Special significance to this year’s Freedom Day celebrations

ALTHOUGH South Africans will be celebrating 26 years of freedom on Freedom Day today under lockdown conditions, citizens are urged to remember and celebrate this day as it commemorates the historic occasion in 1994 when the country achieved democracy.

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Twitter account posted that the theme for this year’s Freedom Day is ‘solidarity and the triumph of the human spirit in challenging times’.

‘It is fitting that on this day we are also welcoming Cuban health experts who have arrived in our country to support our efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19.’

Minister Nathi Mthethwa tweeted this morning: ‘It is on this day that we woke up to a new dawn – an opportunity to realise our collective potential, united in our diversity. We wish you a happy Freedom Day.’

When Nelson Mandela became the first democratically elected SA president, he said: ‘Wherever South Africans are across the globe, our hearts beat as one, as we renew our common loyalty to our country and our commitment to its future.

‘The birth of our South African nation has, like any other, passed through a long and often painful process.

‘The ultimate goal of a better life has yet to be realised. On this day, you, the people, took your destiny into your own hands.’

CEO of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, Sello Hatang, said Freedom Day has special significance this year.

‘It comes at a time when Covid-19 is reminding us of how easy it is to take basic freedoms for granted. And it is testing our courage in ways that we have not faced before.

‘Now, more than ever, we need to be inspired by the legacy of Nelson Mandela. Let us remember Madiba’s wise counsel that every generation is given an opportunity to be great. This moment could be just such an opportunity. May we rise to the challenge,’ Hatang said.

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