Chairperson, hon members, the topic of today's debate is indeed an apt one: Youth in action to build a caring society and renew humanity's best values. A caring society is an ideal many hon members, no doubt, sincerely aim to bring about, but in reality it is not something we are achieving. In fact, we are perhaps not making too much progress at all. And yes, a caring society is linked intricately to the second part of the debate topic, "renew humanity's best values", for if one has to genuinely care about others, one has to have empathy for those people who are vulnerable, and one needs a vision of a better place, if a caring society is to be achieved.
On Youth Day each year we pay tribute to the brave youths of 1976 who stood up against an oppressive government. Many lost their lives, most lost their innocence. It was a time of great idealism. Youth had a vision of the type of society that they wanted to live in and they had dreams about what they as individuals wanted to achieve. But Youth Day is also an opportunity to look at the state of the youth today. The picture is a mixed one. There are successes, but it is my contention that the idealism of youth has been lost.
It is the age group of young adults that have been left behind in our country. For many, if not the majority, the society they live in is not a caring one and one is reminded about this each waking hour of the day. Finding a job is a difficult prospect when the competition for limited opportunities is so fierce.
It is compounded when one lacks practical skills or the benefits of a quality education. It is made worse when one's family is poverty stricken and cannot support itself on the meagre grant it receives. It is heightened when you are afflicted by a communicable disease that was entirely avoidable and potentially treatable, but the public health care system cannot offer the individual care you require. It is escalated when one lives in fear of being attacked in one's own community by thugs who are caught up in the very cycle of hopelessness that you are.
It is no coincidence that a large number of the people that committed violent acts against foreigners recently were young people. There is no excuse for what they did, but one cannot but wonder whether a sense of frustration or helplessness, in the face of a society that has not thrown up the opportunities that young people so desire, drove much of this xenophobia.
It must certainly be a driver of crime in general, as youth who lose respect for themselves lose respect for the sovereignty of others in society. It is probably a driver of the risky sexual behaviour at the heart of our Aids pandemic, because many young people cannot envision for themselves a life of promise in their future.
The situation is bleak, but it can be turned around. A caring society is one that provides opportunities for all its people. It makes provision for those people who are most vulnerable to ensure that no one is left behind. It allows ordinary citizens to articulate what they want to achieve in their own lives without the state telling them what they can or cannot achieve.
Regaining the activism of 1976 is a necessity for South Africa today. If citizens do not have hope, then as a country we will never reach our full potential and we most certainly will not overcome the issue of race which pervades every aspect of society and often holds us back.
In order to reignite the idealism and engender new hope we need to create work opportunities for young people. The removal of the barriers to youth employment, effectively created by employment legislation that protects those who already have jobs, must be aggressively attacked. It is a reality that employers are often reluctant to hire young people. Besides the fact that young people may not have the skills, it is the prospect of not being able to dismiss the young people if they prove to be poor at their jobs that often dissuades employers from hiring them.
It is time to re-examine ideas around a dual labour market and special entry wages for young people that will allow employment in this demographic of the economy to flourish. It does not have to been seen as a threat to those currently in employment. We all stand to gain as a society when we all feel as if we have something to contribute to society. Let the state provide the regulations and let the market deliver the jobs.
And let the state redouble its efforts at investment in human capital. Nobel Prize winner, Michael Spence, speaking in South Africa this week about how to achieve sustained economic success, underscored the importance of developing human capital. He noted that early childhood malnutrition produces a near permanent reduction in children's ability to acquire cognitive and noncognitive skills, and that if this was widespread, it was a constraint on growth.
The state must redouble its efforts at ensuring that the health of young people is not compromised because even if opportunities do exist in the economy, an individual is not able to truly seize an opportunity if afflicted by ill health.
Lastly, reigniting hope is crucial to ending the brain drain. It is hard enough trying to impart new skills to young people. We cannot afford to lose these skills once they are developed. When this happens we all lose.
This week a close friend of mine in Durban, Tim, a qualified accountant who works in the banking sector, announced that he and his wife and young child were leaving for Australia in late July. I have not had time to quiz him on why he is leaving. The reasons why people are leaving are often intensely personal and none of us should be judgmental about it. It normally has nothing to do with a lack of love for our country or its people. It usually has something to do with whether one can see a place for oneself in the future, and whether the society you live in is safe, respects your individuality and promises to provide new opportunities. I am sad he is leaving, as I am sad about everyone who leaves this country of great prospects. Let's reignite the hope. Let's recreate the idealism. Let's make the caring society so often glibly referred to in this House a reality. I thank you. [Applause.]