South Africans must unite to build a better South Africa than the one that existed in the past, and before the pandemic. This was the message from President Cyril Ramaphosa, delivering a virtual address on Human Rights Day.
Recalling the massacre of protestors at Sharpeville in 1960 (69 of whom were killed, and 180 injured), the president said that it was important to recognise how far South Africa had come from that reality.
The government had demonstrated during 2020 that ‘human rights are not negotiable.’ He added: ‘We have been able to weather the coronavirus storm in large part because of the strong culture of human rights in our country.’
After mentioning the measures taken to assist South Africans through the past year, he said that the next phase of the response would be to ensure that everyone was vaccinated, although he gave no indicated of timeframes involved.
He went on to say that the country was ‘working to build a new economy that promises equal opportunity for all.’ He called on all sectors of society to be involved in this, to ensure that South Africa escapes poverty, hunger and desperation, that it defeats gender based violence and becomes a country where young people are free to fulfil their potential.
Towards the conclusion of his address, the President said: ‘Above all, we have a common cause: that of a South Africa of equality, prosperity, freedom and human rights for all.’