Chairperson, hon members of this important House, fellow delegates, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, receive the warm greetings of the people of the Eastern Cape. The Premier of the province regrets that she could not be here to take part in this debate.
I am taking the liberty of quoting the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary to explain what a hero and a heroine are. The dictionary says a hero is a person who is "admired by many people for doing something brave or good", while a heroine is the female version of a hero. I have quoted the dictionary so that nobody should question me! South Africa has been blessed with a sizeable number of such people, and the Eastern Cape has produced its fair share of them.
This important dialogue has such profound meaning and significance, in the sense that it serves to remind us of the debt we owe to all South Africans who paid the supreme sacrifice for our freedom. We are free here today because they gave their all. On this occasion I also remember the veterans of our struggle, for they remind us of the debt we owe to all those who selflessly and valiantly fought against an oppressive system, the apartheid system.
Amidst all the suffering that befell scores of men and women in the liberation struggle in this country, there are those who provided food, information, and even shelter to freedom fighters. Their role must never be forgotten. The selfless and significant contribution made by the masses should never be downplayed.
Their bravery and self-sacrifice in standing up to the deadly apartheid war machinery has brought us to where we are today, with the freedom to choose, freedom to act, freedom to speak, freedom to move, freedom to worship, freedom to join organisations of our choice and freedom to own property.
I specifically want to stress the freedom to choose, because some people think that the ANC is not their liberator. From today I want them to understand that the ANC and other liberation movements liberated them even to choose, as we are doing now. Let us keep these memories so that we will never forget that this forms the basis of our country.
We want to stress in regard to the Constitution of South Africa that while some people pretend that they are the ones who are defending it, it is the product of our struggle. It is the product of the struggles of the heroines that we are referring to. Their bravery and self-sacrifice in standing up to the deadly force of apartheid gave us what we have today.
Even though the democratic government has deemed it fit to erect monuments to them and to name our universities, streets, airports and stadia after some of our heroes and heroines, the best way to preserve their legacy is to better their performance in their areas of excellence. That is one benefit that we can give.
The heroic deeds of these great South Africans must be taught in our schools - from primary to tertiary institutions. Learning about these legends and working tenaciously to implement their ideals and principles is one way we can ensure that their sacrifices were not in vain. As we engage in this debate let us take time to reflect on the cause they fought for, while contemplating ways in which their unwavering patriotism can be entrenched in the present and future generations.
Despite remarkable achievements in poverty reduction and development, there is still a need to work hard to raise the levels of productivity in the economy. With a large part of the population of our country living in the rural areas, we need to embrace strategies that will deliver a genuine agrarian revolution and a sustainable rural development programme.
If the majority of the South African people genuinely chose to walk in the footsteps of our heroes and heroines, we could easily achieve our developmental goals. Indeed, all this cannot be achieved without hard work and a commitment to the national cause. In the light of that, every South African must continue to jealously guard the hard-earned democracy.
This 17th year of our democratic government is a year for all South Africans, and those that care for our country and its future, to start espousing the necessary ideas to make our society a better and more democratic one, as was articulated in the Freedom Charter in 1955. Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]