Date: 10/03/2004
Source: Ministry of Correctional Services
Title: B Skosana: Celebrating the tenth anniversary of South African democracy
SPEECH BY THE MINISTER OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES, MR BEN M SKOSANA, MP, ON CELEBRATING THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF SOUTH AFRICAN DEMOCRACY AT JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY, MISSISSIPPI, UNITED STATES, 10 March 2004
Programme Director
President Ronald Mason Jr
Dr Ally Mack City, County and State Government Representatives
Faculty, Students and Friends of the University
Distinguished guests
Ladies and Gentleman
It is a source of great pleasure for me to be here today as we celebrate the tenth anniversary of democracy in my country, South Africa. I am also honoured to convey to you a message of appreciation for this occasion from the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeki, and his Cabinet. We regard today's occasion as an acknowledgement by our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora, of the determination of our people to achieve freedom and rid themselves of the shackles of colonialism and apartheid.
This is in the spirit of what South Africa's first democratically elected leader, former President Nelson Mandela, said in his book "The Long Walk to Freedom": He said "To men, freedom in their own land is the pinnacle of their ambitions, from which nothing can turn men of conviction aside".
We are proud to say that during our struggle for freedom, we enjoyed the unswerving support of African-Americans in general, but in particular the contribution of Jackson State University, as some of our previous leaders graduated from this institution and went on to fulfil one of the pillars of the mission statement of this university where it "expects its graduates to become active leaders and participants in the activities of the local community, their home community, and the world, through actions such as volunteerism, consultancies, civic and political appointments, and elections".
Since its foundation in 1877 as Natchez Seminary, Jackson State University has had a distinguished history, rich in the tradition of educating young men and women for leadership in spite of having undergone seven name changes since 1877. We at Correctional Services have benefited from this legacy of developing responsible leaders who are capable and willing to seek solutions to human, social and technological problems.
From its modest beginnings as Natchez Seminary, later to Jackson College, then to Jackson State College, to the Urban University of the State of Mississippi to the present, Jackson State University has not deviated from its original founding principles but has become an increasingly diverse institution offering a plethora of opportunities for personal growth and achievement.
It is therefore not surprising that among African-American students in Mississippi's institutions of higher learning, Jackson State University has enrolled the majority of chemistry, biology, computer science, mathematics, physics, atmospheric science and meteorology majors.
It is therefore a fitting coincidence that last month, together with Americans resident in South Africa, we celebrated the African-American History month to recall and celebrate the positive contributions made by people of African descent especially in our efforts to fight for a free and democratic South Africa. This would be a South Africa in which everyone would strive for a just and peaceful society that would eliminate despair and bring into their lives the sense of hope that would enable them to overcome their problems.
You do not need to be reminded that the idea for the observance honouring the accomplishments of African-Americans was proposed by Dr Carter G Woodson, who was known as the father of Black History. In its February 2004 edition, "Ebony" magazine describes Dr Woodson as a person "who taught teachers, transformed the vision of the masses, and became, almost despite himself, an institution, a cause and a month".
To mark the celebration of the history of African-Americans and ten years of democracy in South Africa, the United States Embassy in South Africa together with the University of Pretoria held a two-day seminar. The purpose was to attempt to recognise similarities in the struggle for inclusion, the historical and cultural links between both countries and to recognise the contributions in the arts and sciences made by African-Americans and black South Africans to their respective societies.
The keynote address was delivered by the CNN Africa Bureau Chief, Ms Charlayne Hunter-Gault, who made civil rights history in 1962 when she became the first black woman to graduate from the whites-only University of Georgia.
During her address, she related some of her experiences as a result of her interaction with the township people of South Africa. She noted that "... one of the things that impress me about South Africa (is that) I can go into a township and find a squatter camp attached to it and find people who give some of the most intelligent analysis, not only of their own condition, but of American life". This revelation is a direct result of the platform provided by the African-American History month wherein a cross-fertilisation of inter-cultural information is promoted.
Apparently Jackson University did not escape the glare of attention given to the African-American month, because I am informed that the Department of Defence decided to observe this occasion at Tougaloo College on 26 and 27 February. As you all know, Tougaloo College is one of the four institutions of higher learning that include Jackson University and that constitute the Mississippi Consortium for International Development (MCID).
This year South Africa is celebrating ten years of breaking away, exiting almost 400 years of colonial and apartheid rule. Away from governance characterised by white domination, land dispossession, oppression, repression and callous racial discriminatory laws, which left the African majority significantly illiterate, poor and underdeveloped.
This should be a celebration of, among other things, ten years of a people's struggle for social, cultural and economic emancipation. However, attempts to shed the physical and psychological remnants of our inhuman history continue to meet with resistance, which at the same time frustrates the efforts of bringing about genuine national reconciliation and nation building, so aptly pronounced on by Dr Nelson Mandela and many prominent political leaders in our country.
This psychological resistance to transformation was further enunciated by Elizabeth Isichei - a scholar of African history - as quoted by Emma Etuk in a book titled: "Listen Africans: Freedom is under fire" when she said "Colonialism makes its victims its defenders."
During his brief visit to South Africa this year, the German Chancellor Gerhard Schr
Source: Ministry of Correctional Services
Title: B Skosana: Celebrating the tenth anniversary of South African democracy
SPEECH BY THE MINISTER OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES, MR BEN M SKOSANA, MP, ON CELEBRATING THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF SOUTH AFRICAN DEMOCRACY AT JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY, MISSISSIPPI, UNITED STATES, 10 March 2004
Programme Director
President Ronald Mason Jr
Dr Ally Mack City, County and State Government Representatives
Faculty, Students and Friends of the University
Distinguished guests
Ladies and Gentleman
It is a source of great pleasure for me to be here today as we celebrate the tenth anniversary of democracy in my country, South Africa. I am also honoured to convey to you a message of appreciation for this occasion from the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeki, and his Cabinet. We regard today's occasion as an acknowledgement by our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora, of the determination of our people to achieve freedom and rid themselves of the shackles of colonialism and apartheid.
This is in the spirit of what South Africa's first democratically elected leader, former President Nelson Mandela, said in his book "The Long Walk to Freedom": He said "To men, freedom in their own land is the pinnacle of their ambitions, from which nothing can turn men of conviction aside".
We are proud to say that during our struggle for freedom, we enjoyed the unswerving support of African-Americans in general, but in particular the contribution of Jackson State University, as some of our previous leaders graduated from this institution and went on to fulfil one of the pillars of the mission statement of this university where it "expects its graduates to become active leaders and participants in the activities of the local community, their home community, and the world, through actions such as volunteerism, consultancies, civic and political appointments, and elections".
Since its foundation in 1877 as Natchez Seminary, Jackson State University has had a distinguished history, rich in the tradition of educating young men and women for leadership in spite of having undergone seven name changes since 1877. We at Correctional Services have benefited from this legacy of developing responsible leaders who are capable and willing to seek solutions to human, social and technological problems.
From its modest beginnings as Natchez Seminary, later to Jackson College, then to Jackson State College, to the Urban University of the State of Mississippi to the present, Jackson State University has not deviated from its original founding principles but has become an increasingly diverse institution offering a plethora of opportunities for personal growth and achievement.
It is therefore not surprising that among African-American students in Mississippi's institutions of higher learning, Jackson State University has enrolled the majority of chemistry, biology, computer science, mathematics, physics, atmospheric science and meteorology majors.
It is therefore a fitting coincidence that last month, together with Americans resident in South Africa, we celebrated the African-American History month to recall and celebrate the positive contributions made by people of African descent especially in our efforts to fight for a free and democratic South Africa. This would be a South Africa in which everyone would strive for a just and peaceful society that would eliminate despair and bring into their lives the sense of hope that would enable them to overcome their problems.
You do not need to be reminded that the idea for the observance honouring the accomplishments of African-Americans was proposed by Dr Carter G Woodson, who was known as the father of Black History. In its February 2004 edition, "Ebony" magazine describes Dr Woodson as a person "who taught teachers, transformed the vision of the masses, and became, almost despite himself, an institution, a cause and a month".
To mark the celebration of the history of African-Americans and ten years of democracy in South Africa, the United States Embassy in South Africa together with the University of Pretoria held a two-day seminar. The purpose was to attempt to recognise similarities in the struggle for inclusion, the historical and cultural links between both countries and to recognise the contributions in the arts and sciences made by African-Americans and black South Africans to their respective societies.
The keynote address was delivered by the CNN Africa Bureau Chief, Ms Charlayne Hunter-Gault, who made civil rights history in 1962 when she became the first black woman to graduate from the whites-only University of Georgia.
During her address, she related some of her experiences as a result of her interaction with the township people of South Africa. She noted that "... one of the things that impress me about South Africa (is that) I can go into a township and find a squatter camp attached to it and find people who give some of the most intelligent analysis, not only of their own condition, but of American life". This revelation is a direct result of the platform provided by the African-American History month wherein a cross-fertilisation of inter-cultural information is promoted.
Apparently Jackson University did not escape the glare of attention given to the African-American month, because I am informed that the Department of Defence decided to observe this occasion at Tougaloo College on 26 and 27 February. As you all know, Tougaloo College is one of the four institutions of higher learning that include Jackson University and that constitute the Mississippi Consortium for International Development (MCID).
This year South Africa is celebrating ten years of breaking away, exiting almost 400 years of colonial and apartheid rule. Away from governance characterised by white domination, land dispossession, oppression, repression and callous racial discriminatory laws, which left the African majority significantly illiterate, poor and underdeveloped.
This should be a celebration of, among other things, ten years of a people's struggle for social, cultural and economic emancipation. However, attempts to shed the physical and psychological remnants of our inhuman history continue to meet with resistance, which at the same time frustrates the efforts of bringing about genuine national reconciliation and nation building, so aptly pronounced on by Dr Nelson Mandela and many prominent political leaders in our country.
This psychological resistance to transformation was further enunciated by Elizabeth Isichei - a scholar of African history - as quoted by Emma Etuk in a book titled: "Listen Africans: Freedom is under fire" when she said "Colonialism makes its victims its defenders."
During his brief visit to South Africa this year, the German Chancellor Gerhard Schr
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