Mabuza: We need more Ingrid Jonkers
Updated | By Nathan Daniels
Deputy President David Mabuza has lashed out at the recent killings and abuses of children, saying it is tarnishing the legacy of those who died fighting for human rights.
“Where is our care? What has gone wrong with our nation? What has become our basic humanity? Why have we become so numb to the tragedies that take away the innocence of our children?”
Mabuza was the keynote speaker at government's official Human Rights Day celebrations in Sharpeville on Wednesday afternoon.
Human Rights Day marks the events of 21 March 1960 when at least 69 people were killed in what became known as the Sharpeville Massacre.
He quoted Nelson Mandela’s inaugural speech, which in turn quoted poet Ingrid Jonker’s “Die Kind”, saying the country needs more Jonkers “who will fight without regard of race, the rights of vulnerable children in our townships and villages.”
Mabuza critised government for “23 years after democracy we can have the death of the 5-year-old Viwe Jali who fell in a school latrine pit toilet in Bizana.
“Oliver Tambo was born in Bizana. What will he say to us who bask in the glory of his struggle if we still fail to protect our children years after?”
He also asked parents to educate their children on gender-based violence and substance abuse.
“We must help families to rehabilitate their sons and daughters into drugs and alcohol abuse. We need teachers, parents, traditional leaders and spiritual workers that say it is not cool, not good to lay a hand on a woman. To teach them that to beat a woman is an insult to our very existence, culture and tradition.”
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