Issued by Department of Foreign Affairs
30 November 2000
Honourable former President, Mr Nelson Mandela,
Our guests of honour, Callie and Monique Strydom,
Distinguised guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen
We wish to express our gratitude, albeit in absentia, for being able to participate in this very human occasion.
Monique and Callie, congratulations!
With my whole heart, I so much wish I could have been present but do hope that you can feel the fullness of my embrace, as you did in Zaÿmgoanga, Cebu, Tripoli and at home.
All of us at the South African mission in Kuala Lumpur sincerely hope that you have fully taken back your lives. We trust and pray that your world is normal and peaceful again.
We are delighted and grateful at the recognition granted to you by the Johannesburg Press Club. The media's relentless professionalism in its coverage of Monique and Callie Strydom's ordeal touched all South Africans in a way that brought about a groundswell of focused concern and humanism that bonded the nation.
For once, there was little disagreement on what had to be done for Callie and Monique, the Strydoms and the Aggenbachs, and for the government to see this through, safely. From where we were in Manila, this unique co-operation between government, the private sector and the media was most uplifting.
The outpouring of goodwill and compassion from places of worship and schools, from men, women and children from all corners of South Africa was testament to the binding force that is love and mercy, spurring Callie and Monique to survive in the face of worst adversity imaginable.
This was unity in action! This was the triumph of the human spirit!
But tonight is also a celebration of Callie and Monique's patriotism. From all the reports we received, they were, at all times, flying the South African flag high. We are very proud of you.
Tonight is a salute to the people who worked quietly and diligently from behind the scenes from Day 1 to Day 128 to free and bring home safely Callie and Monique. His Excellency, President Thabo Mbeki, our Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Director-General, the Deputy Director-General of Foreign Affairs, the Task Teams in Pretoria and Manila and the office of our Honorary Consul in the Philippines, Mr Reynaldo Concepcion.
We did not work alone. The unprecedented co-operation from both the affected and sympathetic countries, through their missions in Manila and Kuala Lumpur, ensured common strategies in dealing with the crisis. We wish to express our profound gratitude to the governments of Germany, Finland, France, Lebanon, Philippines and in particular, the government of Malaysia, in this regard.
As Africans, we remain profoundly grateful and indebted that in the end, the intervention of an African country, Libya, proved decisive to the final positive outcome of the crisis.
The entire South African Team in Kuala Lumpur feels honoured and privileged not only to have been part of the efforts to bring Callie and Monique home safely, but also to have been invited to be part of tonight's thanksgiving.
Baie dankie Callie. Baie dankie Monique.