We the people of South Africa, declare for all our country and the world to know:
That our country will never be prosperous or free until all our people live in brotherhood enjoying equal rights and opportunities;
That only a democratic state, based on the will of all the people can secure to all their birthright without distinction of colour, race, sex or belief;
And therefore, we the people of South Africa, black an white together equals, countrymen and brothers adopt this Freedom Charter;
I remember very clearly when I first lost my innocence, I was 15 years old when I read this Freedom Charter for the first time contained in the biography of Albert Luthuli. Today almost 55 years since the dream of the democracy set out in Kliptown was passed and almost 14 years since the many of these dreams were enshrined in our Constitution we are asked to reflect on democracy over the last 16 years.
When you look at this dream today we live in a country where many of the ideals have been realised. We live in a country which belongs to all the people. We live in a country where all are equal. Yet we live in a country where some are more equal than others.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
We live in a democracy where the dream of all people having equal rights to use their own languages and to develop their own folk culture and customs. Tell this to the many communities who are denied the rights to education in their mother tongue.
The dream that all Apartheid laws and practices shall be set aside. Tell that to a country where people are still legally classified based on race. Tell that to a country where things are still measured in race. In the end was that not a fundamental principle of apartheid administration?
Why not remind the people of Ward 20 who have lived in house which they built and have lived in and owned for many years about the dream of the right to occupy land wherever they choose. Tell them about this while members of the community invade their yards saying the ANC said we will cut up the land, bulldoze your homes and replace with inferior quality housing for others who have not lived here but whose name appear on our secret housing lists.
While you at it lets not forget the dream of a preventative health scheme run by the state and the free medical care and hospitalisation. Due to incompetence our hospitals are a disgrace and even the Cuban doctors have given up on them.
What about slums being demolished and new suburbs built where all will have transport, roads, lighting, playing fields, creches and social centres. Schubart and Kruger Park’s can not even be dealt with and are lives are still been loss to these scums.
No our democracy is too busy ensuring that names be changed, how many houses can be built with this. A democracy must build not destroy, a democracy must respect all racial and cultural rights and history. A true democracy concentrates on delivering promises not finding excuses for not delivering and redirecting attention with immaterial things. No where in the Dream was changing names considered and issue.
What about young students whose homes are raided for making gestures, what about that democratic dream of the privacy of the house from police raid, being protected by the law.
What about the abuse of people under police detention, the rape and assault of people who are guilty of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Though even they are protected by the promise in the charter of freedom of movement.
Can someone please tell Julius and certain of the Tshwane councillors , about the dream and promise of all national groups being protected by the law against insults to their race and that the preaching and practice of national, race or colour discrimination and hate speech shall be a punishable crime. Remind all the world of this when so much violence and murder is committed against foreign nationals.
An important promise was that the doors of learning and culture shall be opening. I know that when this dream was written down no one considered the teachers unions right to strike. With almost half of teaching days lost due to these actions. No one considered that if the doors were open that the front of the classroom would be empty. Classrooms? Why did the writers not remember to dream that we would build classrooms so that children may have one? In this post democratic country we need to concentrate on building and stop messing around with side shows.
The dreams of our nation did no envisage and the current builders and leaders of South Africa need to remember, that sharing of country’s wealth in a democratic country does not mean that a few selected persons of influence are to benefit. Repeatedly being uplifted whilst millions remain in poverty. Similar to the land expropriation in Zimbabwe where select government ministers, judges and other cronies of Mugabe benefit whilst million starve, so to in South Africa, Tenders have become a way fro cronies to exploit the national wealth.
Whilst some of the dreams in the Freedom charter may have been naive and impractical in a modern democratic world, the vast majority of the dreams are achievable if we stop focusing on race and apply the spirit of the charter. If we embrace the concepts of an open opportunity society.
So today whilst I reflect on democratic and how far we have come. I once again pledge and my party pledges along the same lines as pledged in 1955 that we the people of who love our country that we will fight side by side, throughout our lives until we have won our liberties and freedoms in an open opportunity society.
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