From Khoi and San heritage to Langenhoven: Ramaphosa speaks in Oudtshoorn

President Cyril Ramaphosa called on South Africans to celebrate the country’s diversity while strengthening unity, ubuntu and human dignity during the national Heritage Day celebrations held in Oudtshoorn last week.

Ramaphosa delivered the keynote address at Bongolethu Sports Stadium on Thursday, 24 September, where this year’s national celebrations took place under the theme, Celebrating Our Living Heritage: Strengthening the Ties That Bind Us.

The President struck a distinctly local note from the outset, greeting the people of the Klein Karoo in Afrikaans and switching between several of South Africa’s languages during his address.

“Groete aan die mense van die Klein Karoo! Dit is ’n groot plesier om vandag hier by julle te wees,” he said in Afrikaans.

Ramaphosa said it was an honour to celebrate National Heritage Day in an area that bears witness to the lives of some of South Africa’s earliest ancestors. He referred to ancient Khoi and San rock paintings found outside Oudtshoorn and said the region connects South Africans to a human story stretching back thousands of years.

He also paid tribute to the political history of Oudtshoorn and the Southern Cape, specifically acknowledging the role played by communities in Bongolethu and Bridgton during the struggle against apartheid.

Addressing the community in Afrikaans, Ramaphosa said: “Aan die gemeenskap sê ons; julle bydrae is nie vergeet nie. Dit sal nie uitgewis word nie.”

He said Heritage Day was an opportunity to celebrate the languages South Africans speak, the songs they sing, the food they prepare, the stories they tell, and the customs handed down through generations.

“Our heritage is living because it resides in people,” Ramaphosa said.

According to him, this living heritage can be found in communities, traditional knowledge, music and dance, ceremonies, faith, language and the principle of ubuntu.

He called on South Africans to ensure that cultural knowledge is preserved and passed on to future generations. “We must record it. We must teach it. We must practise it. And above all, we must pass it on.”

Ramaphosa said South Africa’s different cultures, languages, religions and histories should not be seen as reasons for division. “Our diversity does not make us less of a nation; our diversity is what makes us the nation that we are,” he explained.

He added that belonging should extend beyond constitutional rights and be reflected in people’s daily lives, including access to education, healthcare, housing, basic services, economic opportunities and safe communities.

The President also addressed gender-based violence, saying violence against women should not form part of the legacy left to future generations.

He further pointed to unemployment, corruption and alcohol and drug abuse as challenges that South Africans need to confront collectively.

Ramaphosa brought his speech back to Oudtshoorn in his closing remarks, quoting former Oudtshoorn resident, poet and writer CJ Langenhoven.

He quoted the Afrikaans lines beginning, “My land het nuwe stryd gevind,” before calling on South Africans to play their part in confronting the challenges facing the country.

“As we celebrate our heritage this day, let us indeed all play our part,” Ramaphosa said.

He ended with another Afrikaans touch: “God seën Suid-Afrika en beskerm haar mense,” before repeating the sentiment in English.

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