PREMIER'S ADDRESS
Comrade Programme Director
Executive and members of the ANC
Alliance members
Sponsors
Honourable Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I feel truly humbled to officially stand before my leaders - veterans of the struggle – to acknowledge their contribution and sacrifice in the struggle for liberation.
Many of them cannot be with us this morning - Fallen heroes who gave up their lives so you and me can stand here today.
My leaders, our right and privilege to stand before you have been won by the men and women in whose honour we are gathered here today. In fact most of us may think we are sitting down, while in reality we are standing – standing on the shoulders of these great men and women. Today they are amongst as part of the corps of leaders in the reconstruction and development of our country.
To the veteran's let me say: Your magnificent example of personal sacrifice and dedication in the face of oppression was one of the many legacies to our struggle, our province and our country. You showed us that it was necessary to brave imprisonment if truth and justice were to triumph over evil.
The values of tolerance, mutual respect and unity for which you stood and acted had a profound influence on our liberation movement, and dare I say, in the thinking of a number of present day leaders. You inspire us today in our efforts of reconciliation and nation-building. That legacy extends to methods of struggle and mobilisation for social change.
There is an lt you can still teach us today. As our people were the agents of their own liberation, defying oppression and deprivation, they are now critical to the programme of reconstruction and development, both as beneficiary and driving force.
Together, government and people can together build a better life on the foundations that the nation has laid in its first two-and-a-half years of democracy.
When municipalities and communities form a partnership in the spirit of Masakhane; when each sector of society joins hands with the police to fight crime and violence; when the private sector and organised labour work together to promote growth and job-opportunities, we all reap the benefits of the unity espoused by these veterans.
Your unceasing efforts and dedication in transforming South Africa into a success story has resulted in a remarkable economic and social achievement including a steady growth rate.
In a world plagued by AIDS, your approach in making today's youth aware of the harmful and deadly effects of the HIV/AIDS scourge, is commendable.
We are today developing sound education and other programmes for dealing with this threat to our common future. Thanks for that.
Like you, we believe that only a united, common approach to these and other problems has the potential to lift us to new heights. Already there has been substantial progress in this regard.
Thanks to your contribution to the liberation of all – black and white. I can proudly say that we as a people we are making good use of that freedom.
Exciting challenges have opened up, especially because of our success in uniting the country. Those who were divided by apartheid into separate groups have joined hands to work together for a better life for all our people. Whether it be in the writing of a democratic constitution and the entrenchment of human rights;
In the development and implementation of a strategy for sustained economic growth; or in programmes of action for socio-economic improvement, our people have joined hands in a way that has confounded the prophets of doom.
Already our programmes are changing the lives of millions of our people, bringing them basic amenities previously denied to the great majority: clean water; electricity; decent education and better housing. This is only the beginning of a task that will take us many years, but we face the future with confidence, because of our people's unity.
Comrades, we are mindful that the journey to where we are today has not been easy. But all of you persevered because you knew that what you had set out on was the right road.
There were problems along the way. But through hard work; by putting the interests of the country first you ensured that good triumphed over evil. We respect you for that.
But as we pause to pay our respects to you, let us be reminded that the respect and recognition we pay to you require more than fine-sounding words. The respect should reside in our hearts. But the celebrations we have today are a vivid expression of the respect and recognition we have for you.
You have taught us many things. Least of which is that consultation, transparency and equity were the corner stones of the early history of our movement. But there are many challenges.
What then, dear leaders, are the concrete challenges we face?
Indeed, because you are meant to be leaders of the people, your challenges cannot be different from those that the people face.
Foremost amongst our tasks as a nation is to mobilise the people for reconstruction and development. As the people were their own liberators, so should they become active agents in changing their lives for the better.
Oppression was overcome in South Africa, and democracy is being built, by an ever-widening unity across the lines of race and ethnicity. But it would be a mistake to regard that unity as something that will preserve itself. We need constantly to encourage and promote it. As leaders, we need to be vigilant in ensuring that the diversity, which is our strength, is never again used to divide us.
Fundamental to our unity is the mutual respect for the rich variety of our languages and cultures.
While the constitution recognises rights in this regard and proposes institutions to promote them, this will have little effect without the involvement of traditional leaders.
Our freedom is also giving impetus to the recovery of our history. Recent excavations point with increasing detail to our country's place in Africa's civilisation.
As veterans, you can promote and assist continuing research so that we know who we truly are.
The nation, with your help, also needs to come to a proper understanding of those whose history has been most grievously affected by the ravages and distortions of apartheid and colonialism.
Perhaps more difficult than most, is to find the best ways in which you – as fountains of knowledge and wisdom – can guide us without eating too much into your time.
We do not view our veterans as an appendage or unwelcome addition to the plethora of institutions we already have. Quite the opposite. It is in fact part of the pool of organisers and leaders of nation-building and reconciliation, reconstruction and development.