I am a Tintswalo — but millions are not
Iwas about four years old when South Africa went to the polls in 1994, a toddler who was not quite a “born free”, but generally considered a child of democracy.
I don’t remember the voting day, but memories are stirred from seeing pictures taken that day. But I do have a distinct memory of how tumultuous things were in KwaMashu in those early years. We used to live in B section, on the border of “Omazakhele” and the famed KwaMashu Hostel (emphohlweni). In fact, the hostel was on the other side of our fence.
So, when the violence broke out between the IFP and the ANC, our family was caught in the crossfire. I recall how we had to flee our home, which would later be set alight.
This memory has stayed with me, probably because of the trauma. Every election cycle, when I see people wearing their regalia at voting stations or when political parties criss-cross the country, freely campaigning with no “no go areas” ,I often reflect on the violence of the early 1990s and note how far we have come as a country. Much has been achieved in forging political tolerance and social cohesion.
It isn’t only in this area that I believe this democratic dispensation has moved the needle.
As someone who grew up in a family of teachers, quality education was very important for us. My family strongly believed that education was key if you wanted a better life and upward mobility, and so my parents didn’t compromise on this.
With the ascent of democracy, black kids could finally go to former model C schools, which in their eyes provided better quality education and opportunities. And so, every morning, we would leave our homes in the townships and travel to the suburbs north of Durban to obtain this quality education. Moving between the two worlds was quite jarring, even at that young age.
You could never miss the duality of the two worlds. The stark inequality was in your face and we had to deal with constant undertones of “you people must be grateful we opened up our world to you”. However, we found ways to manoeuvre in these spaces that were at times very hostile to us young black girls.
We pushed through, driven by our parents’ desire that we get the best education and our own desire to show we were worthy of respect.
Years later, the experiences and challenges we faced are still very much a reality for most black children. Wellresourced schools with quality infrastructure, uncrowded classrooms and adequate staff components are still found only in the leafy suburbs.
Boys and girls from townships still undertake that journey between the two worlds so they can get the best opportunity to flourish, in a country that is severe to those who have not had the privilege of education.
So severe are the conditions at rural schools that Equal Education, an education advocacy group, had to take legal action against the state to implement the South African Schools Act to ensure “minimum uniform norms and standards for public school infrastructure”.
Since that development, we have seen improvements, especially in the Eastern Cape, which over the past five years has tried to address school infrastructure backlogs and overcrowding through the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative.
However, as we saw with the drowning of a three-year-old in a pit toilet at an Eastern Cape creche, more needs to be done at a much faster pace.
As I reflect on our 30 years of democracy, it seems to me that much has been done, many lives have been changed, we are a better country than we were before 1994, but the reality is that these gains have not cascaded to all citizens equally. I have been fortunate to be among the people who have benefited from the gains of democracy.
If we were to use President Cyril Ramaphosa’s term, I am a Tintswalo. My university fees were paid for by the National Skills Fund before I entered the corporate world, where regardless of my talent I greatly benefited from employment equity policies that this government has in place. Furthermore, I have been exposed to countless opportunities because of initiatives that have been opened by this democratic government. My story isn’t unique, it’s a story of millions of other young people.
However, millions of other young people have been left behind. The story of Tintswalo is not universal. I see this every time I visit KwaMashu, where young people who are unemployed are despondent.
Young people who were not privileged enough to finish school and further their studies are despondent because our country has no space for them; and young people who have degrees or diplomas are sitting at home because no jobs are available for them.
These youngsters have lost faith in our democracy.
The democratic dispensation has failed them. Despite significant gains, much more needs to be done, at a far greater pace and scale.
With all its shortcomings, I still believe in the democratic project that was envisioned by Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo.
The preamble to our constitution outlines for me the promise of this country. Its potential. “We, the people of South Africa, recognise the injustices of our past; honour those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land; respect those who have worked to build and develop our country; and believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity.”
However, if we have high rates of inequality, unemployment and poverty we will struggle to uphold the values enshrined in our constitution and the democratic ideals that our ancestors fought for. Therefore, as we reflect on the last 30 years, we also need to look forward.
We need to ask ourselves: where do we want to see this country in the next 30 years? How do we work collectively as a society to ensure that we uphold the democratic values and ensure that this democracy is not just for a few, but for all South Africans?
Finally, as people who have been fortunate enough to benefit from this democracy, we need to locate our role in building this country because it is in all our best interests for South Africa to work for all! Amandla! ✼ Madonsela is an auditor in the auditor-general’s office