Thesis (M.A. (Political Science)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / During the apartheid era in South Africa, Black women were mostly oppressed members of the population. They faced the triple whammy oppression of race, sex and class which prevented them from living their lives freely. These categories of oppressions overlapped into the democratic dispensation. Although South Africa has become a democratic Republic, Black women continue to experience the triple whammy oppression of racism, sexism and classism. These oppressions are prevalent among Black women in the Mankweng community of Limpopo Province, resulting in different types of social issues. This development has motivated Black communities to employ Womanist theory or Womanism to eradicate the triple whammy oppressions and social issues that have morphed into challenges in the communities. This theory considers the element of equality from different aspects of life in the society. The aim of this study was to explore the triple whammy oppression and its role in making Mankweng Community in Limpopo Province of post-apartheid South Africa an unsafe environment. The study utilised semi-structured interviews to collect and collate data. Collected data established that Black women and men have different and similar views on the triple whammy oppression and social issues that contribute to unsafe environments for Black women in Mankweng Community of Limpopo Province. The study further established that Black women are mostly the victims of oppressions and social issues. The study further recommends that black men must be educated about the importance of women and that the philosophy of Ubuntu must be practiced in the communities of Black people in order to have safe environments for everyone.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Psychology)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / The study investigated the phenomena of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in women in Ehlanzeni District, Mpumulanga, South Africa in order to develop coping guidelines. This is because, one in every four, or a quarter (25%) of all women in South Africa, are assaulted by their partners every week. The study adopted a qualitative approach utilising an exploratory, hermeneutic phenomenological research design. A non-probability sample of ten women, who were victims of IPV, was used. The theoretical framework for the study was Afrocentric theory. This framework was used so that the investigation was underpinned by truly African concepts. The study was conducted at Victim Empowerment Programmes in Mkhuhlu and Acornhoek, Ehlanzeni District in Mpumalanga Province. Semi-structured interviews were used as data collection instruments and analaysed using thematic analysis (TA). The following themes and sub-themes emerged out of the data: Theme 1: Understandings of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV); Theme 2: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) experienced by participants; Theme 3: Reasons for Intimate Partner Violence (IPV); Sub-theme 3.1: Alcohol as a facilitator of IPV; Sub-theme 3.2: Early parenthood as a facilitator of IPV; Sub-theme 3.3: Poverty as a facilitator of IPV and Sub-theme 3.4: Observed behaviour as a facilitator for IPV; Theme 4: The role of lobola/culture in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV); Theme 5: What makes participants stay in abusive relationships (marriages) and Theme 6: Steps, or interventions, taken by participants in order to cope with Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Based on these findings it was recommended that a study of male perceptions towards IPV, and a nationwide study or studies on IPV, be carried out under the auspices of the Department of Social Development (DoS) and/or the Department of Health (DoH) with the help of relevant non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Coping guidelines for women victims of IPV were developed out of the research findings.

Thesis (MPH.) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / Background: Termination of pregnancy among young women is a public health issue, particularly in South Africa where high prevalence of pregnany terminations has lately been reported. It is estimated that 260000 terminations of pregnancy take place in South Africa every year. Studies in South Africa have reported that risk factors associated with termination of pregnancy such as financial problems, being poorly educated, being young, unemployed, dependent on parents, widowed or single and other relationship problems were most common. Approximately 1200 pregnancies were terminated in the District Hospital of Limpopo Province between 2017 and 2018. There is also an increased rate of unintended pregnancy among HIV positive women which suggest that women with HIV may be more likely to terminate pregnancy but chooses not to terminate due to fear of being judged. Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to investigate the risk factors associated with termination of pregnancy at a District Hospital in Limpopo Province. Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive retrospective review study in which convenience sampling of the records of women who terminated pregnancies was used in this study. A self-constructed data extraction tool was used to extract the data from patients records. The tool covered variables such as the age of the women, educational status, marital status, year and month of termination of pregnancy, gestational age, parity, and gravidity, HIV status and circumstances leading to termination of pregnancy. Data analysis was done using the STATA statistical software version 12 for Windows (STATA Corporation, College Station, Texas). The independent t-test was used for variables having two categories as it assesses whether the difference between means of two groups are statistically significant. This test was performed at the 95% confidence level. The p-value of less than 0.05 in the study results was used for statistical significant difference in means between the categories which were investigated. vi Results: The mean age was 27.9 years (standard error [Std. Err.] =0.37) and majority of women who terminated pregnancies were in the age group 20 – 24 years, single and had a secondary educational level. There was a statistical significance difference between age groups and the gestational age, parity and gravidity at p=0.004 and p<0.001 respectively. The proportion of women who were at gestational age of 1 to 8 weeks decreased with increasing maternal age from 22.4% in age ≤20 years to 13% in age group 30 – 34 years. There was again a statistical significance difference (p<0.001) in relation to number of pregnancies that have each resulted in the birth of an infant capable of survival (parity) and similarly to gravida. The prevalence of HIV amongst women who terminated pregnancy in the current study was found to be 21.3% and the risk of women who terminated pregnancies being HIV positive increased significantly with age as older women (age 20 years and above) were 6.5 times more likely to be HIV positive as compared to younger ones (p<001). Low educational level, gestational age of more than 13 weeks and parity of 1 – 2 were significantly associated with termination of pregnancy. The association of gravida of women who terminated pregnancies and HIV revealed that women who were in their second or third pregnancies (gravida) while HIV positive were 3.9 times more likely to terminate pregnancies as compared to those who were first pregnancy (p<0.001). Marital status was not significantly associated with termination of pregnancy. Conclusion: Termination of pregnancies among adolescents and youth is a major public health issue and the findings of this study highlight the need to address the structural socio-economic drivers of family planning which results in high number of termination of pregnancy amongst the youth. Structural interventions, such as increasing contraceptive use which may be useful for reducing the burden of unplanned pregnancies. These findings suggest the need for targeted interventions for women of child-bearing age to access reproductive health interventions to prevent unintended pregnancies and the associated risk of termination.

In order to gain a better understanding of the position of women in the field of policing, it was necessary to study the attitudes of the policewomen, which presently exist with regard to the role of the woman in the South African Police Service. Although some studies have been done on policewomen world-wide, none have been done in the rural areas of the Vaalrand and this is where the research took place. Only women formed part of this survey. Detailed questions were asked concerning their role in policing. This was an empirical qualitative study. The research procedures as stipulated for a descriptive study were followed, as the main objective of the research was to describe the circumstances of women in the predominantly male environment of policing. A survey interview was drawn up, containing semi-structured in-depth questions regarding their recruitment, motivation for joining and job-related satisfaction and other issues including discrimination and domination by men. Qualitative methods were applied not only for data collection but also for data analysis. The coding consisted of conceptualising the raw data. Open coding was used in this qualitative research. The researcher read through all the collected data and then assigned initial codes to condense the mass of data collected. The following main issues were found: that discrimination still exists in the SAPS, as well as resentment, a lack of recognition, misunderstanding and unfulfilled challenges which relate to conflict being experienced. These respondents have aspirations in their work and aspire to better positions in the SAPS, as there have been major contributions by women in the police. They have also had an impact on policing, as they have become major role players in the field where victims are concerned. The presence of policewomen in the SAPS is an important asset to modern law enforcement and their present day role in policing should be explored and expanded. Qualified women could also be utilised in important staff service units such as planning and research, training, intelligence, inspection, public information, community relations, and as legal advisors instead of being utilised only in administrative work. Recommendations are made for further research on aspects highlighted by the findings. / Criminology / D.Litt. et Phil.(Criminology)

There is a noticeable improvement in the quality of the lives of women engaged in economic activities beyond the home. In a democratic South Africa, women – including those in rural areas – are being freed from their fixed gender roles. Today women are regarded as co-participants in any undertaking, whether as organisers, natural environmentalists or economists, in order to achieve sustainable development. It is for this reason that a number of laws and statutory bodies are in place to speed up the empowerment of women. Consequently, women as individuals or groups are doing their best to respond to the call of democracy in order to balance the equation which has for long remained skewed. In the study area of the Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality, women have initiated projects through mobilisation of their capabilities and available resources to sustain their personal needs, and those of their households. Hence, their well-being with regard to health, nutrition, mobility and social connectivity has improved. There is no doubt that these women are primary breadwinners for their families on a daily basis, as the majority have no other source of income or their husbands’ jobs are taken by migrant labour. The research reveals that, unless women stand up and take action to disprove what is known as ‘feminisation of poverty’, nothing good can happen. Through Participatory Rural Appraisal and Community Asset Mapping techniques, an observation of ethical considerations, participants responded willingly and exposed the realities of their lives. One remaining challenge that needs to be constantly monitored is that there should be a balance between policies and practices with men needing to be empowered to understand, accept and assist in the empowerment of women with a view to achieving sustainability in almost every undertaking. / Geography / D.Litt. et Phil. (Geography)

Thesis (MPhil (Sociology and Social Anthropology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / The South African woman, due to political and social change, has a totally new role to play in the workplace. The study focused on attitudes by men towards black rural women who are participating in the upper echelons of rural economic development and have to display their full potential in positions previously and traditionally reserved for rural men. The research was conducted in the Port St John’s irrigation maize producing projects of Thandanani and Umngazi. The study develops and investigates the hypothesis that rural men have negative attitudes to the advancement of rural women. The researcher uses the theory of social closure, that originated from Max Weber, within which rural women’s upward mobility and resistance of men thereto can be placed. Social closure refers to the phenomenon that a hierarchical or stratified social system tends to develop in which an elite group seeks to maximize rewards by restricting access to resources to a limited circle of the eligible. In this a top-down process of exclusion and the limitation of opportunities, originating from rural men, is assumed. In contrast, rural women may attempt to gain access to opportunities enjoyed by rural men through a process of usurpation. In order to investigate these possibilities a social attitude survey was conducted among 45 male members of the Thandanani and Umngazi maize producing projects. Questionnaires in Xhosa language and based on summated rating scales were used. The rural men’s attitudes towards women were found to be differentiated. On the one hand, positive attitudes were found that support the advancement of women, accept equal opportunities and their creativity and helpfulness. On the other hand, sexist attitudes were observed that perceive women to be less capable and inherently inferior to men. Men, as the resourceful in-group, believe and think themselves as superior to women as the inferior out-group who as a result occupies lower positions of wealth and power. Men perpetuate their advantageous position and pass it to their offspring. These findings are borne out by literature where it is stated that men undermine cooperation between men and women in decision-making (Colclough 1999), regard women as minors (Cross et al 1988; Lessing 1994), and do not see them as relevant and worthy (Epstein 1970). Men are seen to have a desire to protect their advantage and create rules of distribution of resources to their own favour (Nel 2003). Development projects towards the advancement of women, who are believed to be inferior and incapable, are therefore deemed to fail. It is recommended that all agencies should adopt and implement equal opportunity programmes, feminists need to explore possibilities and give attention to how and in what areas men can be approached to enlist support in the struggle for women’s opportunities and rights; and cooperatives be established to break gender stereotypes through training and removal of boundaries that created occupational segregation between the genders.

There is a noticeable improvement in the quality of the lives of women engaged in economic activities beyond the home. In a democratic South Africa, women – including those in rural areas – are being freed from their fixed gender roles. Today women are regarded as co-participants in any undertaking, whether as organisers, natural environmentalists or economists, in order to achieve sustainable development. It is for this reason that a number of laws and statutory bodies are in place to speed up the empowerment of women. Consequently, women as individuals or groups are doing their best to respond to the call of democracy in order to balance the equation which has for long remained skewed. In the study area of the Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality, women have initiated projects through mobilisation of their capabilities and available resources to sustain their personal needs, and those of their households. Hence, their well-being with regard to health, nutrition, mobility and social connectivity has improved. There is no doubt that these women are primary breadwinners for their families on a daily basis, as the majority have no other source of income or their husbands’ jobs are taken by migrant labour. The research reveals that, unless women stand up and take action to disprove what is known as ‘feminisation of poverty’, nothing good can happen. Through Participatory Rural Appraisal and Community Asset Mapping techniques, an observation of ethical considerations, participants responded willingly and exposed the realities of their lives. One remaining challenge that needs to be constantly monitored is that there should be a balance between policies and practices with men needing to be empowered to understand, accept and assist in the empowerment of women with a view to achieving sustainability in almost every undertaking. / Geography / D.Litt. et Phil. (Geography)

In order to gain a better understanding of the position of women in the field of policing, it was necessary to study the attitudes of the policewomen, which presently exist with regard to the role of the woman in the South African Police Service. Although some studies have been done on policewomen world-wide, none have been done in the rural areas of the Vaalrand and this is where the research took place. Only women formed part of this survey. Detailed questions were asked concerning their role in policing. This was an empirical qualitative study. The research procedures as stipulated for a descriptive study were followed, as the main objective of the research was to describe the circumstances of women in the predominantly male environment of policing. A survey interview was drawn up, containing semi-structured in-depth questions regarding their recruitment, motivation for joining and job-related satisfaction and other issues including discrimination and domination by men. Qualitative methods were applied not only for data collection but also for data analysis. The coding consisted of conceptualising the raw data. Open coding was used in this qualitative research. The researcher read through all the collected data and then assigned initial codes to condense the mass of data collected. The following main issues were found: that discrimination still exists in the SAPS, as well as resentment, a lack of recognition, misunderstanding and unfulfilled challenges which relate to conflict being experienced. These respondents have aspirations in their work and aspire to better positions in the SAPS, as there have been major contributions by women in the police. They have also had an impact on policing, as they have become major role players in the field where victims are concerned. The presence of policewomen in the SAPS is an important asset to modern law enforcement and their present day role in policing should be explored and expanded. Qualified women could also be utilised in important staff service units such as planning and research, training, intelligence, inspection, public information, community relations, and as legal advisors instead of being utilised only in administrative work. Recommendations are made for further research on aspects highlighted by the findings. / Criminology and Security Science / D.Litt. et Phil.(Criminology)

In this minithesis I conduct a critical discourse analysis to take on a double-pronged task. On the one hand I explore the social phenomenon of the contestation between supporters of then-ANC deputy president Jacob Zuma and supporters of his rape accuser. The trial, which took place in the Johannesburg High Court between mid-February and early May 2006, stirred intense public interest, both locally and internationally. The performance of thousands of Zuma’s supporters and a far smaller number of gender rights lobby groups, both of whom kept a presence outside the court building throughout the trial, received similar attention. Second, I examine how the Sowetan, a national daily tabloid with a black, middle-class readership, mediated the trial through pictures of the theatre outside the court and letters to the editor. The study is informed by post-Marxist and cultural studies perspectives, both approaches that are concerned with issues of power, ideology and the circulation of meaning within specific sociocultural contexts. A rudimentary thematic content analysis draws out some of the main themes from the material, while the critical discourse analysis is located within a theoretical framework based on concepts from Laclau & Mouffe’s theory of meaning, which assumes a power struggle between contesting positions seeking to invalidate one another and to either challenge or support existing hegemonies. This is further informed by, first, Laclau’s theorisation of populism, which assumes that diverse groupings can unite under a demagogue’s banner in shared antagonism towards existing power, and second, by concepts from Mamdani’s theorisation of power and resistance in colonial and post-colonial Africa, which explicates three overarching ideological discourses of human rights, social justice and traditional ethnic practices. The study, then, explores how these three discourses were operationalised by the localised contestations over the trial.

PHD (African Studies) / Center for African Studies / The challenges facing divorcees when it comes to pastoral care and counselling are among the toughest to face members of the Reformed Churches South Africa (RCSA) in the Vhembe District today. There are many people in South Africa who are experiencing the pain of being divorced. The RCSA in the Vhembe District are also faced with this challenge and it affects their doctrines and their practical ministries. These challenges also affect the pastors of the RCSA. The aim of this research is to investigate the challenges that divorcees face regarding pastoral care and counselling in the RCSA in the Vhembe District, Limpopo, South Africa in order to develop an approach to pastoral care and counselling to support divorcees so that they may learn to cope with their challenges. Caring and counselling for the divorcees is the primary mission of the church. The study utilised a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive, and contextual design to obtain data from the participants within the RCSA in the Vhembe District. A sample of 30 participants (divorcees) from the RCSA in the Vhembe District was used. Data were collected on an individual basis by means of unstructured interviews. The qualitative data were collected and analysed using the six steps of open coding proposed by Tesch in an effort to understand personal experiences of divorcees. The research used Graham Redding’s approach to establish trustworthiness. The study adhered to four criteria to assess the value of the findings of qualitative research, namely credibility, applicability, consistency, and conformability. The ethical considerations were taken into account. The findings of this study show that divorcees experience many challenges, and that Reformed pastors are not equipped and not doing enough to address those challenges. This research helps to enhance the quality of pastoral care and counselling to the divorcees within the RCSA in the Vhembe District. The findings and recommendations of the study are useful in guiding all Reformed pastors in providing pastoral care and counselling to divorcees.