“People were running in all directions, but some people couldn't believe that people were shot. They thought they'd heard the firecrackers.
These words, written by Petrus Tom in his book My Life Struggle, are part of his witness account of what would become known as the Sharpeville massacre.
It began gathering in Sharpville, a town sandwiched between the industrial city of Weringing and the industrial city of Vanderbisil Park, south of Johannesburg, in protest of having to carry a pass early on March 21, 1960.
The Passbook, known as Dompas, was an apartheid design. Identity documents over the age of 16 were always to be carried when they were restricted in movement and workplace location.
More than 4,000 protesters, including women and children led by Pan African parliament, gathered in fields near the local police station for songs and chan chants.
Then, on 1:40pm, police unexpectedly fired fire at a peaceful crowd. When they escaped, most were shot in the back. The witness account reflects Tom's that no warning was issued.
More than 1,000 rounds were fired by police that afternoon.
Over the years, the official death toll was 69, with 180 injured. New data from Nancy L. Clark of Louisiana State University and William H. Wager of the University of California and Los Angeles University are the long history of Sharpville: Racial injustice, and now that number is injured by 91 people.
Turning Point
March 21, 1960 was a fork moment in South Africa's history. It exposed the apartheid government's human rights violations to the world. It sparked international rage upon seeing the birth of an anti-apartheid movement. This led to ongoing protests within the country. And it sparked the decision to liberate movement.
Over the next 30 years, countless lives were seen lost or destroyed in the struggle for liberation.
After South Africa's first democratic election in 1994, March 21 declared Human Rights Day to remember and honor those who paid the ultimate price for South Africa's freedom.
Human Rights Day is more than just a public holiday. It commemorates the most important pillar of our democracy: our constitution and Bill of Rights.
Pillars of democracy
The South African constitution is considered one of the most progressive in the world. This is a document that gives a voice to everyone in the country, including those excluded under apartheid.
As expressed in the National Development Plan, Vision 2030: “The Constitution embarrasses a rights-based approach and envisages a prosperous, non-racial, non-sexist democracy that belongs to all.
“It is a constitutional obligation to heal past wounds and save the inequality caused by centuries of racial exclusion.”
The rights are as follows:
The right to life. Equal rights. Everyone has the right to be equal before the law and to equal the protection and interests of the law. The right to dignity. Freedom of movement and residence. The right to use the language of their choice and participate in the cultural life of their choice.
Appropriately, it was South Africa's first democratically elected President Nelson Mandela who signed the constitution into law in Sharpville on International Human Rights Day on December 10, 1996.
He also opened the Sharpeville Human Rights Penct on March 21, 2002.
A call for social justice
This year, the theme of Human Rights Month was “deepening the culture of social justice and human rights,” prompting all South Africans to promote social cohesion.
It is the preamble to the Constitution that provides the answer to how to do that.
“As South Africans, we recognize the injustice of our past. We honor those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land. We respect those who worked in the construction and development of our country, and we believe that South Africa belongs to all who are united in our diversity.
“Therefore, we will adopt this Constitution as the supreme law of the Republic through freely elected representatives.
Heal past divisions and establish society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights. The government is based on the will of the people and lays the foundation for a democratic and open society where all citizens are equally protected by law. It improves the quality of life for all citizens and unlocks each individual's potential. And we can build a unified, democratic South Africa and take a legitimate place as a sovereign nation for the nation's families.
“May God protect our people.”
