STEVE BIKO – 43 YEARS SINCE SEPTEMBER 12 1977 WHEN HE DIED IN A PRETORIA POLICE HOSPITAL AFTER BEING BRUTALLY TORTURED BY THE APARTHEID SECURITY POLICE
On September 12 (2020) it will be 43 years since South Africa’s black consciousness leader, Steven Bantu Biko, was murdered by the then apartheid security police. During this time, I was working at the Daily News, situated at that time at 85 Field Street in the port city of Durban in South Africa. Biko’s gruesome death evoked shock and anger and I followed the aftermath of his murder very intensely.These were some of my articles published in the Daily News since September 13 1977:
DETAINED BLACK LEADER DIES IN HOSPITAL
The article I wrote on September 13 1977 was published under the headline: “Detained black leader dies in hospital”.The article read: “Mr Steve Biko, one of the founder members of the Black Consciousness Movement in South Africa, died in a Pretoria hospital last night after being transferred from Port Elizabeth where he was being held under Section 6 of the Terrorism Act.General G L Prinsloo, Commissioner of Police, confirmed today that Mr Biko (30) died in detention in hospital.Mr Biko’s sister, Mrs A B Mvovo, told the Daily News from King William’s Town that the security police visited Mr Biko’s home early today and told his 57-year-old mother of his death.She said the security police did not give any details of how Mr Biko had died.The security police told her mother, she said, that Mr Biko had been transferred to Pretoria from Port Elizabeth last week after falling ill.Married with two children, Mr Biko was regarded as one of the founder members of the black consciousness movement in South Africa.He was also the founder president of the South African Students Organisation (SASO) and honorary president of the Black Peoples’ Convention. At the time of his SASO presidency his colleagues were Mr Saths Cooper and Mr Strini Moodley, two black consciousness leaders who are now in prison on Robben Island.Mr Biko’s wife, Ntsikie, is a nurse at the All Saints Hospital in the Transkei.” Ends – Sept 13 1977
STEVE TOO STRONG TO DIE OF HUNGER, SAYS WIFE
Then on September 14 1977, I wrote and got published another article after I spoke to his wife, Mrs Ntsikie Biko, by telephone from Durban.The article was published under the headline: “Steve too strong to die of hunger, says wife”.This was the article:Mrs Ntsikie Biko, wife of black consciousness leader Mr Steve Biko, who died while in security police custody on Monday, said today that she could not believe her husband could have died after going on hunger strike.A shaken Mrs Biko said: “My husband was a strong man and I cannot believe that a man like him could have died after going on hunger strike.”Speaking from her home in King William’s Town, Mrs Biko said that her husband in very good health when he was taken into security police custody on August 18.Mrs Biko, a nurse at the All Saints Hospital at Engcobo in the Transkei, said that her ageing mother-in-law and the rest of the Biko family also could not understand how a strong and healthy person like Mr Biko could have died of hunger so soon.“But everybody is now accepting that Steve is no longer with us.“During a struggle you can’t expect everything to be smooth and rosy. My husband has died for a noble cause and I don’t think the police are going to gain anything,” she said.She said that the security police had not told her or the Biko family that Mr Biko had gone on hunger strike on September 5 and that he had been transferred to Pretoria.“Even if they couldn’t get hold of me they could have got in touch with Steve’s mother.”Mrs Biko dismissed police statements that she had been separated from Mr Biko. She said the only reason she had to go to work in the Transkei was because she could not get sutiable work in King William’s Town where her husband was restricted.She said Mr Biko’s funeral would take place at the Leightonville Location in King William’s Town on September 25. Funeral arrangements were being made by the Black Peoples’ Convention.Meanwhile, Chief Gatsha Buthelezi of KwaZulu, said in Durban yesterday that Mr Biko’s death was tragic because it was people of Mr Biko’s depth and tolerance that were most needed by South Africa in this her hour of need.“I think his death is a challenge to all of us black people to show by our individual input to the struggle for liberation that he did not die in vain.”The executive of the South African Students Organisation said that Mr Biko’s loss “is a big blow to us all but we will continue the fight that he stood for.” Ends – September 14 1977
BIKO WAS DEDICATED ‘FREEDOM FIGHTER’
The same day on September 14 1977 I spoke to the president of the Black Peoples’ Convention (BPC), Hlaku Rachidi; Mr A K Mahomedy, a Muslim leader in Durban; and Mr M J Naidoo, president of the Natal Indian Congress, about the death of Biko in police custody.
The story was published the next day (Sept 15 1977) under the headline: “Biko was dedicated ‘freedom fighter’.”
The article read:
Black consciousness leader, Mr Steve Biko, was a dedicated “freedom fighter” who wanted nothing else but the restitution of the dignity of the black man in South Africa, Mr Hlaku Rachidi, president of the Black Peoples’ Convention, said yesterday.
Mr Biko (30), who died while in security police custody in Pretoria on Monday, was the honorary president of the BPC.
Commenting on his death, Mr Rachidi said the Black Consciousness leader was dedicated to the liberation of the black people and, therefore, would not have indulged in any cowardly action that would delay the realisation of the total liberation of South Africa.
“The death of Mr Biko in detention, like many others, is a picture of the violent police state that is South Africa.
“We vow to continue from where they were forced to leave off and to carry on the struggle,” he said.
Imam A K Mahomedy, a prominent Muslim leader and priest, said that South Africa’s entire Muslim community mourned the death of Mr Biko.
“We deeply sympathise with his family in the moment of crisis.”
Mr M J Naidoo, president of the Natal Indian Congress, said that one more articulate black leader had died under suspicious circumstances while in detention. Ends – Sept 15 1977
BIKO WAS A TRUE CHRISTIAN, SERVICE TOLD
On September 20 1977 a memorial service was held at the Emmanuel Catholic Cathedral in central Durban to protest against the death of Mr Biko in security police custody.I attended the service and wrote an article which was published on September 21 1977 under the headline: “Biko was a true Christian, service told.”The article read:Black Consciousness leader Mr Steve Biko loved life and wanted to live to see that the deprived and hungry lived and enjoyed life, the Rev Ernest Baartman, general secretary of the Methodist Missionary, said yesterday.He was addressing a multiracial crowd of more than 2 000 people at a memorial service at the Emmanuel Cathedral, Durban, for Mr Biko, who died in security police custody in Pretoria last Monday.Mr Baartman said he met Mr Biko 11 days before he was detained on August 18 and found him to be a true Christian and a man who hated nobody. He spoke from a position of strength and was one of the few leaders who was busy thinking out the future society in South Africa.Mr Biko wanted change so that all South Africans would share in a free life and a just system.Mr Baartman said one thing he could vouch for was that Mr Biko loved food and drink and that, therefore, he was not a man, who would give up his own life.Mr Diliza Mji, former president of the South African Students Association, called on the people to respond to Mr Biko’s fight for liberation and the dignity of man.“I believe that if we go out of here and protest against the injustices, changes will come about sooner than we think,” he said.The memorial service was also addressed by Dr Jerry Coovadia, vice-president of the Natal Indian Congress, and Mr Tom Manthata of the Black Peoples’ Convention.The black national anthem, “Nkosi Sikelela iAfrica”, and other songs were sung by the multi-racial crowd.More than 10 000 people observed a minute’s silence in respect for Mr Biko at Currie’s Fountain before the start of the Coca Cola Cup match between Durban’s Berea and Swaraj of Johannesburg.The Federation Professional League has cancelled all its professional soccer matches scheduled for next Sunday as a tribute to Mr Biko, who will be buried that day in King William’s Town. Ends Sept 21 1977
Then when we started the Press Trust of SA Third World News Agency in 1980, I continued to follow up the developments following his cruel death.We wrote a number of articles which I want to re-publish here.
AUGUST 16 1982
FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MURDER OF STEVE BIKO
On September 12 1977 the majority of South Africans and the world at large were shocked into silence and disbelief when one of the country’s brightest young black leaders met an untimely and gruesome death at the hands of Pretoria’s security police.The young leader in question was Steven Bantu Biko, the 30-year-old leader of the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM). He died of head wounds and brain damage 25 days after being detained along with a close friend, Peter Jones, at a road block in the Eastern Cape region of the country on August 18 1977.Biko became the 43rd South African political detainee to die under mysterious circumstances while under police custody.Today, five years later, Biko still haunts the consciences of white South Africans and the white minority government that was responsible for his brutal demise.Black South Africans, on the other hand, remember Biko as a martyr of the ongoing liberation struggle in South Africa.
AZAPO
The Azanian Peoples Organisation (AZAPO), which replaced the Black Peoples Convention (BPC) and the South African Students Organisation (SASO) that were banned after Biko’s death, has organised a series of events to mark the 5th anniversary of his death.Among the activities include, “Biko Week”, which will be held from September 5 to 12, and a play on the life and death of the late black consciousness leader.At the time of his unfortunate death, Biko, who was the banned president of the BPC, was reportedly involved in moves inside the country to unify the forces of the African National Congress (ANC) and the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) in an attempt to co-ordinate the struggles against white minority rule.It is reported that he and Peter Jones were on this particular mission when they were stopped at a road block between King William’s Town and East London and detained under the country’s security laws.But what was reported to be merely an arrest for breaking his banning orders turned out to be one of the saddest events in the history of South Africa. He was held in solitary confinement with no proper washing facilities in a cell at the headquarters of the security police in Port Elizabeth. And later kept naked and hand-cuffed and leg-shackled to the iron bars of his cell.On September 11 1977 when he was found to be in a state of collapse in the cell, he was transported, lying naked in a land rover, to the Pretoria prison more than 1 200km away. This the authorities said was done out of compassion for Biko because the medical facilities in Pretoria were far better than those in Port Elizabeth.But the next day Steve Biko died a miserable and lonely death on a mat on a stone floor in the prison cell.
BIKO'S DEATH REVERBERATED AROUND THE WORLD
Immediately after his death reverberated throughout South Africa and the world, the then South African Minister of Justice, Jimmy Kruger, made small talk of the tragedy when he told a cheering meeting of his ruling National Party in the Transvaal province that Biko had starved himself to death.
JIMMY KRUGER : : “I am not sad, I am not glad, it leaves me cold”.
He echoed the callousness and satisfaction of the authorities when he announced: “I am not sad, I am not glad, it leaves me cold”.Kruger’s callousness knew no bounds even when it transpired that Steve Biko died of brain injuries. The Minister’s response was typical:“A man can damage his brain in many ways.”He went onto imply suicide by saying: “I don’t know if they were self-inflicted. But I often think of banging my own head against a wall.”
“ASSAULTING TEAM”
Even the security police in charge of Steve Biko at the time of his death, a Colonel Goosen, tried to absolve himself and his men from any blame by saying that he had taken all measures to ensure the safekeeping of detainees, and to make sure that they did not escape or injure themselves. But in trying to find excuses he made a gigantic slip that really landed him in the soup.He said: “I am proud that during Biko’s interrogation, no assault charges had ever been laid against my ASSAULTING TEAM.”He later changed the phrase to “interrogating team”.But the truth of the matter was that Steve Biko died of at least five brain lesions caused by the application of external force to his head.The inquest into his death, however, found that no one was responsible and cleared the security policemen of any blame.Five years later, while black South Africans again remember Biko, it is worth recounting the short life of the activist who was chiefly responsible for conscientizing and politicising the young people during the 1970s.Biko was born to humble parents in the small town of Ginsberg in the Eastern Cape region of the country where he completed his early schooling and his matriculation. He proceeded to Durban to do a doctor’s degree at the University of Natal Black Medical School where he soon became involved in the activities of the multi-racial National Union of South African Students (NUSAS).
(Steve Biko statue at the Durban University of Technology)
NUSAS
But his association with NUSAS led to disillusionment when he and his colleagues found that the black man could never gain liberation by joining the debating chambers of white-controlled organisations.It was against this background that Biko and his colleagues established the South African Students Organisation (SASO) and later the Black Peoples’ Convention (BPC) to cater for non-students operating outside the apartheid system. Biko set the two organisations on their course when he outlined the philosophy of black consciousness by saying that blacks had to shake off all forms of imperialism – cultural, economical and psychological – in order to win physical freedom.But his leadership was short lived.The Pretoria authorities, sensing that he was a force to be reckoned with, slapped him with a five-year banning order in 1974 and restricted him to his home district of King William’s Town.
“F0R WHEN BIKO THE MAN DIED, BIKO THE MARTYR WAS BORN”
However, in spite of the restrictions and security police harassment, he continued to harness the thinking of the young people and to be in the forefront of international spotlight. He was such a charismatic and vociferous opponent of apartheid and white minority rule that scores of diplomats and international personalities used to literally search him out in the backdrop of Ginsberg for his views and thoughts about the situation in South Africa.Therefore, when his death came suddenly and cruelly on September 12 1977, black South Africa and the world cried “murder” at the Pretoria authorities. To their shock and amazement an inquest into his death found that no one was responsible, and the security policemen, who were responsible for his detention, were cleared of all blame.Steve Biko, a young freedom fighter and leader who initiated a fresh “revolution” and who had outmanoeuvred an almost Nazi-system, is no more but his values and ideals still live on in new organisations and projects. And they will certainly not disappear.For when Biko the man died, Biko the martyr was born. Ends – Press Trust of SA Third World News Agency August 16 1982
Nearly eight years after the murder of Steve Biko, we published and distributed around the world the following article: March 26 1985
BIKO SAGA CONTINUES
After eight years the shroud of secrecy surrounding the death in police custody of the South African black consciousness leader, Steve Biko, may at last be lifted.But the full facts may never become known.The dastardly manner in which he was treated by two district surgeons, Drs Ivor Lang and Benjamin Tucker, shortly before he died on September 12 1977, is finally to be investigated by the South African Medical and Dental Council (SAMDC).The Medical and Dental Council was forced to take this action by the Supreme Court of the Transvaal province of the country recently after the Council refused to investigate the conduct of the doctors over the past eight years.The Supreme Court found there was evidence to suggest “improper and disgraceful” conduct on the part of the two doctors after a court action was brought by six leading medical personalities.The six initiators of the court action were Professors Timothy Wilson, Frances Ames, Trevor Jenkins and Philip Tobias and Drs Yousuf Variava and Dumisani Mzamane.
GOVT DOCTORS CULPABLE
The Biko saga began when he was arrested at a roadblock near Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape on August 18 1977 and detained in Port Elizabeth under Section 6 of the Terrorism Act.From September 7 to 11 he was treated by Drs Lang and Tucker. He was then removed to Pretoria where he died on September 12.At the subsequent inquest, Mr M J Prins, the Chief Magistrate of Pretoria, found that Biko had died as a result of injuries sustained after a “scuffle” with members of the security police.More pertinently he found that evidence led at the inquest suggested improper or disgraceful conduct on the part of the district surgeons.Despite complaints lodged by the South African Council of Churches (SACC) and the Health Workers Association, the Medical and Dental Council continued to maintain that there was no evidence to merit a fully-fledged investigation.The evidence indicated that at various periods Biko was manacled to the bars of his cell; that he fell into semi-coma; that Lang and Tucker found evidence of brain damage but did not inform the police and that regardless of the instructions of a neuro-surgeon he was not kept under observation.Instead the doctors arranged for him to be moved back to his prison cell where he was found in a dazed condition and frothing at the mouth the next day. They thought he was faking but Tucker suggested Biko be admitted hospital.Biko was then bundled into the back of a police van and driven more than 1 200km to Pretoria. He was kept naked throughout the trip, given no food and forced to use the back of the van to urinate. The only medical attention he received was a vitamin injection when they reached Pretoria. He died six hours later on a dust-covered floor in the back yard of a police station.With the security police exonerated at the inquest and a thorough investigation of the conduct of the two doctors seemingly blocked by the Medical and Dental Council, it appeared that the Biko affair had run its course - despite the international uproar – and would be relegated to the files as just another death in detention.Biko’s treatment by the doctors and the Medical and Dental Council’s refusal to act decisively on the matter had certainly not improved the image of the profession in the eyes of the world.But ever since the Council first decided in April 1980 that there were no grounds to warrant an investigation, concerned members of the profession had been persistently trying to force the Council’s hand.Now, after eight years of struggle, justice is most likely to be realised.
DR YOUSUF VARIAVA
Dr Variava, one of the doctors who brought the case against the Medical and Dental Council, said he was very pleased but added that the South African political situation, however, still remained the same as when Biko died.“I am happy only from the medical ethics aspect of it but many people who handled Biko before he died until now have not been brought forward to a court of law.“Those people must surely be charged with murder,” he said.
ISHMAEL MAKHABELA
The president of the Azanian Peoples Organisation (AZAPO), an organisation which took over from Biko’s Black Peoples’ Convention(BPC), Ishmael Makhabela, said the political bias and sickening double-standards of the white-controlled Medical and Dental Council had now become obvious.“It is AZAPO’s contention that very little has changed in South Africa ever since our early leaders were dragged to Robben Island. We will only be satisfied when the Pretoria regime has been toppled,” he said.Mr Makhabela said under the rule of the minority regime some 50 political prisoners had died in police custody from “causes” as varied as “slipping on soap” and “falling down stairs”.“It’s clear that the surgeons, Lang and Tucker, had put the interests of the security police over and above those of Biko.“If Biko’s prominence as a leader and political thinker could not provoke anything other than the most cursory treatment from the district surgeons, one wonders what the common detainee and the common citizen can expect from the authorities.”“It is easy to understand the reluctance of an august body as the Medical and Dental Council to investigate the district surgeons.“Indeed, Biko’s intellectual and political stature within the country and the international outcry precipitated by his death would on all accounts have behoved a meticulous purging of the profession – especially considering the searing nature of the evidence led at the inquest.”
TERROR LEKOTA
Mr Terror Lekota, the publicity secretary of the United Democratic Front (UDF), said:“The Medical and Dental Council investigations will go a lot further than bringing the Biko killers to book. Hopefully, it will serve as a warning to doctors in South Africa to treat detainees as human beings.” - Ends – Press Trust of SA Independent Third World News Agency March 23 1985
(Steve Biko statue at the Durban University of Technology)
STEVE BIKO DEATH PROBED AGAIN IN 1985
This is yet another article that we published and circulated to all parts of the world in July 1985 about the gruesome manner in which black consciousness leader, Steve Biko, died in police custody at the hands of the former apartheid regime on September 12 1977.
July 8 1985
JUSTICE AT LAST FOR BIKO DOCTORS?
INTRO: Ever since Black Consciousness leader, Steve Biko, died in police custody in September 1977, the South African Medical and Dental Council (SAMDC) has been reluctant to investigate the conduct of the district surgeons who treated him as he lay dying.Earlier this year, however, following an application by six prominent doctors, the Supreme Court sitting in Pretoria, ordered the Medical and Dental Council to hold an inquiry into the conduct of Drs Ivor Lang and Benjamin Tucker.This week a Disciplinary Committee of the Medical and Dental Council found the doctors guilty of improper and disgraceful conduct and then, merely, reprimanded them.Subry Govender writes that considering the gravity of the offences, the leniency with which the Biko doctors have been treated is being seen by South Africans as yet another example of “racial” justice…..
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