A square in South Africa’s capital Pretoria where eight people were shot dead by a white supremacist, is set to be renamed after a leading figure in the struggle against apartheid, a daily newspaper reported on Wednesday.
The Pretoria News said a proposal had been submitted to the Pretoria mayor’s office to rechristen Hans Strijdom Square — named after a former president during white-minority rule — which was the site of an infamous racist murder spree in 1988.
Names proposed for the square include those of former president Nelson Mandela, the first leader of post-apartheid South Africa; deceased African National Congress leader Oliver Tambo; and anti-apartheid activist Yusuf Dadoo.
In 1988, eight people were shot dead in the square, set in the heart of the city, by Barend Strydom, a member of the Wit Wolwe (White Wolves), a white right-wing organisation.
Strydom was sentenced to death under the apartheid regime but was released after serving only four years of his sentence following an amnesty during the country’s negotiations to a democratic transition. Apartheid in South Africa formally ended in 1994.
Salim Yousuf, the chairman of the City Improvement District (CID), told the paper: ”It should be a clearly recognised fact that the time has eventually arrived to change the past of Strijdom Square and rename it.” – AFP
