CDM Municipality
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The Capricorn District Municipality wishes you a vibrant Heritage Day – an important day that represents an opportunity to celebrate our diverse cultures, traditions and languages that were bequeathed to us by our ancestors.
Although we may not gather for songs and dance because of coronavirus that deprives us of such an joyous opportunity, let us express our express our African pride in our different colourful traditional African outfits and other forms of embracing our identity.
However, we are gravely concerned that, instead of celebrating our Heritage with joy and comfort, some women find themselves living in constant fear of being left in bruises and killed by their partners and men in general; men who are supposed to protect, respect and love them. Let us therefore declare that the culture of violence against women and children is not part of our heritage. The culture of making women fear being trafficked is not part of our heritage.
Let us promote the culture of building a safe, caring society. As Frederick Douglass said “it is easier to build a strong child than to repair a broken man”, let us raise and teach our boy children to be responsible and caring fathers of the future. Let us not expose them to patriarchal attitudes of wanting to prove their domination and toxic masculinity against women. Violence and abuse is therefore an insult to our African heritage.
The reason we celebrate heritage is to reclaim our identity as kind people in the eyes of humanity and thus abusers and killers are people without this sense of identity as African beings. Let us recommit to our heritage of kindness to humanity; the heritage of peace, security and comfort. Let us recommit to the heritage of protecting our own children from harm and trafficking.
I once again on behalf of the Capricorn District Municipality take this opportunity to wish you all a colorful Heritage Day.
Cllr John Mpe, Executive Mayor.
