The Decoration for Merit in Gold, post-nominal letters DMG, was instituted by the President of the Republic of South Africa in April 1996. It was awarded to veteran cadres of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election install ...

, who had distinguished themselves during the "struggle" by outstanding service and utmost devotion to duty.South African Medal Website - Liberation armies
(Accessed 30 April 2015)
(Accessed 28 April 2015)

Umkhonto we Sizwe

Umkhonto we Sizwe, abbreviated as MK, Zulu for "Spear of the Nation", was the para-military wing of the

(ANC). It was established on 16 December 1961 to wage an armed "struggle" against the Nationalist government inside South Africa. On 27 April 1994, Umkhonto we Sizwe was amalgamated with six other military forces into the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).Warrant of the President of the Republic of South Africa for the Institution of the "UNITAS MEDAL-UNITAS-MEDALJE", Gazette no. 16087 dated 25 November 1994.

Institution

The Decoration for Merit in Gold, post-nominal letters DMG, was instituted by the President of South Africa in April 1996. It is the senior award of a set of three decorations for merit, along with the Merit Medal in Silver and the Merit Medal in Bronze.South African Medal Website - Legal aspects - Fount of Honour
(Accessed 1 May 2015) Umkhonto we Sizwe's military decorations and medals were modeled on those of the South African Defence Force and these three decorations are the approximate equivalents of, respectively, the Southern Cross Decoration and

Pro Merito Decoration The Pro Merito Decoration, post-nominal letters PMD, is a military decoration for merit which was instituted by the Republic of South Africa on 1 July 1975. It was awarded to other ranks of the South African Defence Force for outstanding servi ...

, the

Southern Cross Medal (1975) The Southern Cross Medal of 1975, post-nominal letters SM, is a military decoration which was instituted by the Republic of South Africa on 1 July 1975. It was awarded to officers of the South African Defence Force for exceptionally meritorious ...

and

Pro Merito Medal (1975) The Pro Merito Medal of 1975, post-nominal letters PMM, is a military decoration which was instituted by the Republic of South Africa on 1 July 1975. It was awarded to other ranks of the South African Defence Force for exceptionally meritorious ...

, and the Military Merit Medal.

Award criteria

The decoration could be awarded to veteran cadres of Umkhonto we Sizwe who had distinguished themselves during the "struggle" by outstanding service and utmost devotion to duty.

Order of wear

The position of the Decoration for Merit in Gold in the official military and national orders of precedence was revised upon the institution of a new set of honours on 27 April 2003, but it remained unchanged.Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 477, no. 27376, Pretoria, 11 March 2005, Presidential Warrant by the President of the Republic of South Africa for the Institution of Honours for Bravery in the South African National Defence Force, Gazette no. 25213 dated 25 July 2003. ;Umkhonto we Sizwe: Ribbon Conspicuous Leadership Star

*Official MK order of precedence: ** Preceded by the Conspicuous Leadership Star (CLS). ** Succeeded by the Merit Medal in Silver (MMS). ;South African National Defence Force until 26 April 2003: Ribbon - Sandile Decoration

*Official SANDF order of precedence: ** Preceded by the

Sandile Decoration The Sandile Decoration, post-nominal letters SD, was instituted by the President of the Republic of Ciskei in 1988, for award to all ranks for meritorious service.Republic of Ciskei. ** Succeeded by the Gold Decoration for Merit (GDM) of the

Azanian People's Liberation Army The Azanian People's Liberation Army (APLA), formerly known as Poqo, was the military wing of the Pan Africanist Congress, an African nationalist movement in South Africa. In the Xhosa language, the word 'Poqo' means 'pure'. After attacks on ...

. *Official national order of precedence: ** Preceded by the Police Star for Distinguished Service of the Lebowa Homeland. ** Succeeded by the Gold Decoration for Merit (GDM) of the Azanian People's Liberation Army.

Description

;Obverse The Decoration for Merit in Gold is a silver-gilt double Maltese cross, which fits in a circle 45 millimetres in diameter. The arms of the cross are in white enamel, with the Umkhonto we Sizwe emblem in a dark blue enameled roundel in the centre.Uniform: SA Army: Former Forces Medals - Umkhonto Wesizwe (MK)
/ref> ;Ribbon The ribbon is 32 millimetres wide and dark blue, with a 12 millimetres wide yellow band in the centre.

Discontinuation

Conferment of the Decoration for Merit in Gold was discontinued upon the institution of a new set of honours for the South African National Defence Force on 27 April 2003.

References

{{South African military decorations and medals Military decorations and medals of uMkhonto we Sizwe 1996 establishments in South Africa Awards established in 1996