LONGUEVAL: South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday called for recognition of black South Africans’ service on the Allied side in World War I during a visit to a memorial in France.

Ramaphosa laid a wreath at the South African National Memorial in Longueval in northern France and commemorated the 110 years since the Battle of Delville Wood — one of the most significant battles involving South African soldiers in the war.

But he emphasised the need to also honour the contributions of non-white South Africans to the war, which drew fighters from countries from across the then-British Empire.

“For too long, South Africa remembered only part of this history. Today, we remember it in full,” he said as he paid tribute to South African soldiers who fought at the Battle of Delville Wood — one of the battles of the Somme — in July 1916.

“Their sacrifice deserves the eternal gratitude of our country,” he said.

He also hounoured the more than 600 members of the South African Native Labour Contingent who died in the sinking of the SS Mendi in 1917 in the English Channel.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2026