Hundreds of young people marched towards the Union Buildings on June 16, 2013. (Ihsaan Haffejee/GroundUp)
vinegarSouth Africa's National Youth Union has accused President Cyril Ramaphosa's government of turning a deaf ear to its demands to address issues facing young people, including unemployment and limited access to quality education.
The coalition's interim chairperson, Moeketsi Koahela, said for the second year in a row, the presidency has not responded to the demands of the coalition, which was formed in 2022 to promote the development of ethical and transformative young leaders.
Since its formation, the coalition has led an annual march to the Union Buildings on June 16, Youth Day, to highlight the plight of young people.
“For us, this is an important day. Young people are often forgotten but by gathering in large numbers at the Union Buildings every year, we show that we will not allow our voices to be drowned out or ignored,” Coajera said.
He said the demands delivered to the Union Buildings in 2022 and 2023 have yet to receive a response from the Presidency, despite representatives from the Presidency attending both marches to receive them.
The memo said young people were “deeply frustrated that the government is ignoring our views and concerns, and we insist that we be treated with respect and that our issues be given the priority they deserve.”
The coalition also calls for immediate cancellation of student loan debt for unemployed graduates living below the poverty income threshold through a government bailout in partnership with the private sector.
Given the high unemployment rate, which affects young people the most, the Coalition is calling on the government to provide a universal basic income of between R840 and R1,268 a month to all unemployed people aged 18 to 59.
According to Statistics South Africa's Quarterly Labour Force Survey, the unemployment rate for 15-34 year olds was 45.5% in the first quarter of 2024.
In addition to supporting job creation, the coalition wants the government to invest in and support local ownership of renewable energy sources.
The group criticises the government for not allocating funds to ensure that sanitary products are free in all schools and public places.
The coalition government will not hold a march to the Union Buildings on June 16 this year, but has given the government until June 16, 2026 to meet its demands.
This year marks 48 years since the Soweto Uprising on 16 June 1976, when thousands of students in the township marched in protest against the apartheid government's introduction of Afrikaans as a compulsory language of instruction in schools.
Students were met with police violence and many were shot dead.
Some young people who spoke to the Mail and Guardian this week about the importance of Youth Day said the spirit of activism had been somewhat lost since the arrival of democracy in 1994.
“We young people are kind of relaxed right now and we're not that interested in the politics of this country because we feel that what our parents and grandparents went through during apartheid obviously shouldn't be repeated,” said a 19-year-old student at Boston Media House, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“We obviously don't have the same motivation as the apartheid-era freedom fighters, but there are other obstacles like high unemployment and climate change that we have to overcome. It's not the same, but the youth agenda has evolved over time,” said the 27-year-old from Pretoria.