President Jacob Zuma invites South Africans from all walks of life to participate in the Freedom Month and Freedom Day celebrations nationally and in the provinces, to mark how the nation, working together, buried colonial oppression and apartheid and began to build a non-racial, non-sexist and prosperous democratic society.
The theme of the 2012 Freedom Day celebrations is "Working Together to Build Unity and Prosperity for All', to mark the 18th anniversary of the ushering in of freedom and democracy in 1994.
The message highlights the need to accelerate the building of a more prosperous South Africa, following on the successful work done in consolidating democracy since 1994. The country's emphasis on implementing the New Growth Path (NGP) and in particular the infrastructure development aspects of the NGP, is aimed at promoting prosperity and eradicating poverty, inequality and unemployment.
This year's theme also emphasises the need to continue working for unity and social cohesion by all sectors of society.
The President will deliver the national Freedom Day message at the national event at the Union Buildings on the 27 April. He is scheduled to be accompanied by the heads of the other two arms of the state, Parliament and the Judiciary.
Later in the evening, the President will preside over the annual ceremony of presenting National Orders to South Africans who have made a distinguished contribution to the nation and the country. This event will take place at the Presidential Guest House.
Yesterday, on 12 April, the Minister of Arts and Culture, Mr Paul Mashatile announced some of the programmes to be undertaken during Freedom Month as part of the build up to Freedom Day.
The activities include commemorative events to celebrate the lives of some of the fallen heroes and heroines of the country's struggle for national liberation. These include Solomon Kalushi Mahlangu, Thomas Nkobi, Martin Thembisile Chris Hani and many others who paid the supreme price for us all to enjoy freedom and democracy.
Minister Mashatile also announced that this month government will begin the process of repatriating the remains of Mr Klass Pienaar and his wife Mrs Trooi Pienaar, whose bodies were illegally removed from their graves and taken to Austria for "research" purposes. This will be done as a symbolic gesture to the Khoi and San community, once more to restore their dignity and to reaffirm their status as equal citizens of a free South Africa.
On Freedom Day, the 27th of April, a street parade has also been planned to show case and celebrate our country's rich and diverse cultures.
Represented in this parade will also be other countries from our Continent.
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Mac Maharaj
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