UMvoti Municipality, Greytown:  22nd October 2009

Program Director;
 

I cannot help but feel a sense of slight relief that today the leaders of uMvoti are able to come together to collectively look at the challenges that confront uMvoti. A few months ago, very few would have believed that the African National Congress and Inkatha Freedom Party leaders could come together in this fashion. In this spirit, allow me therefore to begin by saluting the Provincial leaders of both the ANC and my party the IFP for displaying mature leadership at the time when this area was threatening to turn into a battlefield. In particular, I wish to single out the Hon. Minister Willis Mchunu, the Hon. Minister Nomusa Dube and the Leader of the Official Opposition, the Hon. Dr. Bonginkosi Buthelezi for the sterling leadership and active role they played towards normalizing the situation in this area.  I also wish to thank multitudes of ordinary men and women who made different contributions towards achieving the relative peace we now have.   

Program Director,
it is an unfortunate part of our history that the demon of enmity, intolerance and violence between the ANC and the IFP has lived with us for decades and is refusing to die. Some among our people have lost all hope that there will ever be genuine and lasting peace between these two organizations. Others may even look down upon this very workshop as nothing more that a talk-shop which cannot achieve anything.
 

What is the IFP's response to all these negative sentiments? Before I answer this question, let me publicly acknowledge that some among those who are negative and hopeless are justified for a number of reasons.
 

They have lived to see their loved ones die the most excruciating and cruel forms of death. They have lived to see their hard-earned properties destroyed in the flames of hatred and anger. They have lived to see promise after promise broken; peace-accord after peace-accord violated with impunity. They have lived to hear their leaders publicly humiliated and insulted with the worst epithets. All these atrocities have taken place between ANC and IFP supporters. As a result some among our people still have bleeding wounds.

This is the reality we must come to terms with if we want to see this workshop produce tangible fruits that would be enjoyed not only by the people of eMvoti; but by the whole Province.

The IFP takes part in this workshop against this background. But rather than discourage us, this grim picture deepens even more our commitment to finding lasting peace and reconciliation. We take our positions in this workshop firstly to say to the doubting Thomases, "yes you may have genuine reasons to lose all hope. But our question is: when your family is persistently attacked by a plague, do you throw your hands in the air and stop trying? No. You go all out for the survival of your loved ones." We say when there is darkness; we need men and women of goodwill who will work tirelessly to bring about light. Unless such men and women of goodwill stand up to cry like the prophets of old and say "Thus says the LORD!' uMvoti and KwaZulu-Natal will forever remain in the dungeon of death, hatred, enmity, intolerance and underdevelopment.

Because of our commitment to the eradication of hatred, enmity, violence and petty jealousies, we as the IFP have resolved to be passionately involved in leaving no stone unturned in search of lasting peace and reconciliation in this Municipality and the whole Province. To the IFP, the respect for human lives is more than a constitutional matter. To us, it is a Godly obligation. We do not need a constitution to tell us that all humans are created in the image of God and that their lives are sacred. It is the God who lives within us who commands us to do unto others as we would like them to do to us. This is the reason we have an unwavering commitment to the success of this workshop and the success of the long-overdue reconciliation between the ANC and the IFP at all levels and, in particular, at the level of the national leadership.

Program Director,
I do not want to prescribe to the participants of this workshop as to what programs they must come up with. Nevertheless, I wish to ask them as they deliberate to keep in mind that peace will not mushroom automatically. They must be prepared to sweat for it and be prepared even to pay the supreme price for it.

They must individually be committed to come up with workable strategies which they will jointly execute in the whole uMvoti. But first they must start within and among themselves; because if they are not honest with and among themselves they will fail.

As they deliberate, let them keep in mind that "as wars begin in the hearts of men; it is in the hearts of men that war for peace must begin." Therefore, they must move from this workshop as a united force and collectively go to every corner of uMvoti as the evangelists proclaiming the gospel of lasting forgiveness, healing, reconciliation and peace between the two organizations and among the residents of this Municipality.

But above that, each organization must never hesitate to publicly denounce and disown anyone among them - regardless of what position the Comrade holds - as long as he/she still continues to engage in words and deeds of provocation and insults - whether directly or indirectly.

As leaders you must be seen to be standing together against all evil and even in times of tragedy. As leaders, you must stop forthwith to seek cheap political gains out of people's sufferings. You must stop forthwith to turn people's sorrows when they lose their loved ones into political battlefields or political campaigns. That is evil, un-Christian and un-African. When a tragedy has befallen one of your own, you must be collectively involved in programs to comfort and help the bereaved and the destitute.      

Lastly, as we participate in this workshop, let us keep in mind that fighting and winning against violence here in uMvoti will not be the end of the war. You will have won a battle in a bigger war to cleanse KwaZulu-Natal and South Africa of all vestiges of intolerance, hatred, enmity and violence among the leaders and supporters of the ANC and IFP.
 

As you know, uMvoti is not an island. Your success in this area must spur you to go out and blow the trumpets of peace and reconciliation throughout KwaZulu-Natal and South Africa.

This is my message and challenge to you.

May God bless this Workshop and the leaders of uMvoti.
May God bless our Province and all our leaders and our peoples.
May God bless South Africa and all her leaders!
Peace in our lifetime!