Caster Semenya, The Hypocrisy Of South Africas' Outrage

It is the self styled "Rainbow Nation", that will be hosting footballs' World Cup in just over a year. South Africa , which considers the West to be "highly intolerant and prurient",is one of the few countries to recognize same sex marriages. Their constitution states:" The state may not unfairly discriminate directly, or indirectly,against anyone on one or more grounds, including,race, gender, sex, pregnancy,marital status,ethnic or social origin,colour, sexual orientation,age, disability,religous conscious,belief, culture , language or birth." Seems to cover it all, doesn't it ? Of course Caster Semenyas' situation seems to fall outside those categories, or any others you may think of , but South Africa is bravely standing behind their recent wunderkind, stating their outrage at the unfairness of it all for all the world to see, And it IS unfair. Genetic determination of sex has too many imponderables to come to a definitive decision of just where Caster should be allowed to compete. While tests have shown that outwardly, she has the sexual characteristics of a female, inwardly she has testes producing three times the amount of testosterone as a normal female. This would normally have the effect of a woman taking steroids, a clear performance enhancer. And yet, have any tests been done showing she has testosterone receptors? Without these she could produce tons of testosterone with no performance effect whatsoever. This is not unprecedented. And this is not where my outrage and South Africas' hypocrisy lies.

Corrective rape in South Africa. This country has one of the highest incidents of rape per capita. Where especially "butch looking" lesbian women are regularly persecuted and raped as means of turning them back into "girls".

Zackhe Sowello, from Soweto, told reporters, "Everyday I am told they are going to kill me.,and after they rape me,I'll become a girl. When you are raped,you have a lot of evidence on your body. But when you report these crimes, nothing happens, and the boys who raped you are walking by you on the streets."

Research shows that 86% of black lesbians from the Western Cape live in fear of sexual assault. Triangle, a gay rights organization, states it deals with 10 new cases of "corrective rape" a week. Support groups claim an increasingly "macho political enviroment" has led to inaction over the attacks. A statement released by South Africas' National Prosecuting Attorney stated:: "While hate crimes- especially of a sexual nature- are rife,it's not something the South African government has prioritized as a specific project."

Really. Why not?

With all the hoopla over the case of Caster Semenya, why is the name Eudy Simelane virtually unknown? Lesbian and gay advocacy organisations say that the problem has not been helped by a lack of support from authorities that are still highly traditional. South Africa has one of the most liberal constitutions in the world, but the reality is far less tolerant. If a lesbian tries to report a rape, police will say,"Who would want to rape someone looking like you?", stated Phumi Mtetna, director of the Lesbian and Gay Equality Project.

South Africa has one of the highest incidents of rape in the world. Nearly 150 are reported being raped daily. and if the reports to actual crime statstics are the same as in the U.S., then the actual figures are much higher. What is happening to Caster Semenya, is without a doubt , a nightmare she may never awaken from. But perhaps, the light of day it sheds on a larger sociological nightmare may prove of benefit to others.