The June 16 Memorial and Youth Institute is opened by Gauteng Premier David Makhura
The Gauteng provincial government plans a number of heritage and commemorative structures that will reinforce the historic struggle for South Africa’s human rights.
The June 16 Memorial and Youth Institute
The June 16 Memorial and Youth Institute is among the June 16 Trail projects aimed at identifying and recognising the contributions of the struggle of veterans in their communities and at encouraging youth development programmes and learning.
The department of infrastructure, in partnership with City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, the June 16 Fund the community of Jabavu, became part of the June 16 Trail to ensure that the government’s objectives are met.
The site will be the principal stop along June 16th Trail and will be the central attraction in the first of the four precincts along the trail. Community members will be allowed to access the site and relax in the park since this is a community project.
The exhibition centre provides an overview of the trail and highlights other sites of significance as well as the other routes along which students marched. This site is thus a good starting point of any tour of Soweto. It is also a strong narrative starting point for the trail with the Hector Pieterson Museum serving as the last stop on the trail.
The building is designed in a shape of an AK47 rifle which in that time it was a symbol of the struggle.
The Boipatong Memorial & Youth Centre
The Boipatong Memorial & Youth Centre is built in honour of the people who were killed during the Boipatong massacre. The centre provides space for their stories to be told. The monument will deepen people’s understanding of the paths that led to South Africa’s newfound democracy. The exhibition centre displays the role played by the perpetrators who turned Boipatong into a killing zone while also creating spaces for civic dialogue and debates.
The memorial is designed to be a place of healing, retrospection and contemplation in the midst of poverty that is still a visible reminder of the past. The key challenges facing Emfuleni is to diversify the local economy from its traditional manufacturing focus on iron and steel manufacturing. Tourism has been identified as a sector with significant potential within Emfuleni. Currently, the tourism sector at Emfuleni employs around 2176 people (1, 4 % of total employment) however its contribution to the economy is minimal at this stage.
Emfuleni has two major tourism attractions namely the Vaal River and the rich struggle history of the area. Much has been done and continued to be done to develop the tourism potential provided by the Vaal River. The challenge is to link this to the struggle history that exists in Emfuleni and particularly in the township of Sharpeville, Boipatong, Sebokeng, Evaton and others.
The overall concept is to link the attractions offered along the Vaal River to the struggle history site in the township of Emfuleni. One such struggle site is the Boipatong Massacre Site. The site has a rich struggle history and lies on the interest route adjacent to Sharpeville (where there are existing and planned tourism related sites)
The site is easily accessible and close to the tourist areas along the Vaal River such as the hotels and B&Bs. Tour operators currently take tourism from the hotels along the township of Emfuleni. The Boipatong Massacre site is historically significant and many local and international tourists would love to visit the site and hear the story of the Boipatong massacre.
The Women’s Living Heritage Monument
The Women’s Living Heritage Monument at Lillian Ngoyi Square was initiated in 2012 by the then Premier of Gauteng Nomvule Mokonyane to coincide with the 56th anniversary of the Women’s March in 1956. The monument will provide a space for traders and will incorporate recreational, arts and culture, interpretive and early childhood centres. The facility will also provide training for women who are entering political office.
The monument is dedicated specifically to honouring the role of women in the struggle and its focus is on uplifting women through training; women are also involved in its construction. The department of sports, arts and culture has allocated R50-million to the project, which is a collaboration between the province and the City of Tshwane. The monument is easily accessible to all, being centrally located on Lillian Ngoyi and Helen Joseph streets in the Tshwane CBD. Upon completion, heritage objects and creative works associated with the roles played by women before 1994 will be on display.