This Sunday, the 27th April, marks twenty years since South Africa held their first democratic elections, where for the very first time in our country’s history people of all races got to choose who they would like to see governing them. What a strange thought that at some point people thought it acceptable to discount the views of the majority of our population, even stranger still that there exist today countries where certain citizens still have very few or no rights at all – in Saudi Arabia women cannot vote in any elections, and are not allowed to run for any political offices.
So while it’s something that we may take for granted, Freedom Day really does deserve acknowledging, as does the fact that freedom in South Africa wasn’t given freely – this public holiday is an acknowledgment of the countless South Africans who committed their lives to fighting for our freedom. Siyabonga John Dube, Steve Biko, Fatima Meer, Chris Hani, Oliver Tambo, Bram Fischer, Nelson Mandela – the list goes on and on……
P.S. If you’re in Durbs this weekend make your way down to the Moses Mahbida Stadium where the City is hosting a Freedom Day concert in celebration of 20 years of democracy.