Nation pays tribute to Chris Hani during Freedom Month
South Africans gathered to honour struggle icon Chris Hani, reflecting on his legacy and the unfinished promises of freedom at a powerful commemoration.
South Africans gathered to commemorate the life and legacy of Martin Thembisile ‘Chris’ Hani, marking 33 years since his assassination on April 10, 1993.
The commemoration was held as part of Freedom Month and brought together government leaders, community members, and his family at the Mthombomuhle Community Hall on Friday. The event focused on Hani’s role in the struggle against apartheid and his fight for equality and justice.
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Speakers encouraged people to remember his values and continue working towards a better South Africa.
Hani’s daughter, Lindiwe, shared a heartfelt message that featured a recording of her father, reconnecting the present generation with the spirit, clarity, and conviction of a revolutionary giant.
The Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, commended the Hani family’s resilience in protecting the fallen hero’s legacy and ensuring his voice lives on.
“She [Limpho, Hani’s wife] fought for her husband in court when the killer was released, raised her kids through the grief of losing a husband and a daughter, and she has been a pillar to ensure her husband’s dignity is upheld; a true woman, a consistent wife as a widow showing that love does not expire,” he said.
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The MEC for co-operative governance, human settlement and traditional affairs, Speed Mashilo, said Hani’s assassination is one of the most painful events to have rocked the country in the fight for democracy, equality and constitutionalism.
“This event reminds us of the many sacrifices made by South Africans for the society that exist in our country today; free, just, equal, non-racial and equitable. Chris Hani was indeed a doyen of our liberation struggle and his memory will always guide us for a better South Africa,” Mashilo said.
The chairperson of the Mpumalanga House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders and president of Contralesa, Kgoshi Mathupa Mokoena, posed a thought on how Hani would have reacted to the current state of the country regarding the mounting corruption including the Madlanga Commission’s findings, the lack of electricity, and basic services to the people.
The collective leadership of African National Congress, uMkhonto weSizwe [paramilitary wing of the African National Congress], South African National Civic Organisation, Congress of South African Trade Unions, and the South African Communist Party emphasised on the multifaceted role Hani took to achieve the liberation South Africa enjoys today.
