Today, 14 September 2026, marks what would have been the 101st birthday of Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati (Mama Ruta/ Mam Ruth), one of the towering figures of South Africa’s liberation struggle and a daughter of the Vryburg and Ganyesa community.

It is therefore fitting that, on this day, The Vryburg Independent Post reflects on her life and legacy through the centenary booklet Darkey Africa: The Ruth Mompati Centenary – Dissecting the History of the Tiger Kloof School and its Enduring Connections to Ruth Segomotsi Mompati and How it Shaped Her.

The booklet records that Mompati was born on 14 September 1925 in Tlapeng, Ganyesa, near Vryburg, and died on 12 May 2015 at the age of 89. It traces a life that stretched from the classrooms of Tiger Kloof to the highest levels of the African National Congress, exile, diplomacy, local government and community development.  

The Ruth Mompati Foundation declared the period from September 2025 to September 2026 as the Ruth Mompati Centenary, providing an opportunity not merely to remember her, but to examine what her life means to present and future generations.

And that distinction matters.

There is a danger with commemorating struggle icons that their names become reduced to statues, streets, buildings, annual speeches and ceremonial programmes. A person’s name can be everywhere while the values for which they sacrificed their life disappear from public consciousness.

Mama Ruta story demands more.

A daughter of this soil

For the people of Vryburg, Huhudi, Ganyesa and the wider Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District, Mompati’s story is not distant history. It is part of the identity of this region.

Her educational journey was deeply connected to Tiger Kloof, where she trained as a teacher in 1944. The booklet describes the institution’s influence on her political, social and intellectual development and later records her involvement in its revival after her return from exile.  

That connection between education and liberation is perhaps one of the most important lessons her life offers today’s generation.

Mompati understood that freedom could not simply mean removing political restrictions. A democratic society would also require educated, skilled and conscious citizens capable of building and sustaining it.

This conviction followed her into exile, where she took a particular interest in young people who joined the liberation movement. The booklet records that she encouraged young people to acquire education and develop skills because she believed that a future free South Africa would need people equipped to run the country.  

That message remains painfully relevant.

The meaning of the Women’s March

As South Africa marks 70 years since the historic 1956 Women’s March, Mompati’s contribution deserves to be remembered alongside those of the women who stood together against the pass laws.

The booklet identifies her as a central figure in the formulation of the Women’s Charter, the founding of the Federation of South African Women alongside leaders including Helen Joseph and Lilian Ngoyi, and the organisation of the 1956 march to the Union Buildings.  

The lesson is not simply that women once marched.

The lesson is that ordinary people can organise, resist injustice and influence the direction of a country.

Seventy years later, South Africa still faces questions about women’s safety, equality, economic opportunity and representation. Remembering the women of 1956 must therefore compel us to ask whether the society they fought for is living up to their expectations.

From struggle to reconciliation

Perhaps one of the most important chapters of Mompati’s later life was her return to Vryburg after 27 years in exile.

The booklet portrays her return not merely as a homecoming, but as a new phase of political and community leadership. She travelled extensively, engaged political, religious, business and community leaders and sought to rebuild connections across communities.  

As mayor of Naledi, she confronted a community still carrying the scars of apartheid’s racial divisions. The booklet describes her efforts to promote unity and reconciliation across racial and social lines.

This is a lesson worth remembering in today’s increasingly polarised society.

Leadership is not only about winning arguments or occupying positions of authority. Sometimes leadership means building bridges where others see walls.

Her legacy was also about service

Mompati’s contribution did not end with politics.

The booklet documents her involvement in community development initiatives, including support for organisations working with older people, people with disabilities, children, women and people living with HIV/AIDS. It also records education initiatives involving school uniforms and sanitary products for learners from disadvantaged communities.    

This is an important part of her legacy because it reminds us that liberation must ultimately be measured by how people’s lives change.

A political freedom that does not translate into dignity, opportunity, education and meaningful development remains incomplete.

Remember her – but also learn from her

The booklet records numerous honours bestowed on Mompati, including the Isithwalandwe/Seaparankwe Award, the Mahatma Gandhi Satyagraha Award, an honorary master’s degree, an honorary doctorate and the Ubuntu–Oliver Tambo Lifetime Achievement Award. It also records her service as South Africa’s ambassador to Switzerland and as mayor of Naledi.  

But perhaps the greatest tribute we can give her is not another award or another plaque.

It is to live by the principles that shaped her life.

Education. Courage. Humility. Service. Unity. Reconciliation. Commitment to community.

As the Ruth Mompati centenary draws to a close and we mark what would have been her 101st birthday, the challenge before the people of the district that bears her name is straightforward:

What are we doing with the freedom that Mam Ruth and generations of women and men fought to secure?

Are we educating our children?

Are we preserving our history?

Are we building communities rather than dividing them?

Are we serving the most vulnerable among us?

Are our leaders demonstrating the humility, courage and integrity expected of public servants?

And, most importantly, are we creating the South Africa for which people like Ruth Mompati sacrificed so much?

The answers to these questions will ultimately determine whether her legacy is truly alive.

Today, we celebrate Mama Ruta at 101.

But tomorrow, the work must continue.

Her name belongs in our history. Her values belong in our future.

-The VIP Team 

-Darkey Africa – Dissecting the History of Tiger Kloof

and its Enduring Connections to Ruth Mompati (Booklet) 

-sarahrichards.co.za (picture source)