READER LETTER | Just call it Sharpeville Day

SA’s March 21 public holiday is called Human Rights Day. However, it should be Sharpeville Day. On March 21 1960, the PAC, under the leadership of Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe, organised a march against pass laws.

Up to 69 people were shot dead, and 180 were injured. Though not official, this day became known as Sharpeville Day in black communities. However, when the ANC took power in 1994, it preferred to name the day Human Rights Day.

In the past two years, the ANC-led government commemorated the day in other areas and not in Sharpeville. This sends a strong message that the government does not recognise Sharpeville and the martyrs who died there. During the apartheid era, we black people complained about the regime distorting our history.

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Now, the ANC is doing the same. In my book, March 21 remains Sharpeville Day. The struggle continues. – Thabile Mange

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