SayProCMR | 2025 Human Rights Day SpeechBy Clifford Lesiba LegodiChairperson, SayPro Royal Committee

Delivered on Human Rights Day – 21 March 2025

Distinguished guests, SayPro leadership, community partners, young people, and fellow South Africans,

I greet you all with great pride and humility on this important day — Human Rights Day 2025.

It is both a privilege and a solemn duty to stand before you as Chairperson of the SayPro Royal Committee, an advisory body rooted in the values of heritage, dignity, and collective leadership.

Today, we pause to remember — not just to look back, but to look forward with purpose.

We remember the brave souls of Sharpeville.
We remember the voices that were silenced too soon.
We remember that freedom was not given — it was demanded, defended, and earned at great cost.

But we also remind ourselves that human rights must live beyond remembrance. They must be active, visible, and enforceable in the daily lives of our people — especially the most vulnerable.

At SayPro, we believe human rights are not abstract. They are personal.
They are the right of a child to learn,
The right of a young person to dream,
The right of a mother to walk safely at night,
The right of a father to earn with dignity,
The right of every person to belong, contribute, and thrive.

As the Royal Committee, we are here to uphold the dignity of tradition while guiding the spirit of transformation. Ours is a voice of wisdom, but also of action. We represent a bridge between legacy and future — and we are proud to lend that strength to SayPro’s mission.

In the work of SayPro, we see human rights in action:

• When youth are trained and mentored,
• When communities are empowered through data and development,
• When innovation is used to break the cycle of poverty,
• When gender justice and equality are non-negotiable principles,
  — that is what real human rights look like.

But let us be honest. Our struggle is not over.
The battle today is against inequality, unemployment, exclusion, and systemic barriers.
And this time, we cannot afford to fail.

It is no longer enough to speak of rights. We must resource them.
We must protect them, even when they are inconvenient.
We must teach them, especially to those who never had the chance to learn.
And we must demand of ourselves and our institutions to walk the talk — with courage and compassion.

As Chairperson of this Royal Committee, I commit to ensuring that our leadership — rooted in culture and integrity — remains a guiding force in this journey.
Let us lead with heart. Let us lead with history. But most of all, let us lead with honour.

Let this Human Rights Day not just be a day of commemoration, but a call to action:

✅ To empower,
✅ To protect,
✅ To educate,
✅ And to transform.

Because true freedom is not merely the absence of chains — it is the presence of opportunity.

I thank you for your commitment, and I thank SayPro for continuing to be a vehicle of change, hope, and human dignity.

May we honour our past by fiercely defending our future.

Ke a leboga.
Baie dankie.
Thank you.

Clifford Lesiba Legodi
Chairperson – SayPro Royal Committee
Human Rights Day, 21 March 2025