Ramaphosa sits down with Khoisan activists on SA’s front lawn

● Four Khoisan activists who staged a hunger strike for 17 days on the lawns of the Union Buildings in Pretoria ended their protest after a Christmas Eve meeting with Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa.

“He [Ramaphosa] could have invited us up into the Union Buildings, but he came down and sat with us. To us that showed the character of a great leader. It was a magnificent feeling,” said the group’s leader‚ Chief Khoisan SA.

Three of the men walked more than 1 200km from Port Elizabeth to demand recognition of the Khoisan as the “first nation” of South Africa and official recognition of their language, including its incorporation in the school curriculum from Grade 1.

They also want the term “coloured” removed from government forms and replaced with “Khoisan”. They said those who identify as coloured should tick the “Other” box.

“Ramaphosa agreed to have discussions with us in the new year,” said Chief Khoisan SA.