Celebrating SA democracy free of Intimidation
In the early days of our young democracy, South Africans embraced the image of the rainbow - the beautiful spectrum of colours that would stand together celebrating the diversity of their fledgling nation.
We were so proud of our young democracy, one that celebrated differences, and respected them. Every South African's right to his or her own beliefs, values and affiliations were a cornerstone of the new nation. We pledged ourselves to the principles of freedom of speech providing every South African with the right to express themselves without fear or prejudice.
The Bill of Rights in our internationally acclaimed constitution enshrined "the rights of all people in our country and affirms the democratic values of dignity, equality and freedom". It furthermore guaranteed Freedom of religion, belief and opinion in section 15, Freedom of Expression in section 16 and Freedom of association in section 18.
Yet these pivotal principles of our democracy were forgotten yesterday when a protest orchestrated by BDS SA descended on the SA Jewish Board of Deputies Gauteng Conference.
Gauteng Jewry was due to gather on Sunday for its biennial conference with the theme celebrating South Africa's 20 years of Freedom. The Jewish community along with our fellow South African citizens rejoices in the miracle of our nation, and its members likewise wanted to remember the struggle for our young democracy, to commemorate its achievements and focus on the future.