Gender bias? The struggle to establish a permanent women police presence in South Africa during the union period: 1951-1960

Abstract

The struggle to organise a permanent female presence in the South African Police (SAP) force was a long, drawn-out process, often beset by opposition and criticism from many quarters, but more often than not from the government's law and order fraternity. The process aimed at introducing women to the SAP began during the early period of the First World War and ended in January 1972 when the first two women officers, Lieutenant-Colonel D Botha and Major A Nel, joined the force. A total of 102 white female recruits was accepted for training in that year, a distinct improvement on the first two accepted for service in Cape Town in July 1915. Those women who passed the training course in 1972 were appointed on the same salary scales and under the same conditions of service as their male counterparts. Although several books have been published on the SAP in recent years, very limited attention has been paid to the history of women in that force. This article takes a small step towards remedying that current gap in our quest for a more representative historiography in South Africa.