The Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Mr Thabang Makwetla, will tomorrow, 20 August 2011 deliver a keynote address at the inaugural conference of the Western Cape chapter of the South African National Military Veterans Association (SANMVA).
The Western Cape chapter will join other seven provinces which have launched SANMVA thus far. After tomorrow’s launch in the Western Cape, Mpumalanga will be the only province yet to launch SANMVA, an umbrella body of former liberation armies such as Umkhonto Wesizwe Military Veterans (MKMVA) and Azanian People’s Liberation Army (APLAMVA), members of the then (South African Defence Force) SADF, and former armies of the erstwhile Transkei, Venda, Bophuthatswana and Ciskei states.
According to the records of the department of military veterans, there are currently 57 000 registered military veterans from all the above mentioned former military organisations.
Recently, the National Assembly passed the Military Veterans Bill which seeks to provide social and economic benefits to former soldiers who served in the armies pre and post 1994.
The Cabinet approved R1.6 billion over the next three years in order to the address the plight of military veterans. This amount will cover among other things military pension, free health care, access to public transport, business support, education and re-skilling, memorialisation, housing and burial support. These benefits will also target their dependants. The Department of Military Veterans is expected to roll out these benefits before the end 2011, after the President has signed Military Veterans Bill into law.
The details are as follows:
Date: 20 August 2011
Venue: The Castle of Good Hope, Allemans Conference Room, Cape Town
Time: 10h00
Enquiries:
Ntime Skhosana (Spokesperson for the Deputy Minister)
Cell: 082 496 6875
Deputy Minister Makwetla to address Western Cape Military Veterans
