Good to be South African

I attended the commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the SS Mendi tragedy on Cape Town’s Grand Parade the other day and I was again reminded of how far we have come as a country in a relatively few short years.

As we watched the march pass by, several squadrons of the South African National Defence Force, the South African Navy and the South African Air Force, I was amazed at the transformation that has taken place in these institutions.

Not too long ago the soldiers representing these institutions would have been mainly white and probably only men. Now they are all shades, all genders and all shapes and sizes.

And as our Minister of Arts and Culture, Dr Pallo Jordan, stood to attention to acknowledge the general salute by the soldiers, I still found it difficult to believe that this was happening so soon after we had been fighting a bloody civil war.

Not too long ago, the army was seen as part of the enemy and now it is parading in front of a man who not too long ago was considered a terrorist and a person that it probably would have killed if it got its hands on him.

Later, I noticed over lunch how easily the minister and other dignitaries, such as the Premier of the Western Cape, Ebrahim Rasool, interacted with guests. They walked from table to table to greet guests.

Again, this is not something that would have happened in the old South Africa. In those days, you would not have been able to approach ministers without permission.

Yes, I know we still have many problems, such as crime, HIV/Aids, homelessness and unemployment, but in our obsession with these problems, we sometimes overlook the amazing progress we have made as a country.

Why is it, I thought as I watched all the proceedings to mark the tragic sinking of the SS Mendi 90 years, that South Africans are so negative? Why is it that we almost refuse to celebrate our achievements?

Is this a South African thing? Or are we just too blinkered to notice how much we have achieved as a country?

I often get to speak to foreigners about the situation in South Africa and they are still amazed at what we have achieved as a nation.

To those people who continue to be so negative, I ask you to think for a minute about where we have come from and try to remember how dark the days of apartheid really were.

Then ask yourself whether you would rather live in apartheid South Africa or in our relatively new democracy.

For me the choice is simple. I would choose democracy any day.

I believe that the problems we face in South Africa can be overcome with hard work by everybody, not only government.

We overcame apartheid. I am sure that we can overcome crime, HIV/Aids, homelessness and joblessness.