Remembering Chris Hani - 28 June 1942 – 10 April 1993

To me, one of the greatest anti-apartheid activists we had.

On 10 April 1993, the South African Communist Party secretary-general, Chris Thembisile Hani was shot and killed in the driveway of his Boksburg home.

His killers, Walus and Derby-Lewis were captured, sentenced and jailed within six months of the assassination. Both were sentenced to death which was then lessened to life imprisonment after the death penalty was ruled unconstitutional.

Some Chris Hani Quotes

“I’ve never wanted to spare myself because I feel there are people who are no longer around and died for this struggle. What right to I have to hold back, to rest, to preserve my health, to have time with my family, when there are other people who are no longer alive – when they sacrificed what is precious: namely life itself”.

“What we need in South Africa is for egos to be suppressed in favour of peace. We need to create a new breed of South Africans who love their country and love everybody, irrespective of their colour”.

“We need to create the pathways to give hope to our youth that they can have the opportunity through education and hard work to escape the trap of poverty.”

“The perks of a new government are not really appealing to me. Everybody would like to have a good job, a good salary… but for me that is not the be-all of struggle. What is important is the continuation of the struggle. The real problems of the country are not whether one is in Cabinet… but what we do for social upliftment of the working masses of our country.”