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President Thabo Mbeki to Confer National
Awards
Media is invited to participate in the National Awards
Ceremony to be presided over by President Thabo Mbeki
as follows:
DATE: Tuesday, 3 February 2004
VENUE: Union Buildings, West Wing
TIME: 11H30-13H00
ARRIVAL TIME FOR MEDIA SHALL BE 11h00.
Please RSVP with Dumisani Nkwamba on 082 451 5583.
Enquiries: David Hlabane on 082 561 9428.
Issued by The Presidency: Republic of South Africa
on 2 February 2004.
(For info: The statement below was released yesterday)
PRESS RELEASE
President Thabo Mbeki to confer National Awards
For immediate release:
President Thabo Mbeki will Tuesday, February 3, preside
over the National Orders Ceremony at the Union Buildings,
Pretoria, from 11H30 to 13H00.
The President will confer, posthumously, the Order
of Ikhamanga to the Late Bessie Head and the Late Jacob
Ntuli, and the Order of Luthuli to the Late Charlotte
Maxeke and the Late Cissie Gool. The four distinguished
individuals are amongst the December 2003 recipients
of National Orders and Decoration. Tuesday's ceremony
will therefore serve to conclude the Investiture Ceremony
of New National Orders held December 2, 2003 at the
seat of government, the Union Buildings, Pretoria.
The Order of Ikhamanga will be awarded to renowned
African writer of international acclaim, Bessie Head,
in gold, for exceptional contribution to literature
and the struggle for social change, freedom and peace,
and to Jacob Ntuli, in silver, for outstanding and pioneering
achievement in the sport of boxing against the constructs
of the erstwhile apartheid society.
We celebrate the achievements of these outstanding
lives, on the eve of the Decade of Freedom, with pride
and commitment to the reconstruction of our history.
The Director-General in The Presidency, Reverend Frank
Chikane, underscored the significance of the National
Orders by saying: "It is a mark of our condition
and history that many [of our heroines and heroes] are
not yet as universally known as they should be. It is
my hope that these National Orders help correct that
and overcome our historical polarization, which excluded
or suppressed the creative spirit and talent of the
majority of the people of South Africa."
Enquiries: David Hlabane on 082 561 9428
Issued by The Presidency: Republic of South Africa
1 February 2004
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