Minister Gwede Mantashe, in his delivery of the Elijah Barayi law lecture, has lamented the emergence of what he termed a “passive society".

Mantashe said: “One of the mistakes that we have committed is to build an ignorant society. We need to correct that. We have neglected the active participation of the citizenry. We have been guilty of creating a passive society and cannot afford that".

Mantashe was addressing the Second Elijah Barayi Memorial Lecture, in honour of one of South Africa's most influential labour leaders, held at the University of Johannesburg (formerly Rand Afrikaans Universiteit) Campus in Auckland Park, Johannesburg. The Elijah Barayi Memorial Lecture was hosted by the Department of Employment and Labour in collaboration with the University of Johannesburg. The lecture was about Barayi's historical role in mass labour mobilisation and the ongoing struggle for decent work and economic justice.

Minister Mantashe also congratulated the UJ on its celebration of 20 years of existence, warning that the institution, through its association with former RAU was more older than that. He cautioned that history must be told as is, saying, “History cannot be discarded". He described Barayi as a selfless unionist and political activist. Mantashe said Barayi had dreams of building a resourceful society and was a resilient man.

Born in Cradock, Barayi's mother was a domestic worker, and his father was a municipal worker. He was instrumental in the formation of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), an affiliate of Cosatu. He was a former President of Cosatu between 1991 and 1993. The Minister informed the attendees.

Mantashe's challenge to today's leaders was to be remembered for the impact they have made within society, rather than where they were born or by whom. He said Barayi loved freedom for all, hence his joining the youth league at the age of 14. He said Barayi was born in an era where leadership was about generating ideas.

“He was a firebrand, an active product of a particular era. When NUM was formed we were lucky to be part of it. It had a clear vision," he said adding that today - women's participation in the mining sector hovers at more than 75,000 workers, today the industry has a pension fund.

He said one of the lessons he learned from Barayi was that when there was a problem one was to head to the coalface and deal with it, rather than relying on reports, “because these get polished". He said what was missing in the labour movement today was a lack of research, and that people rely on luck.

He reminded those in attendance that the right to strike and the right to collective bargaining are today taken lightly because it is now an acquired right.

Today's lecture was attended by Employment and Labour Minister Nomakhosazana Meth; including Minister of Higher Education and Training, Dr. Nobuhle Nkabane; Gauteng Premier, Mr. Panyaza Lesufi; Employment and Labour Deputy Minister Judith Nemadzinga-Tshabalala; Department's Acting Director-General Jacky Molisane, the UJ executive leadership, Department's officials, government officials, students, business, and labour.

For media inquiries, kindly contact:

Teboho Thejane

Departmental Spokesperson

082 697 0694/ teboho.thejane@labour.gov.za 

-ENDS-

Issued by the Department of Employment and Labour

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