President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed his deep condolences following the passing of writer, storyteller and cultural activist Dr Diana Ferrus, who died at the age of 72.
The President said his thoughts and prayers are with Ferrus’ family, friends and associates.
Dr Ferrus is best known for her powerful 1998 poem A Poem for Sarah Baartman, which is widely credited with helping to secure the return of Sarah Baartman’s remains to South Africa from France. Baartman, an Eastern Cape woman, had been taken to Europe in the 19th century where she was dehumanised and exploited as an exhibit.
Ferrus published works in both Afrikaans and English and dedicated much of her life to teaching and empowering emerging writers to use literature as a tool for protest and social commentary.
President Ramaphosa described her as a remarkable creative voice whose work reflected a deep understanding of the human condition and the injustices of apartheid.
“A remarkable voice has gone silent. Diana Ferrus was a creative stalwart whose profound understanding of the human condition and the all-encompassing injustices of apartheid inspired her way with words,” he said.
“She was a patriot who painted our nation in prose that awakened us to the essence of our humanity.
“No one could remain unaffected by her insight, her deep appreciation of our nation’s cultural and natural endowments, or her demands for justice and the restoration of the dignity of a dispossessed and disempowered people.
“May Diana’s soul rest in the peace to which she invited Sarah Baartman in her landmark poem.”
