Speech by President Nelson Mandela on South African Youth Day
Speech by President Nelson Mandela on South African Youth Day
Pietersburg, June 16 1996
Premier Ngoako Ramatlhodi;
Ministers, and MEC's;
Leaders of the
youth.
Today we assemble to mark the 20th anniversary of the June 16 uprising.
As we do so, the memories of tender young bodies strewn in the streets, in
the silence of death, in the fading smoke of the policeman's gun, and amid the
tears of whole communities - all these memories come gushing back: to remind us
of the terrible past from which we come; to infuse us with pride in the heroism
of our youth; and to enjoin us once more, that never again shall state guns be
turned on the youth or anyone else simply because they want a better education
and a better life.
We assemble to once more say: thank you, to our youth who were at the
forefront of the struggle against apartheid. When freedom beckoned, you faced
death and bullets and did not flinch; you responded to the call to build the
underground and the mass democratic movement; you swelled the ranks of Umkhonto
we Sizwe and acquitted yourselves with distinction in the battlefield.
This you did for yourselves and for the nation. You did not ask for special
favours. And you do not ask for special favours today.
But let me say this and say this with the utmost conviction: the nation owes
you a clear policy and practical measures to ensure that the youth contributes
to, and benefits from, our new democracy. This we have started to do; and today
I am proud to announce that the process to set up the National Youth Commission
has been completed, and the Commission will be launched at the beginning of
July.
This Commission will be charged with safeguarding the aspirations of young
people and assisting government in evolving policies that are sensitive to their
needs and aspirations.
On this 20th anniversary of June 16, I am pleased to announce that I have
received recommendations on the individuals who will serve in the National Youth
Commission. I have accepted these recommendations:
The names of the full-time Commissioners to be appointed are as follows:
Hlengiwe Bengu; Nomfundo Mbuli; Mpho Lekgoro; Max van der Wath and Otto
Kunene.
They will be assisted by the following part-time Commissioners:
Thabo Masebe; Nazeema Mohamed; Richard Moloko; Rene Jordaan and Desmond Louw.
And, from the Provinces, the following nominees have been submitted:
Gavin Paulse from the Western Cape; Sidwell Sibanda from the NOrthern
Province; Yolisa Makasi from the Eastern Cape; Pinky Kunene from KwaZulu/Natal;
Steve Mbuyisa from Mpumalanga; Tebogo Mampane from Gauteng; Moira Marais-Martin
from the Northern Cape; Lumka Nogogo from the Free State and Moeti Moiloa from
the North West Province.
I am confident that these Commissioners-to-be, fully appreciate the enormous
challenges they face. Theirs is a responsibility not only to the youth; but to
the nation as a whole, to ensure that young people become an active part of
nation-building and reconciliation, reconstruction and development. Legislation
gives the Youth Commission wide-ranging powers; and - depending on the
application of the Commissioners and the support that they receive from you - it
guarantees a vibrant and dynamic role for the youth in the evolution of our
democracy.
The success of the Youth Commission will depend on the contributions that
will and must be made by young people. Its foundation will be strong youth
organisations from all political persuasions. Without support from our youth
organisations, the Youth Commission will not succeed; our nation will not
succeed.
Comrades and compatriots;
We owe it to the youth who perished in struggle on June 16 and in the many
years that followed, to ensure that we achieve what we have set for ourselves;
to build a better life for all South Africans.
On that fateful day 20 years ago, you jolted the nation from its slumber, and
rejected the slave education that the apartheid regime had implemented, with the
hope of making Blacks accept their slavery. You changed the course of history,
and accelerated the downfall of the apartheid system.
When on the 8 April this year, the Constitutional Assembly adopted the final
constitution for the country; it was also realising the aspirations that the
young minds of 1976 dreamt of.
Shortly before its adoption, three issues threatened final agreement. One of
these involved the question of education provision, particularly the medium of
instruction at schools.
Although approached from different points of view, the debate on the future
of our education system was a fitting tribute to the generation of 1976 and the
countless martyrs of youth who laid down their lives for a just educational
dispensation.
With the adoption of this new constitution, the nation has created the
framework for an education policy of which future generations will be proud.
The government is taking steps in redressing the wrongs that were inherited
from apartheid.
