Reloaded success with Hlengiwe

Eleven days into the annual sixteen days of activism against women and child abuse campaign, one of our big trees (Madiba) fell. December 5 shall never be the same again. It is a date never to be forgotten in both South Africa and the international community at large. More than anything, the passing on of uTata was a test of the unity he so hardly fought for. Thousands of people from all walks of life flocked to the Union buildings to see his body lying in state. Travelling, flying costs, accommodation costs, long waiting queues, inconsistent park and ride services are some of the potential obstacles which may have hindered South Africans from going out to see Tata’s body, but they were not bothered at all. This gesture showed the lively spirit of selflessness. It is this same kind of spirit needed to fight poverty, gender inequality and other social ills which undermine the hard earned freedom of this country.

The standing question now is, Do we love Tata enough to carry on his legacy? Forgiveness, tolerance of diversity in all forms, peace, debate are some of the defining qualities of the type of freedom he fought for.

If we love Madiba so much, we must be prepared to take care of the things he loved and cherished the most. Madiba loved children so much. He saw them as innocent beings in need of love and protection. It is now up to us to honour him by protecting children from abuse and any sort of victimization.

Madiba has been through imprisonment, divorce and discrimination and yet we have never heard of a single incident of him abusing either women or children. This challenges all of us to start distancing ourselves from the tendencies of displacement, where all we do is blame our past experiences for our wrong doings. We need to go into 2014 with a new slate.

2014 is yet another opportunity for all South Africans to honour Madiba. Even though he preferred a particular political party, I am sure that he would be happy to see all South Africans, young and old voting, irrespective of who they vote for. Voting simply means that people care enough about their country to bring change. I believe that all those who had not registered to vote yet, will do so after the festive season, and if they are not doing it for themselves, they’d be doing it for Madiba.

I would like to take this opportunity and wish all our readers a Merry Christmas and a happy new year. Let us condoms, drive sensibly and don’t drink and drive.