leave their sources of livelihood to march in support of an unpopular leader.

Domestic violence continues unabated the government has failed and we need a new system that accepts and respects women as equal partners and not as subordinate to male counterparts. We need to unite as women and pull the country from the free fall it has gone, and entrust a new captain who honestly has our concerns at heart. This system of evil has failed to protect us.

Violence against women has reached unacceptable levels the Gukurahundi genocide; Operation Murambatsvina and 11th March events are evidence bear testimony. We salute all the gallant women who have been consistent in the fight for gender equality and eradication of violence in whatever form.

All hope is not lost; we are masters of our own destiny, and as women and people of Zimbabwe we must take it upon ourselves to shake the foundations of our nation until we remove the tyrannical and careless regime.

Women the world over should be with the Zimbabwean women at this our of need, we have been abused enough, the world should not turn a blind eye on the current injustices we face today for injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.