SA Coat of Arms 4.jpg
The Presidency, Pretoria, 18 February 2015 Message from President Jacob Zuma on the Occasion of the Commemoration of Valliamma Munuswami Mudliar On behalf of the government and the people of South Africa, we would like to wish the Tamil Community in South Africa well in their commemoration of Valliamma Munuswami Mudliar on 22 February 2015. Valliamma Munuswami Mudliar occupies a special place in the history of this country, and of the Tamil community in particular, for the political role that she played at a tender age of 15 years when she joined women in the protests against unjust laws in 1913. Valliamma participated in various protests in the then Natal against discriminatory laws on the members of the Indian community, which included prohibition of marriages which were not conducted according to Christian rites, such as Hindu and Muslim. Despite her age, Valliamma participated in many protests with women among others in places such as Chatsworth, Dundee, Ladysmith, Pietermaritzburg, Tongaat and Durban in 1913, until their arrest at Volkrust in the then Eastern Transvaal on 22 December 1913. Valliamma's courage and selflessness in rejecting an offer of early release from prison despite have taken ill during incarceration distinguishes her as a rare child martyr whose heroic deeds must continue to resonate with deepest meaning today. This year's 60th commemoration of the Freedom Charter, which espoused equal rights, freedom of religion, cultural and linguistic rights, resonates perfectly with the cause Valliamma dedicated her life to more than a hundred years ago. As South Africans, we pay tribute to her, content in the knowledge that her inspirational political journey, however short, constituted an important step in this country's journey to freedom and democracy. She remains a perennial source of inspiration not only for the Tamil community but for the youth and the population of South Africa. As we celebrate her, let us continue to imbibe many lessons from her life and hold her in the highest regard that she deserves. Issued by: The Presidency, Pretoria Enquiries: Mac Maharaj on 079 879 3203 or [email protected] www.operationphakisa.gov.za www.thepresidency.gov.za -- -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] . --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "YCLSA Discussion Forum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
