As a migrant woman in South Africa, accessing the healthcare system can be an overwhelming experience. Shortly after its foundation, Scalabrini’s Women’s Platform quickly noticed that many refugee and migrant women were not accessing health care due to their lack of fluent English or valid documentation.
Mama Placide, 63 years old, comes from Democratic Republic of Congo. She has been living in Cape Town since 2008. In her country she studied to become a nurse, but she has always nurtured her passion for sewing. Once in South Africa, she turned her passion into a business thanks to her skills, her strength and the support of the Women’s Platform of the Scalabrini Centre. She currently runs her business in Brooklyn, Cape Town. The sewing atelier “Uriphos” is located inside the “5 rand store” shop in Koeberg Road. From the shop window it is possible to admire her stylish creations: this attracts lots of clients!
The Scalabrini Centre has recently signed a partnership with Lady Liberty SA (NPO), a mobile legal office that travels to underprivileged and remote communities to empower women with access to basic legal information and case resolution around domestic violence, sexual assault, marriage, divorce, maintenance and wills.
We only have until the 30th September to tell the Department of Home Affairs to scrap proposals that could violate the dignity of our sisters and brothers across the continent. War, political violence and persecution are driving many to seek refuge in South Africa, just like many fled South Africa during apartheid.
