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HECTOR PIETERSON MEMORIAL SITE
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  Hector Pieterson Memorial Site: The
Hector *Pieterson Memorial and museum opened in Soweto in 2002, not far from the spot
where 12 year-old Hector was shot on the 16 June 1976 during the Soweto uprising that
today is a symbol of resistance to the brutality of the apartheid government.
Soweto, a city developed as a township for black people during apartheid, lies south of
Johannesburg. Its residents number some two million people with homes that range from
shacks to extravagant mansions, and the Hector Pieterson Memorial site is included on any
number of tours through the area.
On 16 June on the day Hector was killed, school children had gathered to protest the
imposition of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction in township schools. There are
contradictory accounts of just who gave the first command to shoot but as children began
singing Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika, and before they could be dispersed, the police opened
fire. Some 20 children died in the ensuing pandemonium.
Hector Pieterson has become something of an iconic image of the fateful day, mostly due to
a photograph published across the globe by Sam Nzima, photographer at the time for The
World newspaper in Johannesburg, of the dying Hector carried by a fellow student,
Hector’s sister alongside, her hands held out in panic. Today 16 June is National
Youth Day to honour young people.
Since its erection, the memorial plaque for Hector Pieterson has been repeatedly
vandalized; ironically it seems due to children who don’t understand the relevance or
important historical implications of the memorial.
*Since June 1976, Hector's surname has been spelled Peterson and Pietersen by the press
but the family insists that the correct spelling is Pieterson. The Pieterson family was
originally the Pitso family but decided to adopt the Pieterson name to try to pass as
"Coloured" (the apartheid-era name for people of mixed race), as Coloured people
enjoyed somewhat better privileges under apartheid than blacks did. |
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| Photograph Courtesy of and © Themba Day Tours & Safaris |
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 Overnight at Soweto
Accommodation or find a guest house in Soweto. |
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 The Soweto Tour: The Soweto tour gives you
the opportunity to gain a new perspective and personal insight into the largest Black city
in Africa. Soweto is synonymous with the struggle for freedom in South Africa and is a
vibrant, culturally rich township situated on the outskirts of Johannesburg. Within ...
more » Soweto Tours
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 The venue is the
magnificent Walter Sisulu Square in Kliptown, the site of the signing of the historic
Freedom Charter by anti-apartheid organisations in 1955. T his is the ideal place for the
people of Soweto to congregate over Heritage weekend as the Square is a national monument
and the focus ... more » Soweto
Festival
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 Soweto Map: A detailed map of Soweto, indicating the major roads, and
landmarks of Soweto, Gauteng. The Soweto map indicates the location of all the suburbs in
Soweto as well as highlighting the major attractions including the location of Mandela
House and The Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital ... more » Soweto Map |
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 Visit this fascinating town, meet her people, learn about the history of
Soweto from the people who experienced it, dine in her restaurants, visit a Shebeen (local
Pub), take a guided tour and perhaps visit the Hector Peterson Memorial Site, Nelson
Mandela's former home (now a museum), Baragwanath ... more » The Soweto
Experience |
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