Tutu speaks in London Charity Event

Archbishop Desmond Tutu spoke of the shock recent crimes in South Africa had caused in communities at an event in London last week. Tutu was speaking at a charity event hosted by the National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (NICRO) at St Paul’s Cathedral last Wednesday. About 200 people attended the event, which included a performance by South African opera singer Siphiwo Ntshebe.

In his speech, Tutu said the recent case where a student allegedly used a samurai sword to kill a fellow pupil had shocked people. “There are quite shocking statistics of young people, children, who are being sentenced to prison because of involvement in serious crimes,” he said. “We like to shake our heads, and wonder what has happened?” Tutu said he was disappointed at media coverage given to youth violence in South Africa.

“My complaint to the media is, this is an unhappy picture and it is made out to be the entire truth of our youth,” he said. “Many young people are extraordinary people, they dream dreams, they actually do believe that they can make poverty history. We shouldn’t be appalled by those young people who go astray — we should celebrate that more don’t succumb.”