Holidays Around The World � South Africa Holidays

Commemorating South Africa’s First Multiracial Election

Carol — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:29:49 +0000

South Africa’s Freedom Day: April 27

Freedom Day is a public holiday in South Africa.

The people of South Africa commemorate Freedom Day every 27th of April where the first election was held after the apartheid system was abolished in the country. Before this was instituted non-white constituent of South Africa had limited rights, under the apartheid law, to vote for their chosen political candidates.

Apartheid was later abolished following the general election that took place in 1994 instituting the, what was then known, as the first universal adult suffrage in South African nation.

History of South Africa’s Freedom Day

Under the supervision of Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), South Africa conducted its first major and nationwide election in 1994 after the fall of the Apartheid policy. Freedom Day marks the first multiracial election on April 27, 1994 which gave way for Nelson Mandela to presidency. Mandela was the head of the African National Congress, a political party which won the majority of seats in the government during the first fully representative democratic election in 1994.

Mandela is an anti-apartheid activist who campaigned for the abolition of apartheid, a legal racial discrimination system in South Africa. He was put in prison in charges of political sabotage and other crimes against the apartheid policy and languished in prison for 27 years. In the day of his release in February 11, 1990, he worked his way to once again campaign for a fully represented democratic national election in South Africa and give way for all non-white constituents to vote for their chosen candidates.

It was noted that 19,726,579 voted during the first national election. A tripartite Government of National Unity was later established to work on the total abolition of Apartheid system in South Africa and cure some of the detrimental social issues plaguing the country.

South Africa’s Freedom Day: Traditions, Customs and Activities

During Freedom Day, a reenactment of the release of Nelson Mandela is usually held in front of Victor Verster, the place where Mandela spent the last day of his prison sentence.

Speeches and musical concerts are also held commemorating the eventful day which led to the release of Mandela and first multiracial election that happened in South Africa in 1994.

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South Africa Celebrates Human Rights Day

Carol — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 21:06:09 +0000

Human Rights Day of South Africa: March 21

Human Rights Day is a public holiday in South Africa.

South Africa observes the celebration of Human Rights Day on this day to remember those who perished in the highly sensational event called Sharpeville Massacre that occurred on March 21, 1960. The massacre, also known as ‘Sharpeville Shootings’ was highly publicized around the globe and it tells graphic stories of blatant killing of South African police towards a band of protesters killing 69 people and wounded less than 200 people on the scene.

History of South Africa’s Human Rights Day

The racial segregation law in South Africa called apartheid was confronted with many problems and social conflicts mainly because the blacks, comprising the majority of South African population, experienced severe inhumane treatment and discrimination in all facets of social and economic life in the land.

The peaceful gathering at Sharpeville (now Gauteng province) was fueled by the new law passed by the South African congress segregating whites from blacks in taking advantage of privileges given by the government usually favoring the former and restricting the latter.

The new law that was passed stipulates that the blacks should carry with them a government-issued pass at all times delineating the extent to which they could visit white-favoured locations. People who fail to carry such especially when confronted by police are faced with a harsh legal punishment. The passes determines the location both from where they could work and live under the apartheid era.

The supposed-to-be-peaceful mass uprising against the newly passed law was primarily motivated by the speech of the then leader of the Pan African Congress (PAC), Robert Subukwe, to which he said,

“I have appealed to the African people to make sure that the campaign we are to embark on must be conducted in good spirit and non violence,” he said, “and I am certain they will heed my call. If the [government] so desires, we will provide them with ample opportunity to demonstrate to the world how brutal they can be.”

The powerful words of Subukwe were enough to propel more than 5,000 people to march towards the Sharpeville police station in the morning of the day of the carnage. The ensuing peaceful march of March 21, 1960 was disrupted when the police started firing at the huge crowd of black men and women. This has caused the lives of 69 people and wounded more than 180 people or so in the incident. This event has led to the abolition of more than four decades of (46 years) of apartheid rule over the various races comprising South African population.

In the ensuing years, after the tragic event of Sharpeville massacre, a new constitution with Bill of Rights as its main focus was drafted marking the end of apartheid in South Africa under the leadership of Nelson Mandela. The Bill of Rights guarantees each citizen of whatever racial group in South Africa freedom and equal right in accordance.

South Africa’s Human Rights Day: Traditions, Customs and Activities

During the holiday, the government of South Africa sponsors public parade to commemorate the event that led to the liberation of black majority and the unprecedented change to the constitution which eventually conferred equal rights to all South Africans.

Politicians deliver their annual public speech to commemorate those who perished during the peaceful protest but-ill-fated in Sharpeville. Relatives of those who were killed during the Sharpeville massacre visit the tomb of the ill-fated and offer wreath of flowers on monuments dedicated to the victims.

Other interesting posts:

New Year

Noel — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 00:41:57 +0000

New Year Date: January 01

New Year Day is celebrated worldwide.

New Year is an extravagantly celebrated festival in all the cultures in the world. Each culture celebrates New Year according to their calendar. Countries which follow the Gregorian calendar celebrate New Year on January 1st every year which is considered the most festive day amongst all the other days of the year.

New Year History

During the Roman period the New Year was celebrated on the first day of March. Later in 47 BC, Julius Caesar made changes in the calendar and named it the Julian calendar. Marco Antonio and Augustus Caesar later modified the calendar in 44 BC and 8 BC respectively. Finally in the late 1582, Pope Gregory XIII modified the calendar to the form of the one that we all use these days.

January 1st is the first day in this calendar and is celebrated with great significance to it. The expansion of the Western culture all over the world then made January 1 a universally celebrated festival. The New Year which is celebrated worldwide is celebrated with huge fireworks and balloons etc. People wish each other for a very healthy and a prosperous year ahead.

Previously, in Jewish tradition, honey is used to represent a sweet New Year ahead, Rosh Hashana (New Year celebrations in the Jewish tradition). As the traditional meal for that holiday, apple slices are dipped in honey and eaten after a prayer and with blessings recited for a good, prosperous and sweet new year. Some Rosh Hashana greetings show an apple and honey, symbolizing the feast. In some other Jewish communities, small straws of honey are given out to usher in the New Year. The New Year feast which is always followed by the Christmas celebrations, the last week of the year is considered as a week of enjoyment and celebration in the winter season.

Many countries celebrate the New Year in a very grand way. This celebration usually consists of fireworks display and other parades and festivities. For example, London has a major fireworks display along the River Thames, followed by a parade on New Year’s Day. Once, Sydney which had more than half a million people present to witness the celebrations of New Year launched more than 80,000 fireworks at midnight. It was the highest watched celebration on tele-vision worldwide. In Valparaiso more than two million visitors witnessed the huge fireworks in a natural setting. A total of more than 21 kilometers of fireworks were set up on the bay, starting from the commercial port city of Valparaiso to Concon, Chile. These all were set up for 25 minutes of entertainment.

New Year Traditions and Activities

Usually in New York, the celebration is focused around a large crystal ball that slowly descends in a ten second countdown in Times Square, and last year was also the party with the largest number of attendees with more than three million people witnessing the New Year celebrations. Edinburgh plays host to one of the world’s largest Hogmanay (meaning ‘the last day of the year’) events. Celebration here lasts for four days and visitors from all around the globe are attracted to take part in the street parties and festivities, and attend the concerts which take place during midnight.

Important Facts about New Year

New Year is the only festival which is celebrated worldwide. Even though there is no special history behind the festival, all people around the world look forward for this celebration. New Year is a festival in which something innovative and better is done each and every year.

New Years Day is also known as:

New Year Celebrations
New Year Holidays

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South Africa Enthusiastically Observes Heritage Day

Noel — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 00:56:56 +0000

South Africa, Heritage Day: September 24

Heritage Day is a Public Holiday celebrated in South Africa

Heritage Day, September 24, is a public holiday in which South Africans across the spectrum are encouraged to celebrate their cultural heritage and the diversity of their beliefs and traditions, in the wider context of a nation that belongs to all its people. People of South Africa celebrate this holiday with great enthusiasm and various cultural events are held all across the country.

Heritage Day is one of South Africa’s newly created public holidays and its significance rests in recognising aspects of South African culture which are both tangible and difficult to pin down: creative expression, historical inheritance, language, the food as well as the land.

South Africa Heritage Day History

In KwaZulu-Natal, the September 24 was known as Shaka Day, in commemoration of the Zulu King, Shaka. Shaka was the legendary Zulu King that played an important role in uniting disparate Zulu clans into a cohesive nation. Contrary to western discourse Shaka was not a “chief.”

The Public Holidays Bill presented to the Parliament of South Africa at the time did not have September 24 included on the list of proposed public holidays. As a result of this exclusion, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), a South African political party with a large Zulu membership, objected to the bill. Parliament and the IFP reached a compromise and the day was given its present title and seen as a day “…when South Africans celebrate the diverse cultural heritage that makes up a ‘rainbow nation’.” It is the day to celebrate the contribution of all South Africans to the building of South Africa.

In 2005, a media campaign sought to re-brand the holiday as National Braai Day, in recognition of the South African culinary tradition of holding informal backyard barbecues, or braais. On September 5, 2007, Archbishop Desmond Tutu celebrated his appointment as patron of South Africa’s Barbecue (Braai) Day, affirming it to be a unifying force in a divided country (by donning an apron and tucking into a boerewors sausage). At the end of 2007 National Braai Day changed its name to Braai4Heritage and the initiative received the endorsement of South Africa’s National Heritage Council (NHC). Organiser Jan Scannell announced that the aim is not to have a mass braai, but smaller ones with friends and family.

South Africa, Heritage Day Customs and Activities

South Africans celebrate Heritage Day by remembering the cultural heritage of the many cultures that make up the population of South Africa. Various events are staged throughout the country to commemorate this day.Former Western Cape Provincial Premier Ebrahim Rasool addressed the public at a Heritage Day celebration at the Gugulethu Heritage trail in 2007 in Gugulethu. In Hout Bay, there is an army procession and a recreation of the battle fought there.

South Africa National Women’s Day

Noel — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 01:05:48 +0000

National Women’s Day Date: August 9

South Africa celebrates National Women’s Day as a public holiday.

The National Women’s day is celebrated on August 9 every year. This day is declared as a public holiday and symbolizes women strength and courage. It reminds us of the bold movement that women embarked on August 9, 1956 and their bold fight back in an era of apartheid. They will never be forgotten for their noble deeds.

South Africa National Women’s Day History

The National Women’s day has a historic significance. It goes as follows. On August 9, 1956 some about 20,000 women gathered outside the Union Buildings in Pretoria to protest against the amendments passed in the Pass Law. By this law, a black woman was needed to carry a pass for her identification. This law was very much violating the freedom of a woman. It showed heights of condemnation of a woman, who was black. They left 100,000 petitions at the office doors of Prime Minister J.G. Strijdom. They reached the union building and stood outside in silence for 30 minutes. The crowd comprised of women and children. There were also mothers, who died with their baby at the back and had come to raise her voice for justice. Some women, who worked for the white as nannies, had also come with petitions for the white. Anger was one common expression in the visage of one and all. They soon started shouting slogans like ‘Now you have touched a woman, you have struck a rock’. They were completely retaliated and there slogans very much of it. It clearly showed their stamina and their respect for self-respect. Even the legislation could not temper with their rights to equality. The march was led by Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph, Rahima Moosa and Sophia Williams-De Bruyn. Since 1994, August 9 is declared as a public holiday and is celebrated as the Women’s Day in South Africa.

South Africa National Women’s Day Traditions and Activities

In 2006, the 50th Anniversary of the women protest was celebrated by enacting a protest in the manner they had done in 1956. Their protests song of ‘Wathint’ abafazi, Strijdom!”
wathint’ abafazi,
wathint’ imbokodo,
uza kufa!

In other words, this song means ‘When you strike the women, you strike a rock, you will be crushed [you will die]!’ These words are the manifestations of their strength. Thus, they celebrate Women’s day so that it may remind us of the brave woman’s of past. So that, they may be revived by them and be courageous in the face wrong. They will be ever remembered and hats off to their valor.

As a part of honoring all those who took part in the march, the government of South Africa has decide to rename Strijdom Square as Lillian Ngoyi Square. This act was put into action on the 50th Anniversary of Women march since 1956. So the government also respected sentiments of a woman.

Certainly if you denied rights you can only seek the refuge of the government. Women are an embodiment of courage which they very much displayed through the march of 1956. Hence, before you go against this category of society you will think twice. Every year on Women’s day every woman feel proud to be a woman and pay homage to the one who fought for their rights.

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Youth Day Commemorated in South Africa

Noel — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:00:51 +0000

Youth Day: June 16

Youth Day is a public holiday celebrated in South Africa.

Youth Day has been celebrated in South Africa on June 16 since 1976 as a reaction to the series of clashes which happened in Soweto of South Africa. After the clashes, unofficial totals of between 200 and 600 dead are given despite the fact that the government claimed as few as only 23 people were killed. The people of South Africa started celebrating Youth Day in memory of all those innocent people who died during the clash.

History of Youth Day in South Africa

The reasons for the protests are complex, but one of the major issues for protestors was the requirement of using Afrikaans in educational institutions. Afrikaans is an Indo-European language derived from Dutch.

Many student organizations conducted non-violent marches, yet the police frequently pushed back against the protestors. People died in several places like Port Elizabeth and Cape Town because of successive attacks by the police on the non-violent student organizations. Due to a mixture of panic and anger, the students involved themselves in violence to protect and defend themselves from the police. Some batches of the police were armed with heavy weapons and were even driving armored vehicles.

At the peak of the violence, a young black child named Hector Peterson was shot dead by the police. Though several hundreds died, Hector, who was one of the first ones to be killed, became the icon representing the tragedy of the event. The picture of a dying Hector spread throughout the world by means of the media. The event brought immense sorrow to the people of South Africa, such that June 16 has since been celebrated as a symbol of resistance to all the cruel brutality of the government.

South Africa’s Youth Day Traditions, Customs and Activities

South Africa celebrates Youth Day in respect and memory of all those innocent lives that were killed during the protests. Through musical events, historical discussions, and educational displays, the South African people use this day to spread awareness and openness about the changes that have come to South Africa.

Labour Day; May Day; Workers’ Day; Day of Kazak

Noel — Sun, 01 May 2011 06:00:14 +0000

May Day Date: May 1

May Day is celebrated throughout most of the world as a public holiday.

May 1 is considered as the Labour Day by almost all the nations of the world. The workers of the world celebrate this as an annual holiday. This day is the result of a massive labor union movement; this day celebrates the social and economic achievements of workers. This day is also known as May Day. Not only these two names, May 1 has many other names like Worker’s day, National Unification Day, Day of Kazak people’s Unity, Eid el-Ommal, etc.

History of May Day/Labour Day

The Eight-Hour day movement is the origin of the Labour Day. This movement advocated eight hours of work, eight hours of rest, and eight hours of recreation for workers everywhere. It was a revolution in that period.

In Europe, this day has a much older significance. This day is celebrated as a rural festival, which is primarily more important than the Labour Day movement. This is now an international holiday and various countries hold multi-day celebrations. Some of the countries conduct parades, patriotic and labour oriented events, and shows and other events on this day. On the other hand, in Northern Europe, Walpurgis Night is on this scheduled night, and this holiday combines with the Labour Day in some nations.

Although, May 1 is considered as the Labour Day in various nations, Germany celebrates it on May 2. In 1933, Labour Day was established as an official holiday after the Nazi Party came to power. It was expected that this day would prove to be the symbol of the newfound unity between the state and the people. The next day, that is on May 2, all the free unions were prohibited and outlawed by the Nazis. Yet, since workers celebrated the holiday for numerous decades before any official state approval, the Nazi Party’s endeavor to appropriate it left no more term offense.

Although this day has many names, but the essence of them all is the same – to honor the work force of the nation.

May Day/Labour Day Traditions and Celebrations

Time has changed; so the way of celebrating the day too. Throughout the rest of the world, there are May Day marches and rallies held out in the various part of the country. In England, a grand May Day march at the the famous Brewhouse Yard gardens starts near the Castle, Nottingham.

Even today celebration of May Day has a touch of ancient culture and tradition. The maypole is still one of the major features of the May festivities with distinctive interpretations. But whatever way you look at it the theme of the May Day celebration is all about celebrating the renewal of life with new hopes, new dreams and new resolutions. May Day flower baskets are made and treats are left at the thresholds of the loved ones as a token of good wishes and love to strengthen the bondage and to rekindle the lost touches.

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