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26 June 2014 marks the 59th Anniversary of the adoption of the Freedom
Charter at the historic Congress of the People in 1955. The African
National Congress celebrates Freedom Charter Day proud of the
achievements made by South Africa led by the ANC government to realise
its ideals and demands. The African National Congress has never wavered
in its commitment to the Freedom Charter as our prime political mandate
inspiring the transformation agenda that drives our political programme
of action.

In the 20 years since the dawn of democracy, the ANC led government has
been at the forefront of crafting a new social order, working together
with our people, based on the letter and spirit of the Freedom Charter.
Our constitutional and legislative framework supported by strong
institutions established to uphold, protect and advance our democracy,
such as the South African Human Rights Commission and the Office of the
Public Protector amongst others, give practical expression to the
freedoms envisaged by the Freedom Charter where all people who live in
South Africa, black and white, regardless of gender or belief, “live in
brotherhood, enjoying equal rights and opportunities”.

We have a government based on the will of the people, elected at regular
intervals, through transparent, free, fair and credible elections; a
necessary precondition for our democracy to thrive and a fundamental
demand made by the Freedom Charter.  In the cacophony of democracy, it is
to be expected and even intended that there shall be contesting voices,
from the ultra left to the far right, seeking to fill the political
spectrum by claiming ownership of the basic policy document of the
people; the Freedom Charter. The African National Congress remains a
disciplined force of the left, its programme anchored firmly in its
historical mission to create a united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic
and prosperous South Africa.

The authority enjoyed by the ANC government to fearlessly and decisively
drive radical socio-economic transformation in this the second phase of
our transition is drawn from the overwhelming mandate the ANC continues
to receive from our people to spare “neither strength nor courage, until
the democratic changes set out in the Freedom Charter have been won”.

It is this instructive injunction of the Freedom Charter to secure to all
their birthright that drives the African National Congress’s agenda to
deracialise and industrialise the South African economy as the
cornerstone of the work of the fifth administration. The commitments we
have made in our manifesto to prioritise the creation of more jobs,
decent work and sustainable livelihoods, retaining education as an apex
priority, focusing on building an accessible and quality healthcare
system, development rural areas, ensuring land and agrarian reform as
well as fighting crime and corruption are direct, unambiguous responses
to the demands of the Freedom Charter.

To ensure that the people share in the country’s wealth, the ANC has
identified four catalyst sectors -  energy infrastructure, transport
infrastructure, ICT and water and sanitation – to form the bedrock of our
industrialization, economic growth and employment creation interventions.

The mineral wealth of South Africa has been transferred to the ownership
of the people under the custodianship of the State. The ANC Government
has further called for the implementation of the landmark Framework
Agreement for a Sustainable Mining Industry and the acceleration of the
attainment of the targets contained in the Mining Charter. The amendments
to the Minerals and Petroleum Development act contain amongst them the
declaration of certain minerals as strategic; ensuring greater control of
this national wealth by government in the interest of the wellbeing of
the people and our country at large. Our commitment of procuring 75% of
government goods and services from South African producers speaks
directly of creating a conducive environment for all South Africans to
manufacture and to enter all trades, crafts and professions.

Our determination to redouble our efforts to strengthen local government
is a deliberate intervention aimed at ensuring that this sphere of
government has the necessary capacity to decently house our people,
whilst providing the necessary transport, roads, lighting, playing
fields, creches and social centres called for by the Freedom Charter. The
ANC manifesto committed us to investigating the implementation and
modalities of the national minimum wage as mandated by the Freedom
Charter. The implementation of the National Health Insurance is a drive
to implement a preventative health run by the state. Two new universities
are being built and Grade R is being made compulsory to ensure that the
doors of learning and culture are opened.

The foundation has been laid and we are on track on delivering on the
aspirations of the Freedom Charter. While much still remains to be done,
a lot more has been achieved to move us closer to the type of society
envisioned at the Congress of the People, in Kliptown in 1955. As we
advance towards the 60th Anniversary of the Freedom Charter in 2015, the
African National Congress is confident that this radical phase of the
transition is a furtherance of the objectives that so many of our people
sacrificed so much for in order to reclaim their birthright “to land,
liberty and peace" by a form of government founded on justice and
equality.