The battle of the sexes could soon be fought in the boxing ring as there is nothing in South Africa's new boxing bill to stop men fighting women.
This was one of the issues that emerged at the South African National Boxing Control Commission's Women's Boxing Convention held in Cape Town on Saturday.
The boxing bill did not ban male boxers from going into the ring against female boxers, said ministerial spokesperon Graham Abrahams, who delivered Minister of Sport and Recreation Ngconde Balfour's speech.
Balfour was unable to attend because of another engagement.
According to the speech, the issue of whether male boxers would fight women was a question that should not be ignored. Rather than wait for such a possibility to arise, it should be debated now.
"The bill does not outlaw it. In fact it is silent about the issue."
He said the bill had already been accepted by the national assembly and during the new session of parliament would go to the National Council of Provinces and to President Thabo Mbeki to be signed.
The ministry did not expect the process to go beyond August. This meant "women's boxing will soon be a reality and we must be prepared for it".
"There is no differentiation or discrimination. Women will have the right to participate on an equal footing with their male counterparts. Males must guard against deciding for females. We need to shake the shackles of discrimination and stereotyping."
As in the case of men's boxing, safety regulations would have to be put in place for women. This must never be seen as discriminatory. If it meant safety regulations differed for women, it had to be because it was a decision reached jointly by all stakeholders in boxing.
Another issue that needed to be addressed was the possible exploitation of women boxers by unscrupulous promoters.
No women should enter the ring simply to be drawcards. They should do so because they deserved to and had earned the right to be there.
"All officials must ensure that women's boxing never resorts to becoming the farce that we witnessed in television wrestling - which is more about showmanship and making money than the art of sport. We must guard against such exploitation for monetary gain."