Gauteng Finance and Economic Development MEC Lebogang Maile says the memory and legacy of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela have become increasingly significant. He was speaking at the 7th annual Memorial Lecture on the life of the late struggle icon and freedom fighter in Johannesburg.
Madikizela-Mandela, who was married to former president Nelson Mandela, was one of the first detainees under the apartheid regime’s Section 6 of the notorious Terrorism Act of 1967 and endured multiple arrests and imprisonments.
Like many women struggle stalwarts, Madikizela-Mandela endured immense hardship under the apartheid regime. She was arrested multiple times for her activism, yet she never wavered in her fight for the liberation of South Africa.
Maile emphasized that her legacy must be preserved, as it appears to be fading from history.
“In South Africa today where memory is contested, many legacies have been debated about the legacy of Mama Winnie. But one thing which has no question is that her memory has been subjected to painful erasure. Her contribution minimized.”
Maile says if Mama Winnie was alive, she would still be fighting for the liberation of the people of Palestine, the DRC and other countries of the world, where people remain oppressed.
“She believed in the cause of freedom and recognized as former President Nelson Mandela did, that our freedom as South Africans is incomplete without the freedom of Palestinians. It is for this reason that South Africans in whose memory are committed to a just world and are committed to the end of suffering in Palestine, Sudan, DRC and everywhere else in the world where injustices and suffering occur.”
Gauteng ANC Women’s League Chairperson Faith Mazibuko described Mama Winnie as a fearless woman.
“She was not afraid to say anything. We are liberated today because she stood firm and said we shall liberate this country. Hoping that today’s lecture will actually unpack most of the good work she did during her time.”
Madikizela-Mandela’s family says South Africans should remember her by making a difference in their communities. Her niece, Gandhi Baai elaborates.
“Remembering her is being active. It’s about making a difference in your own community. It’s a call to action. Her memory triggers for you to act and that’s what she would have wanted. So, if you see and injustice in your community, speak up. If you see a woman being beaten, report it to the police. Even as a child, if someone is being bullied at school report it to the teachers.”
Baai believes doing so will make South Africa a better place.
Video: MEC Lebogang Maile delivers Memorial Lecture of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela
