Grahamstown’s 6th South African Infantry Battalion is home to more than 1000 soldiers. Less than half of them are women, who have learnt that following rules is part of both their private and work lives, and are finding that juggling dating and falling pregnant with fighting for their country is both challenging and rewarding.
Grahamstown’s 6th South African Infantry Battalion is home to more than 1000 soldiers. Less than half of them are women, who have learnt that following rules is part of both their private and work lives, and are finding that juggling dating and falling pregnant with fighting for their country is both challenging and rewarding.
Combat
Lieutenant Thembakazi Juwele (27), the highest ranked woman within the combat field said that life as a Lieutenant is exciting and scary, especially her time in Sudan where she served the military for several months. “I can say I’ve seen it all,” she said, remembering the time when rebels had her at gun point. Military Engineer at the base, Palesa Kopung (24) was sent to Democratic Republic of Congo last year.
She said that less than 10% of the combat personnel are women yet at the end of the day it doesn’t matter if you are a man or a woman, as long as you have a gun. “What you learn very quickly in the military is that without your weapon you are nothing and your weapon is nothing without you,” she said.
Falling pregnant and dating
With regards to pregnancy and dating, Juwele said, “It happens, when you are here for a long time your interests and commitments change. “ She said that they would be cutting themselves off from reality if they didn’t date. Juwele said that they are not allowed to have men spend the night and that they have to ask for permission if they want to have a child or get married. If they wish to start a family they have to move out of the single person quarters and this becomes problematic because there is not always space in the family quarters.
One thing which is taken seriously is leaving the army. “If you leave chances are you won’t be able to come back…it’s not likely that you will be set free because it would be a breach of contract,” she said.
Disciplinary Action
Molefe said that when they have issues regarding discipline it usually involves the young and new joiners. “It’s like going to varsity for the first time. Now you have freedom and an allowance and it is the same here…some misbehave and get out of hand just like one would in varsity but it is part of the experience,” she said.
Kopung added that she found the first two years very strict but that she soon got used to it as it becomes easier and more lenient the longer you are there. She said that they can even wear certain jewellery and nail polish.
Juwele said that lights out is at 10pm every night and that if this is ignored or if one misses work, fights or steals they will have to appear in front of her or the military court. Juwele said that there is also military police on site. “The MP’s control and watch our community just like the police do for the communities within town… there is huge protection over each other here. We are like one big family even though there are so many of us,” she said.
Women vs men
Juwele spoke about how living and having to compete with men is an issue of the past. She said that conflict is not very common and that there is a general sense of acceptance in the army. “We have moved away from you are a woman and you are a man here, we are all equal,” said Juwele.
Mortar Specialist, Lerato Molefe (24), who started serving when she was 19, said that being a woman will always come with a set of tests. “When you are a minority there will be conflict,” she said. “It is always there and you can’t avoid it,” she said. “We don’t need help and the men must accept that although we do not have the same physical strengths as them, we still have strengths… we are very good drillers,” she said.
Although it could appear that they receive special treatment, Juwele said women have different needs and she feels that these are met and respected. “There is a sanitation issue…we have to go camping in the bush for days on end without proper facilities and this can be difficult,” she said. Another area where their differences are accommodated for is at the camp during training sessions. “Due to the different physical strengths of women and men, the expectations of us are different…we get more time to run the same distances,” she said.
Management
Juwele added that she finds the military very well managed and that they don’t encounter many problems. “Administration runs very smoothly,” she said. The military base has everything to offer including dieticians, nurses, psychologists and therapists, shops, bars, computer labs, a library and a pool. “You can stay here your whole life, there really is everything here,” said Kopung.
