Bevus celebrates Women’s Day
The Believers with Enthusiasm and Vision of being United in Service (Bevus) organisation, formed by women from different churches around Gauteng, held their Women’s Day celebration in Katlehong on August 9.
This eighth instalment of the Bevus gathering was held under the theme “The Heart of a Woman” and was hosted by the Apostolic Faith Mission in Katlehong.
The holiday commemorates the national march of women on August 9, 1956, to petition against legislation that required African people to carry a pass.
The pass was an identification document which restricted a black South African’s freedom of movement during the apartheid era.
The pass allowed them to enter ‘white’ areas and had come into force under the Urban Areas Act that was known as the pass laws of 1950.
On the day, more than 20 000 women embarked on a march to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to protest against the proposed amendments to the act.
They left petitions containing more than 100 000 signatures at prime minister JG Strijdom’s office door.
In honour of the occasion, while marching they were chanting songs such as Wathint’ Abafazi Wathint’imbokodo! which means now you have touched the women, you have struck a rock.
One of the Bevus members, Pastor Sanna Motloung, from the hosting church, said the organisation was formed in 2008 with the aim of giving church women a platform to address issues that affect them.
“We all understand that the history of Women’s Day began back in 1956. We had to bring it into the house of God to share issues that affect us as women. People do not know that there are so many issues that affect us women in the house of God, just that we bottle them inside and pretend as if they do not exist just because we are afraid to be judged,” said Motloung.
The worse part is that some men take little blame after a woman has been raped, while women take more blame for their dress code and so on.
“It does not sit well with us as women to take the blame for something horrible that some men do to women. Sometimes it leads to most women suffering from depression and, as a result, committing suicide.
“Bevus is a platform for women to come together and discuss all those issues,” said Motloung.
Women came in their numbers from Pretoria, Vosloorus, Katlehong, Marikana and Tsakane to witness the day.
They were asked to sit in groups and discuss how to deal with or prevent issues such as women abuse, rape, depression and suicide.
Mapule Phadu (23) from Katlehong said rape can be prevented if parents start to teach their boys to treat women with respect and if young women learn the difference between lust and love.
“Boys must respect girls and see them like their own sisters. But at the same time, we as women must learn to respect ourselves. We must know our value. What reduces the value of a woman is when she does not dress in a respectable way and shows off her body, gallivanting at night and sleeping around with people old enough to be their father just because they want to get money out of them,” said Phadu.
She warned women not to allow strangers to buy them gifts.
“As soon as you give strangers an opportunity to buy you gifts you are giving him an upper hand over you. Sometimes you will give strangers the wrong signal. After buying you gifts he will want something in return – normally he wants nothing else but to sleep with you.”
