As the Russian invasion of Ukraine grinds on past the six months mark, and the tragic toll on civilians mounts, the ordinary people of South Africa are sending a symbolic gesture of friendship and humanitarian relief to the people of Ukraine.
Social Entrepreneur Howard Sackstein, who coordinated the effort said that “the people of South Africa could not stand by and ignore the plight of innocent civilians caught in the fighting after the Russian invasion of Ukraine”.
“We realized that civilians were being trapped in bombed and smoldering buildings and Ukrainian fire fighters just did not have sufficient fire suits to rescue people,” said Sackstein. “We launched a campaign to allow ordinary South Africans to contribute to humanitarian relief to save civilian lives.”
People from across the spectrum contributed towards this effort and well over R1-million was raised to support the project.
This week, 60 South African-manufactured fire-fighting suits be sent from here and shipped to the people of Ukraine.
“It would have been easier, faster and cheaper to buy the equipment in Europe and ship it across the border into Ukraine, but that would have diluted the message,” said Sackstein. “We are proud South Africans, so we wanted to make sure that the fire-fighting suits were manufactured in South Africa, by South Africans, creating South African jobs with South African money. We wanted this to be a personal gesture from the People of South Africa with Love to the People of Ukraine,” he said.
The Angel Network was instrumental in this process. The Network is best known for its feeding schemes in South Africa during Covid and for humanitarian relief for shack-fire victims in squatter communities.
“The people of South Africa have such big hearts,” said Glynne Wolman, founder of the Angel Network. “We heard the cry of the Ukrainian people and we couldn’t remain silent in the face of the humanitarian disaster faced by so many innocent victims and refugees.”
“We were delighted to partner with ordinary South Africans who were determined that our local civilians’ compassion and empathy would be heard across the oceans,” she said. “This is the true spirit of ‘Ubuntu’, caring for each other, caring for strangers and making sure that the heart of the people of South Africa should be a moral pulse for the world.”
The Ukrainian Ambassador to South Africa, Her Excellency Liubov Abravitova, was on hand to receive the donation. “We are overwhelmed by the outpouring of concern love and empathy we have received from the people of South Africa,” she said. “It is clear that South Africans equate their struggle for freedom with our struggle for independence and freedom in the face of the brutal Russian invasion of our country.
“We appreciate that the people of South Africa share in our values and stand for morality and justice. Ukraine was at the forefront of the struggle for freedom in South Africa, many of the ANC’s liberation fighters were trained and educated in Ukraine and we are so grateful that South Africans have felt moved to help us during our time of need,” said the Ambassador.
As the shipment of fire-fighting equipment leaves South African shores as a gesture of solidarity, many in Ukraine still suffer under the constant barrage of bombs and missile attacks. Millions of Ukrainians have fled their homes, churches have been destroyed, schools have been bombed and civilians have borne the brunt of Russia’s invasion.
South Africans can feel proud and comforted, knowing that South Africans donated, manufactured, and exported fire-fighting equipment will shortly be used to save the lives of so many people whose entire existence has been shattered by war.
