WOMANKIND is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms Sheila Mahere, Director of our partner organisation, the Musasa Project, to a post in Zimbabwe's new Senate.
Ms Mahere was one of 6 Senators (and the only woman) appointed personally by President Mugabe in recognition of her work on Domestic Violence and HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe. A total of 50 new Senators took their seats in the new chamber on December 6th 2005.
The government asserts that the new arm of the legislature is key to making Zimbabwe's institutions of governance more democratic, although the new Senate has been widely criticised as proof of further concentration of power and patronage and a waste of public funds. Today, some 5 million Zimbabweans - nearly half the population - require food assistance and inflation is running at over 500%.
Following controversial calls for a boycott, voter turnout for the Senate elections was the lowest in years. However, many opposition members see their presence in the second chamber as an important check on government domination of political spaces and have been keen to participate. The debates about political participation threaten to split the opposition.
Senator Mahere’s new post is a non-political appointment and, as such, she hopes to use the opportunities afforded to address the needs and concerns of Zimbabwean women wherever possible. For example, the draft Domestic Violence Bill has been delayed by Parliament for over 3 years and she is determined to move it forward!
As a member of the new Senate, Ms Mahere will now also be a beneficiary of another WOMANKIND partner who work to support women decision-makers, the Women in Politics Support Unit. Ms Mahere asks WOMANKIND to pass on her thanks for all the support she and the Musasa Project have received from all of us in the UK.
Click here for more information on our work in Zimbabwe.
