Moral social cohesion was in the spotlight during a two-day summit on moral regenaration last week.
It took place at the La Ndou Guest House and was organised by the Vhembe District Municipality and Vhembe Moral Regeneration Movement.
About 40 delegates from different stakeholders such as The Victorious Community, Munna Ndi Nnyi?, and local municipalities attended the summit.
Vhembe District Municipality's Cllr Conny Mphaphuli outlined the movement's concept note on the first day. She said that South Africa had crossed the historic bridge from inequality and conflict to a society grounded in common citizenship. “We reflect on the diverse journeys and cultures that have brought us to liberation and democracy, and commit ourselves to those ideals and ethical values that unite us in our diversity,” Mphaphuli stated.
She indicated that the Vhembe Moral Regeneration Movement was committed to upholding the spirit of Ubuntu through a common commitment of affirming the dignity of all people. “We dedicate ourselves as a nation to respect the worth of all individuals, irrespective of social origin, race, gender, age, status and class,” she said.
It was further heard during the summit that most communities in South Africa are faced with challenges of moral decay. Some pressing challenges were put on the table, so that the stakeholders could come up with ways to address all those issues appropriately. “We are experiencing endless cases of ritual murders,” she said.
The challenges mentioned included women and child abuse, usage and abuse of drugs, teenage pregnancies, and the HIV stigma.
Munna Ndi Nnyi's director Bardwell Mufunwaini said that movements for moral regeneration were important in reminding people to revisit their values and see if they were leading a healthy social lifestyle. “When there is a lack of morals among people, we witness a lot of family violence and killings, which should not have happened in the first place,” he said. “We need to encourage both young and old to go back and practice respect.”
