[ Home ] [ Speeches & statements ]

Programme Director
Leaders from religious organisations
Representatives from the NGOs and political parties
Members from the different cultural groups
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen

It is indeed a great honour and privilege for me to share with all of you the warmth and joy of renewed hope for the future of the people of the Northern Cape. It is a day of salute for a generation that pulled our country out of the deep hole and placed it on the pedestal of hope, on which it rests today.

Certainly, it is with an immense sense of pride that we honour our ancestors on this special historic occasion of cleansing, healing and renewal ceremony.

This occasion also heralds a new chapter in the history of our province to preserve our heritage and pay a glowing and deserving tribute to all the heroes and heroines who have sacrificed their lives for the freedom that we are enjoying today.

There remains before us the building of a new land which requires of all South Africans to play an important role in the healing of our nation to deal positively with the apartheid past brutality.

Through this ceremony we also acknowledge with respect the customs and traditions of the people of Africa in whose traditional territories we are gathered today to bring about this significant change.

The cleansing ceremony signifies the process to promote, recognise and increase awareness of our country's diverse cultural backgrounds and to build cross-cultural bridges amongst the greater majority of our people. It affirms our belief that we can all live together amicably and peacefully.

We are also hopeful that this cleansing, healing and reparation memorial will continue to uphold and advance the human rights of our people of our land and the achievement of equality.

The sole purpose of which is to reaffirm to ourselves and to demonstrate to the world our rich and vibrant heritage. Our rich heritage has succeeded and survived our violent past so that we could build a nation that respects and appreciates our diversity as a unifying force.

Indeed, what we are busy with is the construction of a future based on human principles, a future that embraces the noble values of the rule of law. We are principally seeking to build a non-racial and non-sexist democratic order, to secure the future of our children and our country.

Our people, both black and white, have mandated us to remain firm in the pursuit of our vision of a non-racial society and the important goals of national reconciliation.

Programme Director,

In order for us to meet the challenges of the new century, it is critical for us to transform our future in such a way to enable us to move forward in accordance with new times. The reality is that unless far-reaching and fundamental measures are undertaken by the democratic government, the sacrifices of millions of our people in bringing about the dawn of peace, freedom and justice would have been in vain.

In this regard, the mammoth challenge of fundamental transformation remains not only that of the democratic government alone but also a responsibility of all sectors of society in the spirit of Masakhane.

As the provincial government, we will continue to work in an integrated manner with our churches, schools and institutions of civil society in dealing with the moral regeneration of our society through:
* Strengthening family values
* Support interfaith initiatives aimed at rebuilding society's moral fibre
* And community building initiatives

All South Africans must embrace without equivocation the call for reconciliation and actively contribute, in the spirit of reconciliation and a sense of new patriotism, to the transformation of our country, for the sake of its entire people.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As we are fast approaching the end of the first decade of liberation in our country and the beginning of the second decade of freedom, liberation and freedom, we can take stock and say that great achievements and strides have been made. These include the restoration of the dignity of our indigenous people. The Griqua people, the Korana and the San people are living examples of our people getting their dignity back.

In our bid to strengthen our historical and cultural ties, we must begin to learn and appreciate our different cultures and understand the ethnic diversity of our country. This can only help build the self-esteem and the pride of those who identify themselves with us.

Our land should remind us of the incredible contribution our ancestors and all of us have made to the economic, social, political and cultural life of our country.

As people of the same country we must pledge ourselves to be working together for peace, freedom and promote the culture of living together in harmony

We have all learned much from each other in the trials of the past century and on this happy day, we begin to see a way ahead together, so that all the peoples we are, can learn from, and trust and respect each other.

We are starting to see results with the commitment of a broad range of supportive volunteers and a community devoted to change, you begin a journey toward new partnerships that will help preserve and advance of our precious legacies of languages and culture.

It has always been the intention of government to involve all communities in government related activities that seeks to promote nation building and foster a spirit of patriotism for the past nine and half years.

Therefore in conclusion, we want to express our gratitude to the faith based organizations, community based organisations, the Moral Regeneration Movement, and political parties, for the leadership they are demonstrating in advancing our common interest within the context of the national interest of our country through provincial collaboration in key areas of responsibility.

You have our deepest gratitude and respect for your support dedication and friendship, and our best wishes in the days and months ahead.

I thank you
Ke a leboga
Baie Dankie

Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government (http://www.northern-cape.gov.za)