Ramaphosa honours Sharpeville’s fallen – ‘they did not die in vain’

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the 69 peaceful protesters who were shot and killed in cold blood in the Sharpeville Massacre did not die in vain, but died for a future they themselves would never see.
Speaking at the official Human rights Day commemoration in Galeshewe, near Kimberley, Ramaphosa says the historic day reminds South Africans that human rights were not given on a silver platter, but that blood was shed for the freedoms the country enjoys today.
“The Constitution that Nelson Mandela, our President, chose to sign in Sharpeville is built on sacrifice. It is written in blood and resistance as well. Freedom carries with it a moral obligation to honour those who died for it. And that is why the preamble of our Constitution starts off by honouring those who suffered so that we can achieve this freedom. It is fitting that the place that had known so much suffering and tears should be the site on which a new South Africa would rise.”
The President adds that “Signing the Constitution into law was indeed the most significant act of our democratic era. To understand the full meaning of this day, we must also understand why we say it is Human Rights Day. It is about the origins of the rights that are enshrined in our constitution. Our constitution was not born in comfort. It was forged in struggle. It was shaped by injustice and it was designed to overcome injustice. The adoption of that constitution 30 years ago in many ways marked a turning point in human history. It declared unequivocally that every person has inherent dignity. Every citizen is equal before the law. And that freedom belongs to all who live in this land. It was in many ways a bold promise to ourselves and to the world that South Africa would never again deny the humanity of its people. It was also a clear moral commitment to build a society that is rooted in equality, freedom and human dignity.”
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