President Ramaphosa to lead Freedom Day celebrations in Mpumalanga

President Cyril Ramaphosa will lead the national celebration of Freedom Day on Wednesday, 27 April 2022, as South Africa marks 28 years of freedom and democracy under a new dispensation after apartheid rule.

This year’s celebrations will take place at the  Kees Taljaard Stadium in Middelburg, Mpumalanga.

This year’s Freedom Day will be observed under the theme “Consolidate our Democratic Gains”.

According to the Presidency, “Part of the backdrop to Freedom Day 2022 is the 25th anniversary of South Africa’s Constitution, the country’s ending of the COVID-19 national state of disaster, the response currently to a natural disaster in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, and the implementation of the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan.”

The Presidency adds, “This national day honours the masses of South Africans who suffered under and resisted apartheid, and faced repression by security forces, death, injury, forced removals, discrimination and other injustices which the global community classified as a crime against humanity.”

The programme in Mpumalanga is set to start at 11am.

2021 celebrations

Last year, Freedom Day was celebrated at the Charlotte Maxeke Recreational Centre at Botshabelo in the Free State. The day was commemorated a year into the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa, which had devastating effects on the lives of the people in the country.

On the occasion, President Ramaphosa said, ” The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating impact not only on public health, but on our economy. Many people have lost their jobs. Businesses have been forced to close. Families are struggling to make ends meet. The task of rebuilding our society and our country is a great one. Every South African will need to be part of the great effort to restore our economy to health, to create more jobs, and to grow more businesses through the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan. Every South African will need to remain part of the fight to overcome COVID-19.”

President’s 2021 address below:

Additional info from Presidency website