It was first celebrated in Russia and America, in 1909, when the socialist movement pushed for attainment of gender equality.
The day is a public holiday in developed countries, but ignored in many developing economies, including our own. Here we talk, on the day and unless some gender conscious organisation hosts something, to prick the nation’s memory, it is business as usual. While in the past, the Ministers responsible for Gender Affairs, would issue a statement, or deliver one at an event, this year, Minister Ngaka Ngaka was mute. It is not surprising though; I would avoid speaking publicly on matters pertaining to gender activism, if I sit in a position that required me to take a strong stand and lead by example on issues such as gender based violence, when I was known perpetrator. It will be recalled that President Mokgweetsi Masisi who has declared his intention to fight gender based violence, broke the promise when he appointed Ngaka late last year, a man with a publicised history of wife battering. A petition to the President to reverse the appointment has been ignored and GBV continues unabated.
