We are saddened to gather here today to pass our last respects to a man whose life consciously showed that when it comes to moral choice there is no such thing as 'impossible'.
That we are gathered here today to bury Dirk Cornelius du Toit, who died a champion of freedom and who had embraced and fought for freedom despite the confining conditions into which he was born, tells us more about the moral and intellectual force that he was.
In 1943, Dirk Cornelius du Toit was born into a country called South Africa; nations whose soul, body and heart were profoundly destroyed by apartheid. This was a world defined by arbitrary, separatist racial identification based on odious colonialist conceptions of racial supremacy.
At that time, it was inconceivable that 50 years later, in 1994, Dirk would strut into a democratically elected parliament that represents all South Africans. At the time it was also unthinkable that South Africans would one day inspire the whole world with national reconciliation based on the ideals of a non-racial, non-sexist, just and democratic society.
During his lifetime, Dirk would strive, along with the multitudes of other South Africans, to bring about a nation unfettered by oppression. Even more importantly, Dirk made considerable contributions to the creation of our democratic constitution, the bed-rock upon which our nation is based.
The death of Dirk, a great son of South Africa, flips close yet another page in our long chapter entitled 'human freedom'. And yet one chapter could not be enough to capture fully the life of this colossus of our nation and continent. And so it was that the 1994 democratic breakthrough opened up yet another chapter in his life.
It was a well-deserved opening of a chapter in Dirk's life, having spent all his adult life fighting the monster of racism, which had assumed the form of official policy. We are saddened to have lost a foot soldier of the struggle, a good human being, and a productive South African who toiled throughout his life for a better South Africa, a better Africa and a better world.
It is indeed sad that we had to lose this illustrious, patriotic South African only a few weeks after our fourth national election, and a day before the opening of our fourth democratic parliament, of which he had been a member till his retirement in 2009. A man of many parts, Dirk proved excellent in academia, especially in the field of law, where he specialised.
But he also loved music, as evidenced by his contribution towards the establishment of the symphony orchestra, music school and Opera House in Bloemfontein. He lived simply and wished that others could simply live. Our democratic nation is founded on a platform of equality before the law and respect for diversity.
An example of the life lived by Advocate Du Toit is a testament to the worth of self-sacrifice and dedication to a non-racial and non-sexist society where all can stand proud under the sun. We remember here a noble son who saw beyond a laager mentality and practice which sought to limit the opportunities of the majority.
But we have learnt on countless occasions that the truth will always prevail. The values of placing the welfare of others over one's personal interests are a full measure of what it means to be a worthy human being. It expresses the African way of life of defining yourself by ensuring the welfare of others - I am because we are.
More than ever the struggle from poverty, hunger and dispossession is accentuated by the general struggle for human freedom. We remember here a rare individual to whom political freedom was indivisible from economic freedom.
This is what gives meaning and purpose to reverence for our constitutional democracy, a democracy that recognises all who live within the borders of South Africa. In Dirk's eyes, human freedom superseded racial and ethnic loyalties.
This consciousness enabled him to transcend this laager mentality, which many of his contemporaries failed to overcome. We see here a life that must have paid a heavy price for choosing the truth over superiority complex. One can imagine the consequences of his decision on his family. It is for this reason I also pay homage to the brave widow of Adv du Toit.
To Ms Niconette du Toit, their three beautiful daughters and the rest of the family, I wish to commend your steadfast perseverance for standing by Dirk in the face of suffocating adversity that continued to strangulate those it deemed traitors. To the millions of South Africans you are patriots. To us you are family.
Issued by: The Presidency
5 June 2009
Source: SAPA
