Deputy President Paul Mashatile will deliver the keynote address at Friday’s 2025 Human Rights Day commemoration event.
The Deputy President will deliver the address on behalf of President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Derrick Ferreira Stadium in Kariega, located within the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in the Eastern Cape.
This as Human Rights commemorative events this year are held under the theme, “Deepening a Culture of Social Justice and Human Rights” .
“This is a call for a renewed and strengthened commitment from all levels of society, to accelerate practical solutions in driving inclusive growth and job creation, to reduce poverty and tackle the high cost of living, and to build a capable, ethical and developmental State,” the Presidency said in a statement on Wednesday.
South Africa commemorates National Human Rights Day on 21 March to remember the Sharpeville massacre, where apartheid police killed 69 peaceful protesters against the regime in 1960.
The Presidency stated that this is an important day, which also honours 35 people who were killed on 21 March 1985, when apartheid police targeted community members after a funeral in Uitenhage and KwaLanga.
The government has chosen Kariega to host the national Human Rights Day commemoration as the State’s initiative to rotate national days, allowing communities across all provinces to pay tribute to those who lost their lives during the liberation struggle.
According to the Presidency, it also provides an opportunity to reflect on and evaluate the progress made towards building a non-racial, non-sexist, democratic, and united nation.
Deputy President Mashatile will be accompanied by the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Mmamoloko Kubayi, Premier of the Eastern Cape Province Oscar Mabuyane, Members of the Eastern Cape Provincial Executive Council, Mayors, and senior government officials. – SAnews.gov.za
