The Master of Ceremonies
Deputy President of the Constitutional Court, Justice Pius Langa
The Chairperson of the Human Rights Commission, Dr B Pityana
The Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Ms
CE Gilwald
Fellow South Africans
Ladies and Gentlemen
I feel very privileged to be addressing you on a day as important as this one. Forty years ago, on this day, the people of South Africa irrevocably changed the pace in their struggle for freedom and moved a step closer towards achieving the rights and freedoms that are now enjoyed by South Africans irrespective of race, colour, gender or creed, and hopefully will also be enjoyed by many generations to come.
The adoption of the Freedom Charter in 1955 was a significant turning point in the history of our country. The African National Congress, through this Charter, articulated an all-embracing vision for a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa. The People's Organisation believed that this vision could be attained through peaceful means. This vision contained fundamental rights of all South Africans and it was prepared to fight for these rights at all costs.
21 March 2000 of 1960, seriously tested the resolve of the people to pursue the struggle through non-violent means.
The response to the massacre of 69 peaceful demonstrators by the police on this day in Sharpeville and other mass demonstrations carried out throughout the country during this period, 40 ears ago, required a marked shift from the commitment to non-violence. This translated into intensified confrontations between the then government and the oppressed majority.
The decision to move away from the policy of non-violence towards armed struggle was not taken lightly. The ruthlessness and the military might of the South African State at the time meant that the odds were heavily weighed against the people. It was known that blood would be spilled, lives would be lost - Yet the struggle continued because those who had no rights and freedom had to make a choice to submit to oppression or to fight, as was put by Nelson Mandela.
The challenges of the time demanded from them the ultimate sacrifice - they were prepared to pay with their lives and those of their children. The unwavering commitment to the principles spelled out in the Freedom Charter, and the need to salvage their dignity, meant that nothing could stand in their way. They were committed to this course and as our former President Nelson Mandela so eloquently put it, it was a course for which "they were prepared to die".
I sketch this brief history for you so that we could better understand the historical significance of this day. As we commemorate Human Rights Day today, we should not forget that this day came about as a result of Sharpeville day and the struggle as a whole. We should not forget also the significance of it to the millions of South Africans today on 21 20 March 200000.
The culmination of the broader struggle waged by the oppressed majority of our country was the adoption of the South African Constitution and the Bill of Rights that incorporated fundamental human rights and basic freedoms. The constitution then established mechanisms through which these newly acquired rights could be entrenched within our legal system and duly protected.
Institutions such as the Constitutional Court, the Human Rights Commission , the Gender Commission and the Public Protector are examples of the protective mechanisms that have been put in place to guarantee access to rights by all men, women and children in our society.
The commitment of this government to the promotion of human rights is further evidenced by the ratification of international human rights instruments. We have gone a long way to achieve the goals that were set in the 1955. In the six years of democratic rule, this government has repealed almost all discriminatory legislation. The constitution itself makes any discriminatory legislation unconstitutional. We have passed laws and policies that seek to redress past imbalances. The job is by no means over!
South Africa's terrible legacy of racism, inequality and poverty has been so deeply embedded, and is so recent in historical terms, that despite the corrective measures we have put in place, the vast majority of South Africans do not as yet enjoy or even know of the rights and freedoms embodied in our Constitution and Bill of Rights. Knowledge and understanding of human rights is a crucial source of collective as well as individual empowerment.
In many instances it is the only weapon that society, in particular its most marginalised and vulnerable members has at its disposal to protect its dignity. Therein lies the primary challenge for government.
South Africa is one of only a handful of countries that have adopted a National Action Plan for the Promotion and Protection of human rights. Our commitment to the implementation of this plan is evidenced by the launch on Human Rights Day 2000 of the National Consultative Forum.
The task of this body will be to ensure the effective implementation of our National Action Plan through the formulation of a reporting structure between, government, civil society and the relevant United Nations structures. The focus will be the promotion of human rights through education and training of civil society, particularly the disadvantaged communities, in particular women and children.
Although amnesia may, for some, be a preferred option, it is important that we remember at all times that the effects on the disadvantaged communities that I refer to, were not only limited to the denial of basic rights such as the right to equality, the right to freedom of association and the right to freedom of expression.
One of the rights that they were denied and which had the most detrimental effect upon the lives of the majority, was the right to participate meaningfully in the economic destiny of their country.
If we forget - or choose to underplay the impact that this had on the lives of the majority - we turn the debate on human rights into a theoretical and academic one that bears no meaning to the reality that many in our society have to confront from day to day.
For these reasons, we as government will continue to encourage and support initiatives such as black empowerment and affirmative action programmes, that seek to redress the effects of this imbalance. The National Consultative Forum will also be expected to play a major role in ensuring that, in its interaction with the civil society, this principle is carried through.
In closing, allow me to quote from our Constitution: "Everyone has inherent dignity and the right to have their dignity respected and protected".
Just like the Sharpeville demonstrators and many others who made the supreme sacrifice and fought for this right, among others, our challenge and that of the National Consultative Forum, is to ensure that all South Africans can one day soon say that "I have inherent dignity and the right to have it respected and protected, not only by government but by my fellow citizens".
I thank you