No. 19, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women affirmed that the provisions of that Convention cover all aspects of violence against women. There have been a number of recent positive developments in areas related to women and violence. In February 1993, South Africa's first specialized rape court was opened in Wynberg, with the promise of others to follow across the country. A rape and child molestation court has recently been established in Cape Town to address specifically the increasing problems of domestic violence, child abuse and rape in the area. The issue of violence is one of the most important issues to mobilize township women.
Violence threatens the social fabric and the stability of the family.
One study suggests that women constitute 2 per cent of those in power in South Africa. This contrasts with the fact that women make up 54 per cent of the voting population. A major challenge for women is whether they will be elected to serve in the Constituent Assembly that will write the new constitution. The election has been designed so that parties will be represented on the basis of proportional representation. Each party has been allowed to submit a list of 200 names for a national election and 200 names regionally, for a total of 400 seats.