Noxolo Miya
Pretoria - It was on March 21, 1960 that police officers in Sharpeville opened fire on a group of protesters demonstrating against oppressive pass laws imposed by the apartheid regime.
About 70 people were killed and 250 wounded. This was the most violent demonstration against the apartheid government.
Yesterday, decades later, South African youth and government officials gathered at the Freedom Park Heritage Site and Museum in Pretoria for the launch of Human Rights Month.
The campaign peaks with Human Rights Day on March 21.
Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa and Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development John Jeffery were in attendance for the launch of Human Rights Month under the theme “Consolidating and Sustaining a Human Rights Culture into the Future”.
There was a panel discussion focusing on how the government and the Constitution’s Chapter 9 institutions were enabling access to the rights to equality and human dignity, as well as linguistic and cultural rights.
In his opening remarks, Mthethwa focused on the Sharpeville massacre, the gender-based violence crisis, and how far South Africa had come.
“We really are here today, almost 30 years into democracy, and just to look back we both commemorate and celebrate this day. We commemorate the fact that it is a day which is founded on the blood, sweat and tears of our people.”
Jeffery emphasised the importance of making sign language the 12th official language in South Africa.
“This is to give dignity to people who are deaf, (to show them) that their language, or the language that they communicate in, is being recognised.
“They might be a minority, but it is important for the dignity of people who cannot hear or speak that they are recognised,” said Jeffery.
There was a question-and-answer session in which those in attendance engaged the panel on the challenges they faced, mostly in township areas.
Gaddafi, an ambassador who works alongside side the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture and also an advocate for albinism in SA rendering a poem at Freedom Park. #HumanRightsMonth2023 Video: Noxolo Miya @Freedom_Park #HumanRights @NathiMthethwaSA pic.twitter.com/sA78uUXbnM
Gugulethu Mtshali from the Black Lawyers’ Student Association asked about the importance of nurturing the boy child and involving the youth in community problems.
“We have really given the girl child so much empowerment, but the gender-based violence issue is mainly because of the offender, and not because of the victim. So it is important that the government involves us, because you cannot fix our issues without us.”
Another question directed at the panel was from a resident of the East Rand, who asked: “Why do we have to send our siblings and children from townships to suburban schools for them to access sports such as rugby and hockey? Why are such places in our townships not developed?”
Panellists said they would look at these and other issues to enhance the human rights of communities.
Pretoria News