Johannesburg - The Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) criticised the African National Congress' Women's League (ANCWL) for bringing six male delegates to the party policy conference, accusing the league of ''playing into the hands of patriarchy''.
''We find it laughable that the ANC Women’s League could not find even six women among the thousands to articulate responsibly on the plight of women in South Africa,'' the union federation said in a statement Wednesday.
''The federation believes that this statement is unfortunate coming from the president of the ANCWL and indirectly plays into the hands of an intransigent spectre of patriarchy that continues to oppress women in the workplace and in our communities.''
When asked during an interview why her organisation brought six men as part of the ANCWL delegation, its president Bathabile Dlamini reportedly said women ''were too emotional during debates and needed [male] experts'' for sober discussions.
Cosatu said South Africa had thousands of experts and intellectuals from which the ANCWL could draw women from, instead of men.
''As Cosatu, we believe that the experts required to deal with women’s oppression are women themselves, who experience it on a daily basis. The federation remains determined to fight alongside other women and gender activists for justice for women, a voice for women and a decent life for women in the economy and in the community.''