ON MAY 24 this year, I attended the third Africa Day celebration hosted by Tribute magazine in conjunction with SABC2. There were 1400 in attendance.

This celebration of Africa Day was started by Tribute magazine in 2001. It was felt that a day as important as Africa Day should be acknowledged and celebrated. In other African countries the day is widely recognised and is declared an official public holiday whereas in this country, outside government, it was hardly noticed.

At that time it was felt the appropriate way to celebrate such an important day in the history of the liberation of this continent was to honour those who in their own fields of endeavour had contributed significantly to the fight to restore the dignity of the people of Africa.

In any other country on the continent the choice of such individuals would not be a difficult decision. The continuing power struggles that characterise this society result in reality sometimes being obscured. The media, not surprisingly, mirrors these power struggles.

The media is therefore not a reliable source of information for gauging the progress this society has made or the identity of individuals who are leaders in shaping this society to become a truly African one. Nominations by the general public were therefore called for.

In 2001 the Premium Category award was given to Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma for her work as former health minister and as foreign minister. The premium award is given to the person who has made the greatest contribution in the "reconstitution of African society into one in which the rights to equality and dignity are translated into significant practical changes to the quality of life of people". Dlamini-Zuma was a winner well chosen.

In the same year Barney Pityana received the Leadership Award for his piloting of the Human Rights Commission in its efforts to give content to the constitutional right to equality and dignity.

This year the Cida City Campus won the award in education, Moss Mashishi in leadership, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, the minerals and energy minister, in empowerment, and swimmer Natalie du Toit in sport.

Tshilidzi Marwala, an associate professor at the electrical and information engineering department at the University of the Witwatersrand, won the Science and Technology Award. His main research interest is in the fields of artificial intelligence and signal processing. In accepting his reward, he acknowledged the role played by his family and especially his grandmother in the rural areas of Limpopo.

He quoted the latter as saying that "knowledge only becomes education when it is used in the service of one's community". This was a simple yet powerful statement.

The Premium Award this year was given to Sir Ketumile Masire, former president of Botswana, for the efforts made to secure the Democratic Republic of Congo peace agreement. The positive implications for the continent in securing this agreement are probably not yet fully appreciated. He graciously accepted the award but singled out President Thabo Mbeki and Mojanku Gumbi, legal adviser to the president, for their tireless efforts in achieving peace in the Congo.

Just how important such events are was brought home to me by my teenage daughter who had accompanied me. She said the evening was inspiring and that it encouraged her to study hard to become as successful as the award winners and those in attendance. She was particularly pleased about a long chat she had had with Irene Charnley who shared a table with us.

Our history is replete with instances of leaders being foisted on us by outsiders for their benefit. Thus, for example, we ended up with Mobuto Sese Seko instead of Patrice Lumumba.

As Africans, therefore, the ability to choose our own heroes is in itself an act of liberation. We honour them to encourage them and to inspire others. Pearl Mashabela, the publisher of Tribute magazine, has worked very hard for three years. She deserves acknowledgement.

Qunta is a partner in the law firm Qunta Incorporated.