Silent call to conscience on Mandela Day
For the members of the public and organisations who held a silent protest outside the Durban Holocaust and Genocide Centre on Nelson Mandela Day, their silence definitely spoke volumes with many taking note. The protesters let their placards with strong messages such as "Open aid routes into Gaza" and "Food is not a weapon" speak for them, in their call for peace.
ON Friday, a silent picket took place outside the Durban Holocaust and Genocide Centre. For 67 minutes, people stood in silence.
There were no chants, no speeches, no shouting. Just the presence of human beings standing still in protest, each one holding a message for the world to see. The message was clear, “Open aid routes into Gaza”.
“This Mandela Day, a coalition of South African organisations came together not to celebrate, but to act. We chose silence as our form of protest, because the world has been too quiet about Gaza for too long. As people are starved, bombed, and erased, global leaders offer words, but little else. Silence became our tool to reflect the failure of those in power. It also became our expression of deep grief, rage, and moral duty,” shared Nasiha Soomar, spokesperson of #FridaysForPalestine.
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“We stood in solidarity with Gaza because Mandela once reminded us that our freedom as South Africans is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinian people. That truth remains unchanged.” The picket was supported by The South Africa Palestine Movement, The National Association of Democratic Lawyers, People Against Oppression, Active Citizens Movement, R.A.U.F., Al Sirat and several others who believe that justice must be seen and felt.
“These are not political groups alone. These are people who understand that human lives matter more than borders, profit, or alliances. The location of the picket carried its own weight. The Holocaust and Genocide Centre is a place of memory and warning. It teaches us what happens when humanity looks away. To gather outside that building and demand action for Gaza is to say that we have not forgotten what silence can cost.
“This Mandela Day, we did not light candles or hand out soup. We stood, silently, for the people of Gaza, because justice delayed is justice denied. Because humanity must come first,” concluded Soomar.
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