Mbuyisa Makhubo

There are a significant number of monuments to peace and freedom scattered across South Africa – not surprising given its long history of struggle against oppression. With April marking the 22nd anniversary of South Africa’s freedom, we will showcase 22 monuments that pay homage to those who made this country great.

It is a day violently etched on the South African collective conscience. Commemorated over 30 years later as Youth Day, an official holiday, it is the day that honours the deaths of hundreds of Soweto schoolchildren, a day that changed the course of the country's history: 16 June 1976.

A planned, peaceful protest in Soweto against Afrikaans as the teaching medium in schools on 16 June 1976 became one of the most pivotal days in South Africa's history. After the police opened fire on the mainly child protestors, the march quickly changed from peaceful to chaotic. Those who were there shared their memories.

Ahead of Youth Month 2012, veteran photojournalist Sam Nzima tells young South Africans to assume the strength and courage of their predecessors.
• Playing a part to give youth a future

June is celebrated as Youth Month in South Africa, paying tribute to the school pupils and ordinary citizens who lost their lives during the 16 June 1976 uprisings in Soweto. This year marks the 35^th anniversary of that fateful day.
• Youth month marked in SA

One of South Africa's most famous streets - the only one in the world to have housed two Nobel Prize winners - has long been a must-see tourist attraction. Now, the Vilakazi Street precinct has become fully visitor-friendly, with public art, memorials and benches picking out its historical sites.