Cape Town, 31 October 2000
Address by Jacob Zuma to The National Assembly
Madam Speaker, Honourable members, I rise to introduce a discussion on a topic that is of great concern to all of us in the country - the issue of moral degeneration.
Moral degeneration is one of the biggest challenges facing us and is at the core of many of the ills of our society.
This House has, since 1994, abolished various laws that were premised on the wrong, the bad and the unjust, and championed those that are right and just. You have, as members of this House, passed laws that ought to contribute to the consolidation of the fight against moral degeneration.
These range from laws dealing with crimes against women and children such as the Domestic Violence Act or the Maintenance Act, to various other pieces of legislation aimed at eliminating conditions where immorality can thrive.
It is therefore appropriate that as public representatives we should lead in attempts to find solutions to this problem. This House has also put instruments in place to fight corruption, both in the private and public sector. Despite all these and various other endeavours, it is clear that more still needs to be done as we continue to see signs of moral decay in our midst.
During the course of this year, the Cabinet discussed this issue, and recognized that many of our socio-economic problems result, to a large extent from moral degeneration.
It was decided that the matter should be addressed as a matter of urgency, and that the Leader of Government Business should request the Speaker to allow time for this debate. I thank you,
Madam Speaker for allowing this long overdue debate to take place. Madam Speaker, it is my belief that for us to be able to do justice to this debate we need to contextualise the origins of this problem properly.
We cannot solve it if we treat symptoms only, and fail to look at the root causes and the background against which it came about. To be able to address this challenge as a country, we cannot ignore the impact that our past has had on our present, for the apartheid legacy not only dehumanized some communities and individuals, but also caused untold damage in many other ways.
Apartheid created a particular value system, designed to deepen and perpetuate a twisted understanding of values and morality. It created its own way of interpreting the differences between right and wrong, bad and good, just and unjust and eroded respect in general, and respect for life and property in particular. It introduced extreme intolerance, and because it had to be maintained through extreme violence, it encouraged violence at every level of society.
Apartheid introduced racist policing and training that changed what is normal to become abnormal. Our history is full of records of how the apartheid system went to the extent of using criminals for its defence and maintenance, and how it brutally eliminated opponents, thereby entrenching a culture of violence.
It transformed education into an instrument of subjugation. It also destroyed good human relations between the different racial groups and communities in our country.
It is important in this debate to recall some of this history, and the fact that as a result of these activities, apartheid was declared by the United Nations as a crime against humanity, and by the World Council of Churches as a heresy.
We cannot therefore ignore this bitter past when we debate moral degeneration, and when we seek to work for moral renewal.
But, Madam Speaker, much as we could blame the past as having contributed, to a large degree, to the moral degeneration of our society, it is important to note that correcting these wrongs is now a responsibility of all of us in this House, and everyone in South Africa.
It is clear that there is a lot that we need to do to address this as a matter of urgency. To some of us, society seems to have succumbed to low moral values and the symptoms are there for all to see - the disregard for the value of human life and property; lack of respect and compassion; illegal self-enrichment in both the private and public sectors; and other despicable forms of crime such as sexual abuse of children, particularly by people who are their own flesh and blood.
We should be grateful, Madam Speaker, that our new laws and the transparency brought about by our young democracy, have encouraged the reporting of sexual crimes, a social illness that was swept under the carpet in the past.
This of course Madam Speaker, means that, democratic South Africa, as distinguished from apartheid South Africa, has established a firm foundation upon which we can now correct the wrongs of the past.
The greatest concern, Honourable Members, is that as South Africans we recognise that our value systems have degenerated seriously, but at the same time, we seem to find it difficult to act and solve the problem.
The intelligentsia in our country, who would normally be expected to lead in influencing and shaping how we see the world around us, appear to have fallen victim to the times. They are not all playing their role constructively.
As South Africans we have come to view, as entertainment, some of the negative and immoral depictions of life. For example, some serialised dramas in our broadcast media glorify violence and criminal activity, giving an impression that this is an acceptable way of life.
These dramas are very popular with thousands of South Africans and are often their only source of entertainment and
information. The long-term effects of glorifying violence in the mass media are a cause for concern.
As parents we allow our children to listen to, and watch these dramas without guidance, thereby contributing to the perpetuation of this culture. Our failure to realize the impact of our actions indicates the level to which we have succumbed to abnormal values.
Broadcast and print media have a tremendous influence, especially on young people. Given this reality, the media has a crucial role to play in restoring the moral fibre of our society and should seriously consider the impact of messages that are being sent out to the public.
Madam Speaker, the pressure put on children by our permissive and fast modernizing society cannot be overemphasized. I recall the painful incident in Chatsworth, where the lives of young children came to a tragic and premature end in a nightclub.
I am haunted by the words of an eleven year old girl, told to me by a police officer who was at the scene. Moments before she died, she pleaded with him, "Uncle, please don't tell mummy that I was here." Those were her last words.
As parents we now compete with many negative social influences as we try to mould adults of the future.
The question, Madam Speaker is, what can we do to restore the moral fibre of our nation, and to restore the type of values that would hold our families and communities together.
Members of this House, the provincial legislatures and local government must lead the nation in debating this issue.
We must declare the moral regeneration campaign as a major national campaign. All political parties represented in government at all levels must give this matter the urgent attention it deserves.
It must become a major priority in our constituencies. This campaign should aim at reaching out to the very soul of our nation. It is important therefore, that we should agree, in this House, to drive it jointly, and not use it for political point scoring.
We also need to mobilise all sectors of our society to work jointly with us to eradicate this moral decay.
We invite the religious sector to play a leading role in providing a spiritual and moral revival. After all, this is their main mission in society. Let our pulpits, synagogues, mosques and temples intensify the preaching of the message of a moral rebirth and renewal in South Africa.
South Africans in general, cannot escape this responsibility either. There was a time in our history when people would provide guidance to children they did not even know, when the ruling ethic was "Any Child is My Child". We need to revive that spirit. When you see children loitering in the streets during school hours, what do you do as an adult?
Do you ask them why they are not at school or do you simply walk away as if nothing has happened.
What will happen to these children in the future?
Our young people are more vulnerable to the demands of this new era - and the popular culture of the times does not promote good morals.
Honourable Members, you only need to watch the youth music programme Channel O, and other hugely popular prime-time programmes, to see the particular culture that is promoted to our youth. It is one that continuously promotes sex and violence.
The values we teach our children will determine the kind of society we will have in future.
For this reason, we need to start in our homes and schools to develop new South Africans, who understand what it means to be respectable and respectful citizens.
A youth that is patriotic and has national pride and self-respect is less likely to engage in immoral and anti-social activities.
This is a challenge for youth organizations in our country to begin to instill a new moral ethos in their members. Political youth organisations must give the lead in this regard.
They need to promote moral renewal amongst their members and potential members, and make it fashionable, once again, to be morally upright.
It is clear that there is a lot that we need to do to ensure a moral revival and the nurturing of a new South Africa with good values - of self-respect, respect for the next person, respect for human life and property, and most of all, national pride.
Madam Speaker, this debate is a milestone that adds value to our nation building efforts. I would therefore like to make an earnest appeal that we give the matter serious thought, and that a way be found to concretize our conclusions.
If we all agree that it is important to take visible action, we need to pass resolutions and embark on a programme of action that will enable us to fulfill this responsibility.
We must not disappoint our fellow South Africans.
I thank