https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/pics-sa-landmarks-illuminated-green-for-st-patricks-day-20210318

• The Long March to Freedom exhibition and Constitution Hill have been lit up in green to mark St Patrick's Day.

• The landmarks participated in a global event by Tourism Ireland to spread positivity.

• More than 690 landmarks in 66 countries participated.

A hundred bronze sculptures of South African struggle icons have turned green to commemorate St Patrick's Day.

The Long March to Freedom exhibition in Cape Town – which consists of sculptures of local and international icons such as Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo and Walter Sisulu – was illuminated under Tourism Ireland's Global Greening initiative.

International landmarks have been illuminated on St Patrick's Day for the past 12 years as part of the St Patrick's Day Global Greening initiative, an annual project by Tourism Ireland.

This year, 690 landmarks in 66 countries were lit up green. These included the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Niagara Falls, Victoria Falls, the Sydney Opera House, Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro and Burj Al Arab in Dubai.

This is the first year either of the South African landmarks participated in the global event.

Sarah Haines, Long March to Freedom Project director, said South Africa and Ireland share a long history of anti-apartheid movement solidarity.

"We're really proud to have been selected, as we tell the journey of our liberation through the lives of liberation heroes. It's wonderful to have been acknowledged by a country with their own struggle history," Haines said.

Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, said: "This year, in particular, we aim to bring some positivity and hope to our diaspora across the globe. More than 70 million people around the world claim links to the island of Ireland and St Patrick's Day is a truly unique opportunity to reconnect them with their heritage."

St Patrick's Day is a global celebration of Irish culture, taking place annually on 17 March. The day is considered the date of the death of the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick.

18 March 2021