The 'Pursuit of Peace: Lessons from Chief Albert Luthuli' is the theme for this year's 18th Annual Chief Albert Luthuli Memorial Lecture that will take place at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) Westville Campus on Saturday, 12 October 2024.

This year's Luthuli Lecture commemorates 30 Years of South Africa's peaceful transition from a violent apartheid system into an inclusive constitutional democracy that has endured to date. For Chief Albert Luthuli, peace was not merely the absence of conflict, but the presence of justice, human rights, compassion and sense of conscience for the 'other'.

The mounting political and socio-economic challenges, deepening polarization in South Africa and globally threaten the sustainability of peaceful coexistence amongst nations as envisaged by leaders like Chief Albert Luthuli, Africa's first Nobel Peace Laureate. As a Nobel Peace Laureate, a believer in the resolution of conflict by non-violent means, Chief Albert Luthuli affirmed that peace is not a passive state but a quest, a pursuit that requires courage, compassion and perseverance.

This year's lecture will address three important questions.

Will South Africa's peace and constitutional democracy endure for the next 30 years? Collectively and individually, what role and responsibility do South Africans have in 'cultivating a culture of peace' for the next generation in the country, the continent and the world? To what an extent are geopolitics a threat to maintaining peace and constitutional democracy in South Africa, the continent and the world?

The Memorial Lecture will provide for physical and virtual attendance on the Luthuli Museum and the UKZN social media platforms.

For ENQUIRIES, please contact:
Zinhle Nyembe
E-mail: [email protected]

Pam Adams
E-mail: [email protected]

For more information visit the Luthuli Museum website on: www.luthulimuseum.org.za

About the Chief Albert Luthuli Memorial Lecture

The objective of the Memorial Lecture is to promote the principles and values of Chief Albert Luthuli, namely peace, human rights, justice, and the coexistence of people in harmony irrespective of race, colour, or creed. The Lecture provides a platform for public awareness, critical debate, and action on issues important to society.

Previous keynote speakers at the Lecture have included; the former Zambian President K Kaunda; the former Mozambican President Joachim Chissano; the former President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Jacob Zuma; the former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, Mr Sandile Ngcobo; the former Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Frene Ginwala; Minister N Mthethwa, MP; Dr Brigalia Bam, former Chairperson of the RSA Independent Electoral Commission and Dr Ishmael Noko, former Secretary-General of the Lutheran World Federation and the former Minister in the Presidency, Mr Jeff Radebe; poet and writer, Dr Wally Serote and the RSA Public Protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane; the former Botswana President, Mr Festus Mogae; the Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Mogoeng Mogoeng, and Ms Samia Ayaa Nkrumah, the daughter of Ghana's first President, Mr Kwame Nkrumah, Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, the UN Undersecretary and Executive Director of UN Women and the former President of the Republic of South Africa and Chancellor of UNISA Mr Thabo Mbeki, Dr Pali Lehohla, South Africa's former Statistician General and in 2023, delivered by Professor Thandabantu Nhlapo former Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Cape Town.

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