President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged South Africans to welcome fellow Africans because they “gave us shelter” during the liberation struggle for freedom from apartheid.
The president was speaking on Monday during the 2022 Human Rights Day national event held at the Reagile Community Centre in Koster in the North West province of the country.
The occasion marked 62 years since the Sharpeville Massacre occurred on 21st March 1960 when 69 unarmed men and women protesting against apartheid laws were shot dead by the police in Soweto.
He called on South Africans to live in harmony with fellow Africans who come to this country to seek opportunities, he said.
“As a country founded on tolerance, respect for diversity and non-discrimination, we must never allow ourselves to turn against people who come from beyond our borders,” Ramaphosa said.
He added: “Like those countries that gave us shelter during the dark times of apartheid, we must be a welcoming country, particularly of refugees, who are fleeing persecution elsewhere.”
The president admitted there was much work to be done to build the bridges of tolerance and understanding in the country.
In addition, he said incidents of racism and intolerance in schools, workplaces, communities, universities, and professional sectors saddened and angered those affected by it.
“These incidents have no place in our society, where we still are struggling to heal the divisions of the past,” Ramaphosa said.
NM/jn/APA