Media Statements

The African National Congress (ANC) honours the revolutionary legacy of Isithwalandwe Comrade Gertrude Ntiti Shope on the occasion of her 100th birthday. She was a fearless freedom fighter, a disciplined soldier of Umkhonto we Sizwe, a torchbearer of the women’s struggle, and a proud recipient of the highest honour our movement can bestow, Isithwalandwe/Seaparankwe.

As we commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Freedom Charter and commence the national dialogue, we reflect on the life of Ma Shope, who belonged to a brave generation of cadres that prioritised the liberation of oppressed people over their personal comfort. In her twenties, she left her teaching career to defy the apartheid regime’s Bantu Education system by joining the ANC, standing alongside committed revolutionaries determined to end racial oppression.

During the dark days of apartheid, she served on the frontlines as a soldier in our former liberation army, Umkhonto we Sizwe. She led the ANC Women’s Section and later became Chief Representative of the ANC and President of the ANC Women’s League. In each of these roles, she championed unity, equality, and the total emancipation of women as integral to the liberation of our nation.

Ma Shope played a critical role in the Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW) and carried forward the spirit of the 1956 Women’s March in every space she occupied, from mass struggles to international platforms, where she mobilised global solidarity against apartheid. She forged alliances across Africa, the socialist world, and progressive movements in the West, strengthening our struggle for the liberation of our people.

Following the democratic breakthrough in 1994, she brought her revolutionary convictions to Parliament, ensuring that the principles she fought for: gender equality, social justice, and human dignity, were embedded in our democratic order.

Ma Shope’s life teaches us that freedom is not merely the absence of racial oppression; it is the construction of a society where the working class and the poor are placed at the forefront of our transformation agenda, women are equal partners in all sections of society, and the dignity of every person is safeguarded.As we celebrate her 100th birthday, the ANC reaffirms its commitment to revolutionary discipline, unity of purpose, service to the people, and the relentless pursuit of a South Africa free from exploitation, inequality, and poverty. These are the values for which she lived and fought and values which must drive us in our renewal efforts.

Long live the revolutionary spirit of Comrade Gertrude Ntiti Shope!

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