The pivotal role that women played in the struggle for democracy has only recently been recognised. For most of the last century, independent, resourceful and determined female leaders and their followers were on the march demanding their rights. Their continued defiance in the face of persecution and hardship challenged the myth of female subservience. And in the course of the struggle against Apartheid, a new gender consciousness emerged among South African women. This forms the background to two exhibitions which have opened, in partnership with the Apartheid Museum, highlighting the role of women in the struggle against Apartheid.

‘Our Triumphs and Our Tears’ An overview of women’s oppression and resistance in 20th century South Africa.

‘Malibongwe: Let us praise the women’

Photographic portraits of veteran women activists by Gisële Wulfsohn, including Albertina Sisulu, Zainab Asvat, Hilda Bernstein, Jeanie Noel and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.

Enquiries: Wieke van Delen on Tel 021 464 1265 or email wvandelen@iziko.org.za

REMEMBERING SLAVERY
CURRENT

The new exhibition recently installed in the Slave Lodge entrance hall characterises the transformation of this site into a museum of slavery and human rights. Aspects of the long history of, and the struggle against, slavery are highlighted through the use of thought-provoking texts and striking imagery.

The Cape played an integral role in the Indian Ocean trade route. Over time, the slaves brought to the Cape from the Indian Ocean basin came to outnumber the colonists. For over thirty years after the abolition of the British Ocean Slave Trade in 1807, the Cape remained a slave society. Slavery and colonialism left a legacy of servitude here and in many regions throughout the world. Still today, millions of men, women and children live in conditions close to slavery.


SLAVE ORIGINS – CULTURAL ECHOES
CURRENT

The range of objects displayed in this exhibition at the Slave Lodge – including puppets, furniture, weapons and fashion objects – reveals in a general sense the rich diversity of cultural backgrounds of the slaves transported to the Cape during the 17th and 18th centuries.

These objects are not from the period of colonial slavery, but reflect how customs and traditions are passed down from one generation to the next and adapted for different conditions.

The VOC (Dutch East India Company) maintained a settlement at the Cape to support its profitable Asian trading operations. Nearly all the men, women and children were from regions around the Indian Ocean, including present-day Madagascar, Mozambique, India, Sri Lanka and Indonesian islands such as Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Timor.

Enquiries: Gerald Klinghardt, Tel. (021) 481 3836 or email gklinghardt@iziko.org.za