Can anything go right in a land where justice is not fully applied? One cannot in good conscience pursue peace without simultaneously pursuing the full application of justice.
In possibly every religion that promotes forgiveness and justice, forgiveness has a price, even in a benevolent religion such as Christianity.
In order for forgiveness to be realised, justice is required. In the ancient religions of Africa and Israel, an animal would be sacrificed and often more would be required depending on the nature of the crime committed. This included for laws unknowingly or mistakenly broken.
According to ancient Xhosa custom, which is still practised by some, if a woman becomes pregnant outside of wedlock, the man responsible is charged for damages. If he refuses to pay, there can be no reconciliation between the two families.
In Christianity, a corrupt tax collector pays back everything he has stolen in order to be a worthy follower of Christ.
In our country, it seems that no one wants to pay back anything they have stolen, knowingly or unknowingly.
Forgiveness and reconciliation in our country are thus just terms. They have yet to be realised, unless reconciliation only means accepting an unpleasant status quo.
The question, of course, is that if we do indeed accept the unpleasant in order for a few to enjoy pleasant lives, how long will we survive before the land itself becomes too unpleasant to live in?
It is exactly such unpleasantaries that finally led me to give up on my president. The latest of these was the recent Nkandla report, and his mockery in parliament of those who had called for him to “pay back the money”.
I have not simply given up on the president, but I have also given up on the older liberation leadership.
For me it started the moment Ramphela Mampele kissed Helen Zille. Such confusing politics from one who had just started a brand new party. Why had she simply not joined the DA in the first instance?
I knew then that it was all over for the generation that ushered us to this democracy. Perhaps, the generation that fights for freedom is the worst generation to lead a free country. Their vision and passion ended with the end of apartheid.
We are eternally grateful for their stamina that got us out of the darkness of apartheid.
But we need leaders with vision and passion for the now and the future. Leaders who are not more concerned about their own comfort than they are about the country.
We need leaders who will not attempt to defend the indefensible such as Police Minister Nathi Nhleko did, but leaders who will exhaust themselves to defend the poor and exercise justice.
President Jacob Zuma is faultless when he speaks about the struggle against apartheid. But now, he has turned himself into a symbol of our current national struggles.
A group of four young women have made a video of themselves singing the Black Mambazo song Homeless, except they have changed the lyrics to show their gross
disapproval of Zuma’s Nkandla.
In Zulu they sing that even Zuma’s chickens have electricity while taxpayers are shackdwellers.
Their song is catchy and humorous and has gone viral on social networks. Viewers calling them “brave girls”.
We certainly did not need the 2010 Fifa scandal to further tarnish our name in the international arena while the Nkandla saga is still on everyone’s lips.
We are also still plagued by the corruption of our past governments – a nightmare we wish would go away. Yet there is still no justice there. Land distribution still largely looks like it did in 1994.
Perhaps forgiving too much without asking for correction has broken our government’s ability to self-correct or to act justly.
When you have allowed the greatest
injustice to go uncorrected surely, you will allow yourself to act unjustly.
June 16 is a week away. The young women have already begun to sing against injustice. There will be no peace until justice is upheld.
The burning pen: Peace and justice inseparable twins
In possibly every religion that promotes forgiveness and justice, forgiveness has a price, even in a benevolent religion such as Christianity.
In order for forgiveness to be realised, justice is required. In the ancient religions of Africa and Israel, an animal would be sacrificed and often more would be required depending on the nature of the crime committed. This included for laws unknowingly or mistakenly broken.
According to ancient Xhosa custom, which is still practised by some, if a woman becomes pregnant outside of wedlock, the man responsible is charged for damages. If he refuses to pay, there can be no reconciliation between the two families.
In Christianity, a corrupt tax collector pays back everything he has stolen in order to be a worthy follower of Christ.
In our country, it seems that no one wants to pay back anything they have stolen, knowingly or unknowingly.
Forgiveness and reconciliation in our country are thus just terms. They have yet to be realised, unless reconciliation only means accepting an unpleasant status quo.
The question, of course, is that if we do indeed accept the unpleasant in order for a few to enjoy pleasant lives, how long will we survive before the land itself becomes too unpleasant to live in?
It is exactly such unpleasantaries that finally led me to give up on my president. The latest of these was the recent Nkandla report, and his mockery in parliament of those who had called for him to “pay back the money”.
I have not simply given up on the president, but I have also given up on the older liberation leadership.
For me it started the moment Ramphela Mampele kissed Helen Zille. Such confusing politics from one who had just started a brand new party. Why had she simply not joined the DA in the first instance?
I knew then that it was all over for the generation that ushered us to this democracy. Perhaps, the generation that fights for freedom is the worst generation to lead a free country. Their vision and passion ended with the end of apartheid.
We are eternally grateful for their stamina that got us out of the darkness of apartheid.
But we need leaders with vision and passion for the now and the future. Leaders who are not more concerned about their own comfort than they are about the country.
We need leaders who will not attempt to defend the indefensible such as Police Minister Nathi Nhleko did, but leaders who will exhaust themselves to defend the poor and exercise justice.
President Jacob Zuma is faultless when he speaks about the struggle against apartheid. But now, he has turned himself into a symbol of our current national struggles.
A group of four young women have made a video of themselves singing the Black Mambazo song Homeless, except they have changed the lyrics to show their gross
disapproval of Zuma’s Nkandla.
In Zulu they sing that even Zuma’s chickens have electricity while taxpayers are shackdwellers.
Their song is catchy and humorous and has gone viral on social networks. Viewers calling them “brave girls”.
We certainly did not need the 2010 Fifa scandal to further tarnish our name in the international arena while the Nkandla saga is still on everyone’s lips.
We are also still plagued by the corruption of our past governments – a nightmare we wish would go away. Yet there is still no justice there. Land distribution still largely looks like it did in 1994.
Perhaps forgiving too much without asking for correction has broken our government’s ability to self-correct or to act justly.
When you have allowed the greatest
injustice to go uncorrected surely, you will allow yourself to act unjustly.
June 16 is a week away. The young women have already begun to sing against injustice. There will be no peace until justice is upheld.
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