Citizens must take lead in ensuring Constitution’s values are held dear
Unfinished agenda of social transformation is highlighted on Mandela Day by unsavoury slices of daily life in SA that show past injustices endure
The Mandela Day celebrations reminded us of the urgency of ensuring that the human rights values enshrined in our Constitution govern every aspect of our social relationships. Three fragments capture the unfinished agenda of the transformation of SA to become a place where freedom, justice and the rule of law prevail. The first fragment is the unfinished business of healing the wounds inflicted by apartheid forced removals on communities that have yet to find justice. District Six Museum director Bonita Bennett reminded us at the dinner she hosted for the Mandela Elders 10-year anniversary celebrations that, unlike other museums, it has few items of value in monetary terms. The museum is a rich store of "absence" — keys to doors that no longer exist, fragments of broken crockery and above all the pain of broken hearts. The second fragment is Khayelitsha. It is a place that is neither a real home nor a new home as the name suggests. It is a bleeding wound of discarded people abandone...
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