m a ppi n g wo m en ’s n eeDs i n Zi m ba bw e’s nat i o na l h e a l i n g pr o ce ss shocking facts related to the use of rape as a form of political violence during Zimbabwe’s 2008 elections. Rape was reportedly part of a widespread and systematic strategy aimed at MDC female members and supporters, calculated to intimidate, humiliate and punish MDC supporters and their families. The patterns and similarities that emerge from the stories of survivors reveal the existence of targeted cycles of violence. The report alleges that more than 2000 women of all ages were abducted, raped, tortured and beaten across the country for their political affiliation (AIDS-Free World, 2009). Similarly, women in this study made reference to violent attacks been meted out to female leaders of civil-society organisations for their political activism in defending human rights. One example mentioned was Jestina Mukoko’s widely publicised abduction and torture by members of the state’s secret police service, the Central Intelligence Organisation, in December 2008. As Director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, she was captured and brutally tortured before being dragged before the courts over unsubstantiated terrorism charges. In the same vein, the secretary general of the General Agriculture and Plantation Workers Union of Zimbabwe, Gertrude Hambira, was abducted and tortured for exposing police’s physical and sexual brutality against farm workers (Interview, 12 June 2011). Thus, Zimbabwe’s transitional-justice processes must address the need for: • • • a fundamental paradigm shift from patriarchal and paternalistic hegemonic dominance to a holistic perspective that recognises the equality of men and women; the restoration of women’s dignity; and transformative empowerment. If this does not occur, the risk of sexual violence will continue to prevent girls from attending school, women from resuming livelihood activities such as market gardening, and will discourage women from engaging in active politics. Economic and livelihood needs As Mutua (2008) argues, rights aim to regulate conflicts over scarce resources. They are not about abstract struggles taking place in a vacuum or removed from the human condition. Thus no credible transitional-justice initiative can fail to address the complex question of economic power for women. As one respondent in this study asked, ‘Can a person eat the right to vote?’ In her view, the rights of women to own and to control land and other economic resources are central to combating the kind of powerlessness that leads to sexual and genderbased violence. The fact that women’s agricultural and market activities help to sustain Zimbabwe’s national food security underscores the need for women to have access to control over productive assets, including land. Not surprisingly, therefore, economic and livelihood needs emerged as priorities in national healing from participants in this study. Women who live in poverty are forced to prioritise their basic survival needs rather than aspirations they may have of political engagement and equality. However, as alluded to in the previous section, respondents explained that political abuse has often been linked to economic obstacles that prevent them from achieving sustainable livelihoods. In fact, some respondents equated economic powerlessness with political powerlessness both of which, in turn, lie at the root of sexual and gender-based violence. Several respondents who had survived political violence had also experienced difficulty in returning to stable livelihoods. Many families have found themselves destitute and displaced, and facing continued threats to their security over allegations of supporting an opposition political party. Not surprisingly, many experienced a dramatic decline in their 9 IJR Zimbabwe Womens needs OP proof 2.indd 9 7/16/2012 11:01:31 AM