Rhodes University played host to Judge Albie Sachs, a human rights activist, friend and comrade of Ruth First, when he gave a moving tribute entitled “Ruth” at last night’s (11 May 2010) launch of the Ruth First Scholarship.
Judge Sachs spoke about the imagination of our country and reflected on the momentous achievements South Africa has reached in moving towards a free society.
In a heartfelt question and answer session held at the end of his speech, Judge Sachs said what a privilege it was to have been part of the struggle, to fight for freedom, draw up parts of the constitution and then on top of that, be placed in a position to defend those laws which they fought so hard for.
He added that, “Ruth would have probably been tickled pink at the thought of Rhodes University launching a scholarship of this nature, in her name…” again reiterating how far the institution and South Africa have come, while insisting that more can still be done.
His reflections on the lives lost and the true atrocities committed during apartheid are stark in contrast to the human rights and freedom we enjoy today.
As a way of ensuring the continuation of the legacy of Ruth First, the United Kingdom based Ruth First Trust and Rhodes University have partnered to contribute funds to establish a Scholarship in her honour.
To date, a residence at Rhodes University bears her name. In 2007, Rhodes held a focus week to commemorate her assassination and celebrate her life and contribution to the winning of democracy.
The Ruth First Scholarship, to run from 2011, will support students studying full-time at Rhodes University towards either a Doctoral or Master’s Degree in the fields of politics, sociology, philosophy, anthropology, economics, social policy, democracy studies, development studies, media studies, or studies in cognate disciplines with a strong social and human rights orientation.
The scholarship is specifically intended to support candidates whose work is in the spirit of Ruth First’s life and work, poses difficult social questions, and who are interested in linking knowledge, politics, scholarship and action.