Chairperson, hon members, colleagues, on Wednesday, 21 March 2007, our country will be commemorating the 47th anniversary of the 1960 Sharpeville massacre, in which over 60 unarmed and defenceless people were shot and killed by the apartheid South African police and 180 were wounded.
There were also reports of killings in similar style in Uitenhage and Langa by police who acted in defence of the apartheid state. The root cause of the peaceful demonstrations by our people was the systematic introduction of pass laws against the black majority by the white minority regime; the system that dictated where the large black majority would live, work and die.
These laws have their origins in the Cape colony in 1760, when the movement of slaves between urban and rural areas were regulated. Slaves had to carry passes from their masters. The system was subsequently extended to the whole country and further entrenched in 1945 under the Native Consolidation Act.
In 1952 the abolition of the Passes Act made it compulsory for every male African to carry a reference book. As if that was not enough, in 1960 the apartheid government introduced the Native Amendment Act, which extended the pass laws to African women, our mothers ... "wathintha abafazi wathintha imbokodo uzokufa". [You strike a woman, you strike a rock; you will die.]
Thanks to the ANC government and the people of South Africa, the United Nations and our friends across the globe. Today South Africa is free, democratic and prosperous. We all carry one single South African identity document. We have a Constitution with a Bill of Rights that guarantees all citizens the right to equality before the law, human dignity, freedom of expression, the right to peaceful assembly, demonstration, picket and petition, freedom of association, freedom of movement and residence.
As we celebrate this day each year, we must remember the great suffering and loss of lives that accompanied the struggle for human rights. We must therefore redouble our efforts to ensure that people in South Africa will never again be denied these rights. Oliver Tambo laid down his life for these rights, Chris Hani was killed for these rights, Dorothy Nyembe died for these rights, Sam Tambani was killed for these rights and the list is endless.
Many more were killed, maimed, exiled and imprisoned in the struggle to achieve human rights in this country. We pay tribute to all those heroes and heroines who gave all in the struggle to win freedom and democracy.
Comrades and colleagues, we have made impressive progress since 1994 to ensure access to clean water, housing, education and a clean and safe environment for millions of our people.
The challenges ahead still remain on this difficult path of freedom and democracy. We have to redouble our efforts to deal with the big five challenges afflicting our South African society today. They are poverty, unemployment, crime, HIV and Aids and the demon of racism that hounds us from time to time.
Never again should we ever have another Nelson Chisale murder on a farm. No other white farmer should be brutally killed in their homes or on their farms. Trade Union rights are indeed human rights. On the farms and private domestic homes, shops, factories and mines, we must rededicate 21 March 2007 to improve our relationships in society especially for the poor and vulnerable workers.
Let us push back the tide of violence against women and children in our homes, families, neighbourhood, constituencies and places of work. As we intensify our struggle for human rights, we must strengthen the Chapter Nine institutions established to promote democracy and the culture of human rights in our country and elsewhere in the world.
We must welcome the collaboration between our institutions like Cultural Religious and Linguistic Communities Rights Commission, the Independent Electoral Commission, the Commission on Gender Equality, South African Human Rights Commission and the United Nation Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights to ensure that the Africa Human Rights Day commemoration is observed each year on the 21st of October.
The 21st of October 2007 marks the 21st anniversary of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights adopted there by the Organisation of African Unity in 1981 and came into effect on the 21st of October 1986. We have an opportunity within the framework of the African Union and the United Nations to create a better Africa and a better world.
Our brothers and sisters in Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Palestine and Iraq also deserve to enjoy full democracy and human rights in line with our principles of ubuntu and human solidarity. The ANC is historically, and still remains, an internationalist revolutionary movement.
To quote Fidel Castro: "Being internationalist is paying our debt to humanity". In November 1994 Fidel Castro went on to say:
We have shown solidarity with the world. It's not our task now to talk about this solidarity. As far as our solidarity is concerned, we should do the most and talk the least. For us solidarity and internationalism are a matter of principle and a sacred one at that.
Let us - that is us as South African citizens and the ANC in particular - allow the armchair critics to do what they do best and we must continue the work tirelessly to achieve a better Africa and a better world. We have an opportunity as we speak now to do that. The SACP calls upon the country and its leaders to focus on the plight of the poor in the coming period.
In particular, the reds demand the removal of all South Africans from the credit bureau as a once-off amnesty. [Applause.] You are allowed to do that. Millions of our citizens are denied the access to participate meaningfully in the economic life of our country because of this black listing. Viva amabovu! [Viva SACP!]
The central task ahead of the ANC and its cadreship in 2007 and beyond is the alleviation of poverty and its ultimate eradication. The ANC's January statement enjoin us to work tirelessly with our alliance partner and progressive forces to fight poverty, unemployment, crime, HIV and Aids, racism and sexism in the same manner as we fought against apartheid.
Let us all accept this challenge and soldier on. Hon members will be going to their various constituencies in the next few days to participate in human rights activities. And also, in April, when we will be in recess, we will celebrate our freedom and May Day. So, I wish you well in all of these activities. Go there and spread the message of hope for our country. Thank you very much. [Applause.]