Zondo: Men must do more to open doors for women in places of work
Chief Justice Raymond Zondo says men are not doing enough to ensure more opportunities for women in places of work, especially in male-dominated fields.
Zondo was speaking during the conclusion of the Aspirant Women Judges' Programme in Rosebank on Wednesday.
The programme, which is up and running again after a 15-year hiatus due to a lack of funding, is aimed at providing women within the legal system the necessary tools to become judges.
Retired Supreme Court of Appeal judge Phineas Mojapelo headed up the 2023 programme, which consisted of 15 candidates with at least 12 years’ experience as legal practitioners.
Zondo said men should want to make a bigger contribution to opening doors for women.
“We may need ourselves to say, others who come and contribute will find us on the way. We may have to put in something. Why can’t I put in R100 a month, and out of that amount, would you not have been able to pay some stipend to six candidates over these months?
“And we as men should, more than the women, be wanting to contribute, as it is us men in society who have closed doors for women. We should be more active in opening those doors.”
Zondo said the judiciary does not want to rely on the government to provide stipends for future participants in the programme.
“I think we must seriously look at the possibility that we must voluntarily make contributions to make sure that, when this programme starts in January 2024, those candidates who need a stipend should have something.
“Maybe part of the reason why 15 years lapsed before this programme could happen was because we were waiting for others. We can’t keep on doing the same thing and hoping for different results. This time, we might have to change.”
ALSO READ:
