Cosmopolitan SA petitions to end tampon taxCosmopolitan South Africa has launched a petition to end tampon tax, calling all women to campaign against period poverty in South Africa. Now ex-deputy editor Sarah Browning de-Villiers together with feminist journalist Jen Thorpe investigated the plight of tampon tax in South Africa. In the report, as published in the magazine's June issue, they argue that sanitary products should not be subject to the same value added tax (VAT) as other luxury, non-essential items, and instead categorised as zero-rated basic items. "It seems illogical and sexist that women are forced to pay VAT to look after their menstrual hygiene," says editor Holly Meadows. "It begs the question: Why are we being taxed for sanitary care that is a basic biological necessity? Not only has the recent VAT increase made these products even more expensive, it has also highlighted the thousands of girls who cannot afford them and are forced to use old rags and leaves – compromising their health, dignity and school attendance. "It begs another question: If we can afford to give boys free condoms, why can’t we afford to give girls free tampons?” Here, Browning de-Villiers tells us why Cosmo is taking a stand on the global trend to end tampon tax in SA, and why it must fall…
Campaigning against tampon tax isn't new – it's been highlighted recently in the UK and US, and similar campaigns have seen tampon tax scrapped in countries like Kenya, Canada and Mauritius. In other countries like the UK, tampon tax has been reduced to a much smaller portion of the usual VAT percentage amount. South Africa has a long way to go – tampons here are still taxed as a 'luxury item', incurring 15% VAT.
Pontsho Pilane has done some extraordinary work campaigning against tampon tax locally in 2016 and 2017, but government simply hasn't prioritised this. Change rarely happens quickly, but that doesn't mean it won't happen or that we should stop fighting for it.
It's estimated that up to three-million schoolgirls will find sanitary products unaffordable (based on Stats SA's 2017 report on the number of girls in no-fee schools in 2016). Unesco estimated in 2016 that 1 in 10 girls in sub-Saharan Africa misses school during her menstrual cycle, largely due to lack of access to sanitary products that are safe and effective. The government provides things like free condoms, why not also free sanitary products? In 2017, Treasury recommended providing free pads to those in need, funded by national and provincial governments. The Department of Women allocated funds in their 2018 budget to develop a framework for the Sanitary Dignity Policy – but nothing has been actioned or rolled out as yet. It's unclear what the delays are. In the 2016/17 financial year, there was an estimated R45-billion in irregular government expenditure – so any arguments that the government cannot afford to reduce tax on sanitary products and provide free products to those who need are difficult to swallow.
So, if you haven’t yet, sign now and be part of the change! About Jessica TennantJess is Senior Editor: Marketing & Media at Bizcommunity.com. She is also a contributing writer. marketingnews@bizcommunity.com
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