Over 100 women and children from across the Cape Winelands region picketed outside the gates of the Stellenbosch Wine Festival on Saturday.
They asked festival-goers to pause before they sip and consider the difficult circumstances the farm laborers live and work under in order to produce the luxury wines. They did not implicate any particular wine farm, but rather the industry as a whole.
The aim of the march and picket was to make the 3 000 wine-drinkers at the festival aware that many vineyards do not provide bathrooms, drinking water or protection from pesticides for the farm laborers. Many are paid below the minimum wage of R138,52 a day and few have access to creches for their children.
According to some picketers, women bury sanitary towels in the vineyards due to a lack of facilities.
“We have been organising the march since January,” said Nabila Hendriks, a farm worker from Ceres and member of the Women on Farms Project.
Women on Farm Project picketers told festival-goers of the hardship they endure to make the award-winning wines. They hope to create public awareness and therefore pressure on the farmers to treat them fairly. PHOTO: Christi Nortier
The project aims to help women living and working on farms to claim their rights and meet their needs in their workplace and at home. It is a national project with partners in various sectors, from trade unions to education programmes.
A flyer handed out at the protest read that while festival ticket prices ranged between R190 and R350, farm laborers should be paid the minimum wage of R138 a day.
The protesters aim to create change by getting wine-drinkers to pressure winemakers into action.
“When you visit the wine estates ask how the workers are treated, where they live and work,” said Fransina van Rooi, leader of the group discussion and member of Women on Farms Project.
This morning the Wine and Agricultural Ethical Trade Association’s (WIETA) CEO, Linda Lipparoni, stated that the non-profit organisation which monitors the ethics of the South African wine industry, had not yet been made aware of the weekend’s protest or accusations from Women on Farms Project.
“Coloured hands make the wine”: Jo-Anne Johannes (left) says there is nowhere for them to wash their hands before picking the grapes. Fransina van Rooi (right) says people must think of them when they visit wine estates. PHOTO: Christi Nortier
According to Lipparoni, WIETA will address the situation with their partners in the wine industry, civil society and trade unions.
The Stellenbosch Wine Routes company, which represented a number of wineries of the Cape Winelands at the festival, also said they have not received direct complaints about any of their members in this regard.
Roseline Engelbrecht, the labour rights co-ordinator of the Women on Farms Project, said they had a joint meeting with the police, Stellenbosch municipality and law enforcement to ensure that their march was protected.
The women marched from Die Braak to the Coetzenburg sports fields in Stellenbosch where they held their picket.