What does Human Rights Day mean to young people in schools and universities?
The South African Constitution guarantees the right to fundamental human rights to all citizens, which includes youth. These rights include the right to life, dignity, equality, freedom, and personal security, as well as the right to education, healthcare, and a clean atmosphere.
These rights are especially essential for youth because they play a critical role in shaping their future and assisting them in reaching their full potential. For example, the right to education allows young people to gain the skills and knowledge they need to thrive in life, whereas the right to a clean environment ensures that they have access to healthy living conditions.
Furthermore, the Constitution forbids discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and other variables. This is especially important for young people, who are frequent targets of prejudice and marginalization.
The South African Bill of Rights establishes a framework for protecting all citizens’ basic rights, including those of children, and promoting social justice and equality.
Doesn’t that sound good?
This current administration must be deposed for this to happen! A new constitution must be drafted in which citizens will have a voice in how they are governed. The current government has demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that it is no longer capable of leading our community. Old ministers who have failed to deliver on their prior portfolios are being recycled. To expect anything new from such officials is foolishness in and of itself.
Young schoolchildren changed the political landscape in 1976, and young people eligible to vote in 2024 will have the chance to change the political landscape in our current era.
Today, this government is endangering our human rights by using soldiers and private security to rule the nation. During yesterday’s peaceful closing down of economic activities, the ANC government repeatedly stated that the shutdown was a colossal failure because there was no looting or property burning. This implies that this government will only listen when the country is on fire and blood is on the streets.
Every student in this nation will need to realize their goals, but under the current regime, those dreams will be turned into nightmares. As a result, every young individual eligible to vote owes it to himself or herself to move and change the current government structure.
During the shutdown, this government demonstrated that it has enough police to fight crime, but they choose not to, creating an unsafe environment for people to live in, a clear violation of fundamental human rights. Women and children have become vulnerable members of our society because of criminal activity in our society, but this administration would arm itself to the teeth against peaceful protesters at higher education institutions.
The current administration has violated human rights and must be held accountable in the 2024 elections. Young people, it is your responsibility to build a nation in which you can thrive. Under the current administration, that nation is nothing more than a far-fetched fantasy. Use the current voting method to depose this regime.
There is a fear of the unknown—the question of who can govern the nation and how will they govern.
As citizens, we must reclaim our rights from lawmakers. We must have the ability to change any governing system that violates our fundamental human rights, as the present system does. You are not too young to become engaged and effect change. Participate in making history; it is your obligation to establish a South Africa of the future that is not governed through the apartheid code book like it is now!