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Soweto 100 Legacy Foundation banner
The corner of Moema and Vilakazi streets, where Hector Pieterson was shot
The corner of Moema and Vilakazi streets, where Hector Pieterson was shot

Memorial bricks
If you wish to get more details about the bricks, call Pam Ndaba-Mthembu on 082 495 5553.

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Hector Pieterson gets his memorial
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Naledi Secondary School, where the walkway starts
Naledi Secondary School, where the walkway starts

Student walkway to
be unveiled on 16 June

THE 10-km route students marched along on 16 June, 1976, is to be made into a memorial walkway, with granite paving stones etched in silver.

May 31, 2005

By Lucille Davie

A 10-KM walkway tracing the route Soweto students marched along on 16 June, 1976, in protest against the use of Afrikaans in the classroom is to be unveiled on 16 June this year.

Organised by the Soweto 100 Legacy Foundation, the route will start at Naledi High School and wind its way through the western suburbs of Soweto before it reaches the spot in Orlando West where 12-year-old Hector Pieterson was shot by police, the flashpoint that led to uprisings across the country.

This was announced on a media tour on Tuesday, 31 May - once celebrated as Republic Day, the day the apartheid government broke with the Commonwealth and became an independent republic.

"The Soweto centenary celebrations have built pride and respect for our history and the value of Soweto," said Pam Ndaba-Mthembu, chief executive of the Soweto 100 Legacy Foundation.

"We want journalists to reflect on the importance of the uprising of June 16, 1976 and how those student sacrifices helped bring a divided nation together."

The walkway will be complete in 2006 and a memorial walk will be held along the route each year.

David Moshapalo and Sipho Mabuse, two June 16 students, explaining the day's events in front of the memorial wall
David Moshapalo and Sipho Mabuse, two June 16 students, explaining the day's events in front of the memorial wall

The route will consist of black granite paving stones, with silver engraving. Stones are available for purchase by members of the public.

The foundation, formed at the centenary of Soweto last October, is involved in a number of projects: the building of a swimming pool in Zola; further development of the Soweto Cricket Oval; the conversion of Uncle Tom's Hall in Orlando West, into a fully-fledged theatre; and the patronage of the Soweto Hospice, Othandweni Children's Home and the Orlando Children's Home.

Last year the foundation held its first Soweto 100 Milestone Dinner, when it paid tribute to Sowetans who have made a difference to the growth of the township.

The walkway project has got off the ground, with the installation of pavement stones outside Naledi High School, undertaken by a group of women, trained and supervised by the Johannesburg Roads Agency.

The foundation is a business unit that falls under the directorship of SAIL, a sports and entertainment company, but also relies on corporate and private sponsorship. Some of the foundation's trustees include former Joburg mayor Isaac Mogase, businessman David Moshapalo, the group executive of Operations Compliance at the SA Rail Commuter Corporation, Enos Ngutshane, musician Sipho 'Hotstix' Mabuse and TV personality Vuyo Mbuli.

The walkway will contain signage telling the history of the day, with memorials along the way commemorating certain incidents like the killing of Dr Melville Edelstein, the halt on a bridge in Zulu Street, and several houses that acted as safe havens.

The walkway will end at the corner of Moema and Vilakazi streets, at Tlhoreng Primary School, where a granite memorial wall marks the spot where Pieterson fell. The Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum is several blocks up Moema Street, on Khumalo Street.



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