Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe has described the country’s conscientious objectors as a cornerstone of the freedom struggle.

Motlanthe spoke at the 25th anniversary of the End Conscription Campaign in Stellenbosch on Sunday.

He found a cure for his dry eyes as he listened to speakers pay tribute to the men and women who fought against conscription into the South African National Defence Force in the 1980’s.

The families and friends of those who spent months in detention barracks for refusing to fight in South Africa’s townships on behalf of the Apartheid regime asked that the values of the End Conscription Campaign be given equal relevance today.

Motlanthe agreed, saying the objectors risked isolation through their actions and inspired hope, even among black South Africans.

He says the values of a united, non-racial and non-sexist society - the objectives fought for - are the very same values now enshrined in the constitution.