Address by the President and Commander-In-Chief of the SANDF His Excellency Mr Jacob Zuma on the occasion of the Armed Forces Day, Airforce Base Bloemspruit, Mangaung
The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans,
The Premier of the Free State Province,
The Minister of Defence of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mr Ntambo,
The Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans,
Ministers and Deputy Ministers,
Members of the Executive Council,
Mayor of Mangaung and Councillors,
Secretary for Defence,
Chief of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF),
Generals, Admirals, Officers, Warrant Officers,
Non-Commissioned Officers,
Members on the Parade,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Distinguished Guests,
Fellow South Africans,
I join you today with a great sense of joy and shared national pride, to celebrate 20 years of freedom and 20 years of the existence of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), on Armed Forces Day.
This Armed Forces Day that takes place on this 20th year of our freedom enables us to reflect on the SANDF and the remarkable transformation that has taken place in only 20 years, to build a defence force that we are all so proud of.
Taking place on the 21st of February, this Armed Forces Day also takes us back 100 years ago to the First World War, and the death of members of the South African Native Labour Corps during the tragic sinking of the Mendi, sank.
Today we therefore celebrate our triumph over adversity, our conquest over apartheid colonialism and the ushering in of a constitutional democracy based on human rights and civil freedoms.
We have every reason to celebrate. We have a good story to tell.
We have built a new defence force out of the ashes of an apartheid force that was known for its aggression against neighbours in the Southern African region, where it sought members of the liberation movement and to intimidate governments of the Frontline States.
It was a defence force that enforced every apartheid law, terrorising our people in the townships, in the hope of stopping the march to freedom.
We have built a defence force that our people see protecting the sick including vulnerable children during disasters.
It is a defence force that makes them proud as it participates in peacekeeping missions in our continent.
This is a defence force that builds infrastructure that our people need in rural areas. It is also a defence force that trains our youth to prepare them for national service in programmes.
It is a defence force that our people trust to protect the borders of our land, soldiers who stay awake at night so that they, the people, can sleep in peace.
On behalf of the South African people, let me declare that we are truly proud of our South African National Defence Force.
We are truly proud of your contribution to making South Africa a much better place to live in now, than it was before 1994.
Compatriots,
The transformation of the SANDF has truly been an inspiring journey.
Men and women who were sworn enemies in the battles that shaped our route to democracy, now stand side by side before us here, as patriots in a common cause.
We are truly a remarkable nation!
Today we recommit ourselves to continue the walk that the SANDF started under the able leadership of our very first Commander-in chief, President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
On 10 May this year, we will accordingly also mark the 20th anniversary of Madiba’s inauguration as the first Commander-in Chief of our Armed Forces.
You have a responsibility to live his legacy and take it forward. You must continue the long walk that Madiba started, to consolidate peace and stability in our country and beyond.
Madiba said;
“I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way.
“But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.
“I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come.
“But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended”.
To the members of the SANDF, one more remaining task in honour of your first Commander in Chief is to continue the walk.
We therefore dedicate the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the SANDF, and all the activities still to be held in the year, to the legacy of Commander in Chief Madiba.
Let me also once again, on behalf of our nation, take the opportunity to express our gratitude to members of the SANDF for the diligent, decorum and well deserved dignity they accorded Madiba in caring for him while still in our midst until the final moments towards his final resting place.
We thank the men and women of the SANDF who served on his medical team, as part of his personal staff, his security and pilots, and the many who directly and indirectly participated in the events leading to his burial.
Compatriots,
Our nation today celebrates the good story of the SANDF’s two decades of ensuring security and sovereign integrity of our country.
We are celebrating two decades of supporting development here at home, and of serving as a mid-wife for peace and freedom in our continent.
Allow me to take you back to that moment of national pride we felt in 1997, when the SAS Outeniqua docked in the shores of the then Zaire, arriving to serve as a platform for peace negotiations between Mobutu Sese Seko and Laurent Kabila.
Since then, the SANDF has played a leading role in post conflict peace support and reconstruction.
The success story of Burundi and the work of our women and men in the Comoros elections are a source of pride for our people.
Over the past thirteen years South Africa has also deployed its forces as part of the peacekeeping mission of the UN in the DRC (MONUSC).
Peace and stability is slowly returning to the DRC, culminating in the recent success of the Intervention Force Brigade constituted by three SADC force contributing states, including South Africa.
It is of course our wish that our deployment, and the need for it in that country, will soon come to an end, paving the way for internal solution to the many issues facing the Congolese people.
The end of the war will create a conducive environment in which the Congolese people can take charge of their own destiny.
We have learned many lessons in all the missions we have undertaken since Burundi, up until recently in the execution of our bilateral memorandum for post conflict re-integration of warring factions in the Central African Republic.
This latest engagement has, for understandable reasons, received more publicity than others and deserves a bit of our attention even as we gather here today.
I must say that in many respects, our mission to assist in the post conflict disarmament, reintegration and training of the CAR Army since the year 2007, had seen relative success.
However, owing to the further internal destabilisation of the region and the country itself, our members of the SANDF who were in the CAR were unfortunately caught in the crossfire at the beginning of the current civil conflict that continues to this day.
On that fateful morning in March last year, after being ambushed, our members had no choice but to defend their base and protect lives.
Despite the sad and unfortunate loss of 15 of our members, our soldiers accounted well for themselves in military combat terms.
Overwhelmed and grossly outnumbered, they engaged the enemy to surrender over two and half days and inflicted huge casualties estimated at over seven hundred of the bandits’ army.
It is our view that the true account of the battle of Bangui still needs to be documented, debated and be known to South Africans.
The mischievous attempts by some in our country to diminish this heroic account of our soldiers are aimed at denying them their honour in death, and at the demoralisation of many of their fellow combatants who returned home.
The elevation of such negativity over the real bravery and heroism of our young women and men achieves the objective of making our soldiers return home in shame rather than in well-deserved triumph. To a soldier, if this aim is achieved, returning in shame is a fate more painful than death itself.
So this negativity amounts to a failure to appreciate South Africa's role in bringing peace and stability in the continent.
As part of this celebration of National Armed Forces Day therefore, we want to call on South Africans, to learn to celebrate and stand behind our heroes.
In this regard, as part of our parade today, we hope we will be able to correct this negativity by honouring the first group of these gallant patriots who fought in Bangui.
Throughout this year, more parades will be held to bestow honour to the others in terms of the various categories and classes of medals.
We recognise the role they played in defence of the honour and dignity of their country and people.
We are proud of them, and we want their families to know that we are ready to shout from any rooftop, that these soldiers are heroes who died in the service of their country and people.
These will be the first battle honours to be bestowed on members of the SANDF in the past 20 years and since the advent of our democracy.
This fact on its own further demonstrates that overall, South Africa has been a country at peace with itself and with its neighbours. That is another good story of our first 20 years of freedom and democracy.
Compatriots,
National Armed Forces Day is not a day for our soldiers, but for the whole nation. It must become an important day in the calendar of our government and our country.
It is a day for citizens to appreciate their SANDF and the role it plays in our country and in our lives.
It is a day for us to express our support and encourage our soldiers, particularly those who are serving in deployment in foreign lands far away from home, including in the high seas and our borders.
To a soldier, spending time away from family and loved ones is a normal reality in the line of duty, but it can be heart-warming to know that the people they serve are thinking of them and appreciate the unique sacrifices they make.
For us as the leadership, and speaking in my capacity as the Commander in chief, we need to ensure that we do not only concentrate on the success of the only one task of a commander, which is to prepare your forces to be battle ready to succeed in operations.
We should pay attention, with equal enthusiasm and focus to the other task of a commander, which is to ensure the wellbeing of your soldiers.
The conditions under which our soldiers serve should not compromise their ability for such service and should recognise the unique nature of the sacrifice they make to this country. We need to take care of our soldiers.
In this regard, I have been engaging with the Minister and the Military Command in a series of meetings over the past 12 months or so to look at this and other areas of support required by the SANDF as we plan for the future.
I am pleased with the overall plan that has emerged to address the various limitations, including on the issues of budgets, currently affecting our ability to take proper care of our soldiers.
Much consideration and time has been put in this work as we have now reached the final stages for Cabinet approval.
It is my view that these should be finalised, in the context of the current Defence Review, before the end of the term of office of this government.
The long awaited Permanent Defence Force Services Commission has been appointed. It will look at the conditions of service of the soldiers.
The Defence Works Formation has also been established last year to start looking at improving the conditions of the facilities in the bases.
In addition, the Chief of the SANDF has also announced the establishment of an Education Trust to provide financial assistance for educational purposes to the dependents of SANDF who have died or severely injured in the execution of their duties.
I would like to add that we appreciate the Fund of the Chief of the Army to educate the children and families of those who lost their lives to protect us. I would also like to announce I will personally contribute R500 000 to this Fund.
These efforts will further enhance the long term view to which I have referred earlier.
I also want to pose a serious challenge to the leadership of our Defence Force, specifically to the Secretary of Defence and the Chief of the SANDF, to prioritise education and awareness campaigns about the defence force amongst our people.
Our people need to know of the Navy's crucial role in protecting our marine resources, and that, not only does this protect us from an invasion through the sea, but that it is also the reason why we continue to enjoy affordable fish in our homes every day.
We need to create more awareness about the role that the South African Air Force plays in rescue missions both at sea and in mountains, including during bad weather.
The people must know more about the work the SANDF in disaster relief and humanitarian missions, or the deployment of our troops to support police operations in fighting crime.
This is also the case when it comes to the SANDF’s collaboration, through the Military Health Service, with the Departments of Health in the provision healthcare to rural communities.
This work, which depicts the potential of the SANDF peace time activities, should serve to enhance the human face of the force and improve its interaction with its own people.
Today, we also provide an opportunity to the public to see how our defence Force is designed.
We are again taking the opportunity here to also display the different capabilities of all of the SANDF’s four Arms of Service: the Army, the Navy, the Air Force and Military Health Services as presented in the parade before us.
We want to attract the youth into the defence force.
We want to build this Defence Force as a highly skilled, technically superior, and professional force where the best that we have are recruited to join the SANDF.
Compatriots
Let me take this opportunity to thank each and every citizen of our country for their invaluable support to our troops.
My special thanks goes to families of members of our Armed Forces who endure long hours and days without the presence of their sons, daughters, fathers and mothers who are deployed within the country and abroad on peace keeping missions.
We thank you for sharing your loved ones with us.
I wish our members all the successes as you make us all feel safe and secure here at home and continue to search for peace and stability on our beautiful continent.
We thank you sincerely, for contributing to the good South African story of peace, stability and progress!
I thank you!
