Today is Freedom Day, the day we celebrate the first democratic elections in this country. On this day in
1994, apartheid came to an end as all South Africans, of all races, could finally vote together as one nation for the first time.
Today is Freedom Day, the day we celebrate the first democratic elections in this country. On this day in
1994, apartheid came to an end as all South Africans, of all races, could finally vote together as one nation for the first time.
The day is important because a completely new set of values, based on equality for all citizens, became the guiding principles of our new democracy.
At the heart of these principles, that were ultimately enshrined in our Constitution, is the restoration and preservation of human dignity.
Apartheid was, more than anything else, an affront to human dignity. However, when South Africans cast their votes on 27 April 1994, it did not automatically bestow dignity on all citizens.
It guaranteed political equality and opened the door to other human rights. Chapter two of the Bill of Rights in the South African Constitution recognises that “Everyone has inherent dignity and the right to have their dignity respected and protected.”
Yet in spite of the prominent place this right enjoys in the Constitution, the dignity of millions of South Africans is not respected and protected.
Those who do not have access to clean water, sanitation and housing cannot say they live dignified lives. On the front page of this newspaper there is a photograph of several hundred people protesting against those who deprive them and millions of others of another fundamental right contained in the Constitution the right to freedom and security.
They felt they had to “take back the night” if only for a few hours because the night is still owned by those who commit rape and other forms of violence against women.
Section 12 of the Bill of Rights unequivocally says that, “Everyone has the right to freedom and security of person, which includes the right… c) to be free from all forms of violence from either public or private sources.”
Clearly the thousands of women who survive sexual violence in this country do not enjoy this right. How can we be proudly South African when schoolgirls are gang-raped on our streets?
