Women’s unpaid labour and safety

Community Alerts, Maria Madonsela, Mpumalanga, Emalahleni, Ezinambeni, 2019/08/12

Water scarcity, women’s unpaid labour and safety .

Water is the very essence of life with the right to water recognised as basic human right not only by the South and Africa constitution but by various international human rights framework including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

This Right is violated especially in women who are taking care of their families around Empumelelweni in eMalahleni extensions.

Most of women are struggling with water around the area we don’t even know the cause as no one is talking to us in the Municipality , when we talk to the councillor will promise to ask the Municipality to bring water tanks but that doesn’t happen.

Miss Maria a community resident share her experiences of this situation,
My tap is dry for 3 months now I have to go to the stream to get water as am not working to hire the boys who get water from the stream and get paid. I do it on my own and is hard because it is always a big que sometimes you have to fight to get the a space to get to the water.

I am having young 3children who have to go to to school, but sometimes they don’t have to be at school because of water and even at school sometimes they will release them back early due to water issues.
I think we will live this life together because no one wants to carry the responsibility ,even the water tanks we heard about them but we had never seen them to rescue us. It is bad, that tells us that our municipality is not willing to serve us, i also take my washing to the stream because is too much for me and am not in a good health status is hard to breathe when I carry heavy loads.