Tomorrow is Freedom Day, and SA is quite literally a gloomy place to celebrate what is one of our most important historical events. Zimbabwe, Eskom, BEE, the petrol price; the list goes on. There are precious few things to celebrate it seems. But Freedom Day can remind us of one very important thing: that our country has overcome bigger obstacles than this, and that there is really no going back.

There seems to be this impression among more people than I’d dare thought that life during apartheid was better. And certainly for us fattened white folks life was, generally-speaking, pretty good. But for those whom there existed no government patronage, for whom life promised nothing more than turmoil and oppression. And this, no matter how much electricity you have, is no alternative to our current state. Now before the burning torches come out and I be branded an apologist, let me explain. Freedom Day reminds us of the many South Africans, white and black, who died during the struggle, in the townships, in the ‘borders’ and in cold concrete police cells. Freedom wasn’t some abstract principle that folks talked about in coffee shops. It was something fought over for decades. Apartheid shaped and penetrated every aspect of our lives, and yet it was overcome.

Crime today is unacceptable, our foreign policy generally the laughing stock of the international community and the political leadership sorely lacking in humility, amongst other important traits. But the 1994 elections should serve as a reminder that this country is capable of great things, and it still is. A lot should be changed within the corridors of power in SA, and a lot will be changed, but SA is still Africa’s leading nation. There is a reason so many refugees jump the fence and run to us: because we are better than the rest. In terms of SA, Freedom Day is the rather self-indulgent arrogance in knowing that we are better than the rest of our continent, by a long, long way, even now. Especially now.

So tomorrow, when load-shedding has descended upon you, light up that braai, get some beers and reflect upon the positive aspects of SA. South Africa may be down, but it is by no means out. Happy Freedom Day!