South Africa will celebrate the National Day of Reconciliation on 16 December 2012 at Freedom Park in the City of Tshwane. Although commemorated differently during apartheid, this day has since the onset of democracy, been used to foster reconciliation and national unity in South Africa.
The National Day of Reconciliation affords leaders of society opportunities to deliver messages of support, peace and reconciliation under the theme: “Towards building a united nation at peace with itself and its neighbours”.
Activities include a prayer day that is uniquely South African as it allows for and encourages individuals from a diverse nation, regardless of religion, culture or race, to unite. The prayer theme will be carried over to the mainstay of its celebrations, when the park hosts Reconciliation Day on the 16 December 2012.
The highlight will be the coming together for a joint moment of prayer between those gathered at Freedom Park and the Voortrekker Monument and Nature Reserve at 12 pm on Reconciliation Road.
Where does Reconciliation Day come from?
In apartheid South Africa 16 December was known as Day of the Vow, as the Voortrekkers in preparation for the Battle of Blood River on 16 December 1838 against the Zulus took a Vow before God that they would build a church and that they and their descendants would observe the day as a day of thanksgiving should they be granted victory.
The second historical event that took place on 16 December was in 1961, when Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), the military wing of the African National Congress (ANC), was formed. Prior to its formation, the ANC had largely approached the fight against apartheid through passive resistance, but after the Sharpeville Massacre in 1960, where peaceful protestors were indiscriminately shot by police, passive resistance was no longer seen as an effective approach in bringing apartheid to an end. MK mostly performed acts of sabotage, but its effectiveness was hampered by organizational problems and the arrest of its leaders in 1963. Despite this, its formation was commemorated every year since 1961.
With the advent of democracy in South Africa 16 December retained its status as a public holiday. South Africa's first non-racial and democratic government was tasked with promoting reconciliation and national unity. One way in which it aimed to do this symbolically was to acknowledge the significance of the 16 December in both the Afrikaner and liberation struggle traditions and to rename this day as the Day of Reconciliation.
On 16 December 1995, the Day of Reconciliation was celebrated as a public holiday in South Africa for the first time.
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