On 27 April 2012, South Africa
will be celebrating 18 years since the first democratic elections in 1994. Each
year this date is celebrated as Freedom Day. The theme for the
celebrations this year is: "Working Together to Build Unity and
Prosperity for All".
The Department
of Arts and Culture is tasked
with leading the Freedom Day celebrations. The National Orders ceremony will
also take place on the same day.
The day is
celebrated not only as a milestone, but also “as a reminder of the struggle for
a free and fair South Africa”.
Heroes and heroines who lost their lives fighting for democracy are also
honoured on this day. The day seeks to encourage all South Africans "to
participate in the commemoration of the pain and struggle to build a
non-racial, democratic and free South
Africa in which we all have the freedom to
prosper."
A day for all South Africans
Freedom Day marks the liberation of South Africa
and its people from a period of colonialism and white minority domination -
which means that we no longer have the situation in which political power is
enjoyed and exercised by a minority of our population, to the exclusion of the
majority. It is a day for all South Africans. When South Africa was liberated both the
oppressor and oppressed were liberated.
Freedom Day celebrations in 2012 will take place
at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. This will be followed by the
National Orders Ceremony at the Presidential guest house.
The celebrations in 2012 will see a partnership
between itself and The City of Tshwane launch the Freedom Walk to the Union
Buildings.
Meanwhile, addressing the media at the Freedom
Month Launch in Mthatha the
Eastern Cape earlier in the month, the Arts and Culture MEC, Xoliswa Tom, says
the province should be proud of producing political icons like Nelson Mandela,
Walter Sisulu and Oliver Tambo who persisted the chains of oppressions and
segregation but continued to fight for the liberation of all.
She says the families of 14 people from Bhaziya
outside Mthatha who were hanged in Pretoria in 1964 will be honoured on Freedom
Day and a monument with their names erected. "When you look at freedom we
are really free but our freedom was never free people had to die for our
freedom they had to go to exile they were jailed and sentenced to many years.
Economically we are not free yet but I think the work that has been done is
working towards economic freedom and I believe that as it took years to attain
political freedom it is going to take us time to attain economic freedom."
