Yusuf Oadoo Primary School, Azaadville, Gauteng
12 June 2006
THE CLASS OF 1976 PAVED THE WAY FOR A FREE SOUTH AFRICA
The Principal, Dr Ismail,
Members of the School Governing Body,
Honourable guests;
It is an honour for me to begin this very significant week, marking the 30th
anniversary of the 1976 Student Uprising, at your school.
It is appropriate that this commemoration of the 30th anniversary of 16 June
is being held at a school that is named after one of the leaders of the
struggle for freedom In South Africa, Dr Yusuf Mohamed Dadoo.
Your school was founded in 1974. Under normal circumstances, the opening of
a new school in a community is something that should be celebrated. However,
your school opened during the heyday of apartheid. Apartheid was a system of
government that created under-resourced and impoverished schools for the black
majority, a system that promoted degradation and subservience for the black
majority. A system which bred negative education, practices and created the
difficult legacy we still confront to day.
Your school opened just two years before young people, some of whom were no
older than some of you are now, rose up in vigorous protest against the
apartheid education system.
As a result many of those young people sacrificed years of their lives in
prison or in exile.
Many paid the ultimate price, losing their lives in the struggle for freedom
and democracy.
In commemorating the 30th anniversary of the 1976 youth uprisings, your
school is honouring all those who made the courageous decision to take to the
streets of South Africa during the cold winter month of June, like this one, to
stand up for what they believed whatever the consequences.
As we gather here and in many other places in South Africa, let us try to
put ourselves in the shoes of those brave young people and the hundreds and
thousands of others who struggled against apartheid so that we can enjoy the
fruits of our democracy today.
In 2001, your school was renamed in memory of a great South African, Yusuf
Dadoo. YusufDadoo gave 47 years of his life to the struggle against apartheid.
For him, just as for the young people of 1976, education was the key to change
in society.
Dr Dadoo was significant in many ways. A leader who recognised the
oppression of the African majority and committed his life to ending that
inhumanity. A leader who could have advanced through building a distinct ethnic
based organisation, yet chose to align the people he led with the national
struggle for liberation and with the national liberation movement.
What can we do as South Africans to ensure that the courageous sacrifices
that those young people made thirty years ago are not forgotten?
In my speech introducing the debate on the education budget in the National
Assembly on 19 May 2006, I challenged tile entire education system to excel in
honour of the youth of 1976.
I believe that we have a major duty that we have as a legacy is to build an
education system that will truly honour all those who fought for democracy and
a free South Africa.
The key to success in our education transformation lies with all of us, as
leaner, as teacher, as principal, as parent, as school governing body member
and as the Department of Education official. We must all strive for excellence
in education. Your school motto; "Team - Spirit" sums up the importance of all
those in the education system working together and striving towards
excellence.
In my budget vote speech I asked the question; âhave we responded to the
dreams and aspirations of the youth of 1976?â I highlighted the many challenges
that we in education still face in working to create an education system of
excellence.
We have indicated that our focus is on equipping schools with excellent
resources on supporting tead1ers to perform with excellence and on ensuring
service with excellence from all our departmental officials.
We have achieved a significant stride in addressing the challenge of poverty
by abolishing school fees in hundreds of poverty stricken communities, enabling
three million learners this year to attend newly declared no-fee schools. We
have expanded our special focus schools on science and mathematics and have
taken steps to promote a culture of reading and learning by providing
additional reading resources to thousands of schools.
Dr Yusuf Dadoo Primary School is an example to all in the education system.
Learners here today enjoy the fruits of the struggles of the past they enjoy
the facilities of a well resourced school with a computer centre, a science
laboratory and a resource centre. Learners have the opportunity to participate
in academic competitions across the curriculum and many have excelled. Here,
tool learners are engaged with caring for the school environment through the
Bonlte Ke Botho Clean Schools Competition.
But I am also very pleased to hear that learners and educators give
something back to the community, particularly to our senior citizens and
orphans.
It is this aspect of education that helps to instil in learners that sense
of social responsibility, of caring for others beyond their friends and
families. The same sense that Mbuyisa Makubu showed on 16 June 1976, when he
picked up the dying Hector Peterson whom he did not know and carried him away
in search of medical help.
Too often our young forget that their rights cannot be enjoyed without
responsibilities.
As we move towards Youth Day on this Friday, 16 June, let us remember the
sacrifices of those who have gone before us, let us remember their hopes and
aspirations for a truly great South Africa and let us remember that we all have
a role to play in ensuring the success of our democracy. In order to honour the
class of 1976, let each one of us commit ourselves to strive for excellence in
all that we do in that way we will reach for their dreams of a quality
education for all.
I thank you!
Issued by: Department of Education
12 June 2006
