RECALLING THE RICH HISTORY OF INDENTURED LABOURERS - “INDENTURED LABOURER WHO ARRIVED IN 1887 AT THE AGE OF NINE CELEBRATES HER 100TH BIRTHDAY IN TONGAAT’S RAMSAMY BARRACKS”

 STORY WRITTEN 44 YEARS AGO

 

 

At a time when we are commemorating the 161^st arrival of our ancestors from India to work as indentured labourers in the sugar plantations of the former Natal Colony, I came across an article that I had written 44 years ago about an indentured labourer celebrating her 100 birthday.

At that time in 1977 I was working for the Daily News which was situated at 85 Field Street in central Durban. Field Street has since been re-named Joe Slovo Street.

The story was about Mrs Muniammah Mannan, who had, at the age of nine in 1887, accompanied her parents and a younger sister to work as indentured labourers in the North Coast town of Tongaat.  

According to Mrs Mannan, they had come from a village called Perigaran in the state of Tamil Nadu in south India. The name of the village may have been integrated with other villages or changed since their departure in 1887.

They were indentured to the Tongaat Sugar Company and settled in what was called Tongaat Section. This area was earlier known as Ramsamy’s cotrie or barracks.

Ramsamy was a “sardar” or overlord  who lived at Tongaat Section, the first Indian settlement in Tongaat.

When I spoke to Mrs Mannan at her home, she was slightly blind and was hard at hearing. But despite these handicaps, she still displayed a great deal of zest and enthusiasm about her family and the struggles they went through working in the sugar estates.

Speaking in the Tamil language, she said she also worked as an indentured labourer with her parents and younger sister. She and her sister were paid about three pennies a day at that time.

She married at a very early age and settled in the village permanently. Unlike other indentured labourers, who had either returned to India or settled in other parts of the then Natal Colony, she remained in the Ramsamy barracks.

“My husband and I worked very hard for the company,” she said.

Mrs Mannan raised eight children – six sons and two daughters. Three grown up sons had died at the time she was celebrating her 100^th birthday.

Her sister was also married to an indentured labourer and they settled somewhere north of Ramsamy barracks.

Her parents had died sometime in the early 1920s. ends – Daily News Reporter 23 November 1977

     

VOTING IN MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS ON NOV 1 2021

 

 

When I go to cast my vote in the municipal elections today (Nov 1 2021), I will recall the first time I had cast my ballot in the first democratic elections on April 27 1994.

At that time, I was looking forward to cast my ballot because the elections would be ushering in a new non-racial and democratic South Africa after more than 300 years of colonial and white minority rule.

Tens of thousands of liberation fighters had paid their ultimate price for the freedom that was being ushered in and thousands of others had sacrificed their lives and families by being imprisoned on Robben Island and other prisons throughout the country. Thousands, others had also been banned, house-arrested, detained and denied their fundamental human rights of freedom of speech, association and movement.

I remember clearly joining a long queue in the Sandringham area of Johannesburg to cast my ballot. I had at first filed a number of reports for the Press Trust of India (PTI) and several international radio stations that I had been working for at that time.

I was over-joyed that the elections would see Nelson Mandela being elected the first president of our new non-racial and democratic South Africa and confident that the ANC would be elected the new government in a post-apartheid South Africa.  I was overjoyed that I would see our new non-racial and democratic country becoming a country where all people would have the opportunities to improve their educational standards; to enter the business world – whether big, medium or small;  to create job opportunities; to create opportunities for the business world to thrive in an open environment where the workers would also benefit to improve their lives and create a better future for all.

But today(Nov 1 2021), 27 years later, I am not that overjoyed to cast my ballot because the party that we had aligned ourselves with and supported during the liberation struggles, is no longer the party of the Mandelas, Govan Mbekis, Walter Sisulus, Albertina Sisulus, and Ahmed Kathradas.

It has over the past two decades or so become deeply divided and riddled with factions and breakaways; accused of becoming the home of those who want to further their own nests through fraud and corruption at the expense of the ordinary people who live on the verges of our society; and a party that has been accused of allowing state entities such as Escom, SAA, and Transnet to degenerate and collapse.

The ruling party has also been accused of allowing unemployment to escalate through the failure of lack of job creation and creating the impression among the poor and unemployed that the state will continue to provide for them. The culture of self-reliance has taken a back seat.

But despite all these failings, leaders of the ruling party have gone around the country to continue to garner the support of the people.

Whether the ruling party will be able to attract the support of most of its die-hard supporters from the early days will be watched with keen interest!  Talking to many South Africans of all shades, I found that most of them had felt that they had been let down by all the divisions; fraud and corruption; and the failure to grow the economy.

They had expected people with morals, values and principles to be associated with the former liberation movement. But, unfortunately, many who now join the former freedom movement do so not because of any convictions to improve the development of the country and the people but they do so to see how they can enrich themselves, and their friends, family members and associates at municipal, provincial and national levels. Loading themselves with tons of cash has become the new order and not the development of the new South Africa and most of its people.

The other political parties and independent local parties and candidates are also no better. Most of them have joined the race to see how they could continue to load their bank balances and enrich themselves on the backs of the poor, the marginalised, and the even the ratepayers and taxpayers.

Promises are being made left, right and centre by all the political parties, scores of small political parties and independent candidates that they will work in the interests of the people in their wards and constituencies. But whether they will keep to their promises is another matter altogether.

In any case, whatever our doubts, we have to be positive. We have to give them the space to show the people that after being elected they would continue to communicate with the residents as to matters that affect the lives of the people on an every day basis. These include the dirt, filth and rubbish that continues to contaminate our roads and streets; the continuous break in water and electricity supplies; the failure to repair and fix broken water pipes and electricity cables; the disappearance of open spaces and playlots in former disadvantaged areas; and the fraud and corruption that have become an every day affair in most municipalities and Metros.

Twenty-seven years later we cannot hope for candidates who have liberation morals, values and principles. But surely, we can hope for political parties and people who want to become councillors because they have a desire to work in the interests of the people and to improve the conditions in their different cities, towns and wards. That will be asking too much but nothing better than having some hope.  So when you join the queue to vote tomorrow think about the individual or party before you cast your precious ballot. Ask yourself whether the individual or party will work in the interests of the people by ensuring that essential services such as clean water and electricity will be provided for all the people and whether the environment in the different cities, towns and residential areas are clean and tidy for the people to live in. You must also ask yourself with the municipality or metro will work in the interests of the people by creating jobs for all people and not only for their cadres and for their “yes men” and “yes women”.

Twenty-seven years into the new non-racial and democratic South Africa most people are fed up with all the deterioration and degeneration in their towns and cities, failure to deliver proper municipal services like water and electricity, failure to create a crime-free environment, failure to create opportunities for the improvement of the economy and a failure to create a positive climate among the people. Ends, Oct 31 2021 – subrygovender@gmail.com

MRS ALICE LOUISE GOVENDER – A TIRELESS AND COMMITTED COMMUNITY ACTIVIST OF PHOENIX AND ITS PEOPLE

 

 

INTRODUCTION:

One of the community leaders in Phoenix, north of Durban, who has emerged as a dynamic and progressive force recently, since the outbreak of the disturbances in early July, is Mrs Alice Govender. She has rallied to the cries of the people to promote the interests of all residents. Who is this hands-on community activist? Veteran journalist, Subry Govender, interviewed her recently about her community involvement in Phoenix.

 

By Subry Govender

In mid-2000 a woman resident of Unit 10 in Phoenix became concerned at the construction of houses in open spaces and children’s playlots in their area by contractors in collusion with the new democratic Ethekwini municipality.

The resident, Mrs Alice Louise Govender, also raised her concerns about the decision of the municipality to allow the sporting grounds of a nearby school to be confiscated for housing developments.

Today, 16 years later and at the age of 55, Mrs Govender is still fighting the social and economical cause of the local people. She has found that the socio-economic conditions of the poor and those living on the margins of society in Phoenix have in fact deteriorated over the past 27 years.

(The Phoenix foot soldiers working with Mrs Govender)

In order to interact directly with the municipality about the general degradation of the township, she has now agreed to calls by residents to contest the local government elections on November 1.

She has not joined any one of the established political parties to contest the elections but in fact will be contesting Ward 52 as a member of the community organisation, Active Citizens Coalition. The ward includes the areas of Redfern, Whetstone, Westham, White City, part of Lenham and part of Bhambayi.

 

       PHOENIX RICH IN HISTORY AND CULTURE

 

“Phoenix is a township rich in history and culture but sadly after 27 years of freedom there is a general atmosphere of social and economic degeneration and degradation all over,” Mrs Govender told me in an interview.

“There’s filth, litter and rubbish everywhere; the Gandhi-Luthuli Park, named after two iconic leaders, is in a shocking and neglected condition with all sorts of nefarious activities taking place there; drug lords and gang leaders are destroying the future of our young people; open spaces and play lots are being confiscated for housing development in already congested areas; and generaly there’s a climate of neglect all over.”

 

MUNICIPALITY MUST BE ACCOUNTABLE – SERVICE DELIVERY IS OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE

                                                                                                                                                      

 (Mrs Alice Govender addressing residents about the poor state of the municipal services to the community)

Mrs Govender wants to ensure that the municipality is accountable to ratepayers and there’s economic development in her ward and Phoenix in general so that the unemployment situation of both the skilled and unskilled people are tackled effectively.

“For me service delivery will be of paramount importance because I believe ratepayers must get the services they are paying for. I am concerned about the safety of our residents. We must feel safe when we leave home and return after dark.”

A mother of two adult daughters and grand-mother,  Mrs Govender was born in Durban in June 1966 and grew up in Unit 10 Phoenix. She completed her matriculation at the Northmead High School in Whetstone, Phoenix. She studied business management and is an accredited financial advisor.

While still at high school she became aware of the plight of families in her neighbourhood who struggled to make ends meet. She joined community groups to provide some assistance for the less privileged.

 

SCHOOL SPORTS FIELDS TAKEN AWAY FOR HOUSING DEVELOPMENT

 

Her community awareness heightened when in 2018 she found that the Redfern/Whetsone sports fields were being graded for housing development.

“A school friend, John Pillay, informed me about this pathetic state of affairs and this touched a sensitive nerve.

“I joined a group of fellow activists and ex-students to try to save the sports fields. Despite turning to various community political leaders, the ward councillor, Housing MEC and the incumbent mayor, the anti-social development went ahead.

“The sports fields are the only available space for communities to use for sporting, religious and community activities. The Redfern/Whetstone sports field is an historic piece of land and has been an integral part of the identity of the community for more than 40 years.

“The Ethekweni Municipality and the developers have failed to take into account the processes and by-laws before confiscating the sports fields for housing development.

“Together with other concerned activists, religious leaders and residents we founded the Phoenix Civic Association to take up the social, sporting, cultural and economic concerns of the people. As a final step we took the matter to court and this matter is still ongoing.”

 

      MUNICIPALITY SHOWS LACK OF CONCERN

Mrs Govender said as far as she was concerned the Durban municipality did not care much about the social, sporting, cultural and economic conditions of the people of Phoenix.

“There’s lack of evidence of progress and development over the past 27 years. Unemployment is at an all-time high, social services are always unavailable when in need, and sports fields are being expropriated for high profit housing developments.

“Businesses and residents are plagued by rising crime and municipal services that are contracted out have become a failed system.”

 

        WATER AND ELECTRICITY DISRUPTIONS

 

In her interactions with the residents, she had found that the people were badly affected by water and electricity disruptions. The residents were also concerned about the safety of their children walking to and from school because of the lack of road verges. The safety of the children is also of concern because of the dilapidated condition of many of the school buildings in the township.

 

             PHOENIX IS BEING NEGLECTED

Mrs Govender said as a councillor she would form strong and healthy networks with all community civic groups and ensure that residents are informed of municipal and government work opportunities.

“The Phoenix community has not benefited from any of these benefits. In addition to keeping in close ethical contacts with the residents, my office will have an open-door policy to assist those in need. Regular meetings with constituents are vital to ensure social and economic upliftment of the people and the residential areas of Phoenix.”

 

EMULATE THE COMMITMENT OF PROGRESSIVE LEADERS OF THE 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s

 

 

 

The emergence of Mrs Alice Govender is a clear indication that there’s a need for committed, hard-working and strong leaders to help in the socio-economic development of the working-class and the poor in communities such as Phoenix. Mrs Govender has given her assurance that she would promote the interests of the people just like our progressive leaders and forces of the late 1960s,1970s, 1980s and early 1990s era. As a demonstration of her commitment to community development, she has pledged that once elected the first two months of her salary would be set aside for urgent environmental improvements in Ward 5.  Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com Oct 16 21

RESIDENTS OF OTTAWA AND SURROUNDING AREAS ARE FED UP WITH REGULAR WATER AND ELECTRICITY DISRUPTIONS AND DETERIORATION OF THE ENVIRONMENT

 

 WATER DISRUPTION AGAIN TODAY OCT 11 2021

Service delivery by the Ethekwini Municipality in areas such as Ottawa, Verulam and surrounding areas, north of Durban, has reached rock bottom.

The disruptions to water and electricity supplies have become a regular feature along with the filth, rubbish, and litter that have destroyed the environment on the main road and the residential areas.

Some of the local residents once again expressed their disgust when they gathered at the Globe’s car park in the village early this morning (Oct 11) to plan the road ahead in dealing with the regular disruptions in water and electricity supplies in the area.

Today (Oct 11) water supply was disrupted for most of the day with the municipality offering lame excuses for the latest development.  The municipality has stated in a note that the problems are due to electricity power loss caused by load shedding and technical issues at the Hazlemere Water Treatment works as well as the Ethekwini Waterloo system.

The disruption of water and electricity supplies has become a regular feature in these areas for some time and had escalated after MTel dug up trenches for fibre installations more than a month ago.

Their work had led to regular damages to water pipes and electricity wires.

The local residents report these disruptions but it seems the municipality is showing no concern whatsoever. The residents had complained about the lack of job efficiency by MTel and the private companies that had carried out the digging of trenches for the fibre installations.

Supervision was literally non-existent and the shambles are still prevalent today.

The residents under the aegis of the Ottawa Environmental Forum submitted a memorandum  to all role players and even held a meeting with MTel at the Ottawa Civic Hall more a fortnight ago.

MTel officials gave a guarantee that no more digging would take place in Ottawa and that only the fibre installations would take place with all precautions observed.

But the municipality and MTel have taken no measures to restore the cleanliness of the areas and also to observe strict safety measures.

(Photo Reaction Unit)

Sadly, this lack of supervision and safety measures led to a 25-year-old electrician being electrocuted last week on Friday (Oct 8). The private security company, Reaction Unit, responded to the emergency calls but was unsuccessful in saving the life of the electrician.

This tragedy was caused primarily by the lack of response by the municipality to the concerns expressed by the local residents about safety measures for the workers.

Residents now say they have had enough of the regular interruptions to their water and electricity supplies. They want the municipality to jack up its service delivery.

Whether this municipality is interested in overcoming the poor service delivery to these communities is another matter altogether?

Communities who pay the exorbitant rates and electricity and water charges cannot be treated in such distasteful ways. Those in charge and their officials must be called to account for their poor performances. Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com Oct 11 2021

FORMER STRUGGLE STALWART – BISHOP RUBIN PHILIP - APPEALS TO POLITICAL PARTIES TO STOP DIVIDING THE PEOPLE ALONG RACIAL LINES

 

                                                 (RUBIN PHILIP)

 

By Subry Govender

A former Anglican leader of KwaZulu-Natal and a former black consciousness leader, Bishop Rubin Philip, has called on political parties to help in the social and economic development of people instead of promoting racial divisions.

Bishop Philip, 73, who is the deputy chairperson of the KwaZulu-Natal Social Cohesion Council, made the call early on Friday (Oct 8) when appearing as a special guest on the current affairs programme of the SABC’s national SAFM radio station.

He was invited as a participant following the uproar over the racist posters that were put up by the DA in Phoenix, north of Durban. The DA has since apologised for its actions and has also pulled down the posters.

Bishop Philip, who was banned, house-arrested and denied his passport during his struggles for a free South Africa, pointed out that the real problems affecting the residents of Phoenix and Bhambayi are the poverty, lack of decent housing, proper schools and general socio-economic development.

He was of the view that political parties should concentrate their efforts in improving the socio-economic conditions of people in areas such as Phoenix and Bhambayi instead of using race to further their own political ambitions.

After the July uprisings, Bishop Philip joined community, religious, social leaders and the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government in promoting greater inter-action between the communities of Bhambayi and Phoenix.  He said during a recent march through the two areas organised by the Council, the people of the two communities expressed their willingness to work together to overcome poverty and under-development of their areas.

In addition to Steve Biko, Bishop Philip during his involvement in the black consciousness movement worked with other activists of the calibre of Barney Pityana, Dr Mamphele Ramphele, Harry Ngengkulu, Ben Khoapa, Strini Moodley and Stanley Ngwasa.

Bishop Philip continued with his socio-economic activist work ever since he became a Minister in the Anglican Church in the late 1960s and heightened this involvement when he linked up with the Diakonia Council of Churches in the early 1970s.

When he was anointed as Bishop of KwaZulu-Natal in 1995, he continued with his socio-economic work. He worked with inter-faith organisations in the promotion of peace, secularism, tolerance, solidarity, and against all forms of racism and inequalities.

Bishop Philip told me in an interview that the recent disturbances are an indication that “we have a long way to go in developing our people”.

“Political freedom in our constitution has got to work itself out in touching the lives of ordinary South Africans whether they are in Phoenix, Bhambayi, KwaMashu, Chatsworth, Umlazi, or anywhere else.”

“I think we have not tackled seriously the issue of race relations. Instead of becoming a stronger non-racial community, there are people within our society who have used race to gain economic benefits and political power. This has divided people along racial lines. The challenge for us is to turn this around.”

He said this situation of racism has reared its ugly head despite the enormous amount of work that has been done over the past three decades to promote greater human rights values among the people.

“There are still a number of organisations and individuals who are promoting greater respect among the people. However, given some of the tensions we are seeing at the moment, it is very clear not enough is being done. I think we all have a responsibility to overcome the distrust.

“We cannot point a finger at any one or blame other people. We mustn’t forget our past that apartheid divided us along racial ghettos.

“It’s still there. We don’t have to dig too much. So, it requires a bit of humility among all of us, it requires for us to contribute to building the non-racial South Africa that we sacrificed our lives for. Socio-economic development of the poor and marginalised must be our priority now.”  Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com Oct 8 2021

 

MANGLA MUNSAMI – SOUTH AFRICA’S TOP BLACK LIFESAVER WHO WAS FORCED TO MIGRATE TO AUSTRALIA IN THE MID-1970s

 

 

One of South Africa’s top-flight black lifesavers who was forced to migrate to Australia in the mid-1970s is one of the sportsmen I had covered regularly while working for the Daily News in Durban between the early 1970s and 1980.

When researching through my files recently, I came across several articles that I had written about Mangla Munsami of Asherville in Durban who captured the headlines because of his struggles against racial discrimination in surf lifesaving at that time.

Although he was just a sportsman, he was discriminated not only by those who controlled the sport in Durban and the rest of the country but also had to battle to obtain his passport to travel to Australia.

I came into contact with Mangla when he called me at the Daily News to inform me about the problems he was encountering to further his sport in Australia. At this time he was being assisted by one of our anti-apartheid and Natal Indian Congress stalwarts, Dr Kesaval Goonum.

                “INDIAN LIFESAVER WAITS FOR VISA”

The first story I wrote was about Mangla Munsami waiting for his visa to travel to Australia. It was published under the headline: “Indian lifesaver waits for visa” on December 28 1973.

            

             

 

The story read:

South Africa’s 1973 black Lifesaver of the Year, Mr Mangla Munsami, who is due to leave for Australia late in January (1974) is still waiting for his Australian visa.

The 21-year-old Durban Indian lifesaving member who is also South Africa’s black paddle-ski champion applied for his visa two months ago.

Mangla has been invited to Australia by the Manly Lifesaving Club in Sydney. While in Sydney, Mangla will attend Sydney University to study physical education.

Mangla, who crashed race barriers in whites-only lifesaving competitions by taking part unofficially, said today that he was worried about the visa.

“I have sorted out everything on my side. It seems I will have to send them another reminder.” Ends – Daily News Reporter 28 December 1973

 

         “NON-WHITE CANOEIST HAD TIME TO ENTER”

 

Then in January 1974 I wrote a story about Mangla Munsami deciding to compete unofficially in the white-run Pietermaritzburg to Durban canoe marathon.

Mangla decided to compete unofficially despite statements by the white organisers that he had sufficient time to enter the event as an official participant.

The story was published under the headline: “Non-White canoeist had time to enter” on January 8 1974.

The story read:

The Natal Canoe Club (NCC), organisers of tomorrow’s (January 9 1974) Pietermaritzburg to Durban canoe marathon, gave non-white paddle ski champion, Mangla Munsami (21), every possible chance to enter officially this year’s marathon on the Umsindusi River.

This was disclosed today by Mr Fox Ledeboer, chairman of the NCC, who said Munsami had not responded to their approaches for him to enter the race officially.

He is to take part in the race as an unofficial entrant.

It had been reported that Munsami was not allowed to take part officially, even though the event had been declared multi-national by the Government.

Mr Ledeboer said: “We went to a lot of trouble to make it possible for him to enter. He didn’t go through the proper channels to enter officially. There is nothing we can do.”

Entries closed on December 31, but if Munsami had joined a recognised canoe club in time he would have been able to enter officially.

Mr Ledeboer said Munsami would have to arrange his own permits to enter the African reserve through part of which the marathon takes place.

In an interview today, Munsami said: “I am taking part in this race because in previous whites-only events in which I have taken part, I received tremendous encouragement from my white friends.

“In tomorrow’s race I don’t want to beat anybody, I just want to complete the event.”

Munsami, who is due to leave for Australia at the end of the month to study physical education in Sydney University, has been encouraged to enter the race by Natal canoeist, Rob Stewart.

“I am very grateful to Rob for all the assistance and encouragement,” he said. Ends – Daily News Reporter January 8 1974  

 

                  “NO VISA YET FOR INDIAN SAVER”

 

One of the giants of the anti-apartheid struggles in the early years, Dr Kesaval Goonam, came to the assistance of Mangla Munsami in his quest to leave for Australia to further his surf life-saving skills.

I wrote this story and it was published on March 29 1974 under the headline: “No Visa yet for Indian saver”.

The story read:

South Africa’s 1973 black lifesaver of the year, Mr Mangla Munsami, who was to have to left for Australia in January, has still not been granted a visa for that country.

The 21-year-old Durban Indian Surf Lifesaving Club member, who is also South Africa’s black paddle ski champion, applied for his visa in October last year.

The ruggedly-built Indian lifesaver, who crashed race barriers in whites-only lifesaving competitions by taking part unofficially, has been invited to Australia by the Manly Lifesaving Club of Sydney. While in Sydney, Mr Munsami will attend Sydney University to study physical education.

                              NO RESPONSE

Mr Munsami’s mentor, Dr K Goonam, said today that she could not understand why the Australian Government was delaying the issue of the visa.

“We applied five months ago and still there is no response. It seems we will have to send someone to Cape Town to inquire at the Australian Embassy,” she said.

She said everything had been arranged for his departure to Australia and a shipping company had offered him a free passage.

“Mangla has been stemmed in his progress in South Africa and if there is any delay his chances of furthering his knowledge in surf lifesaving might be jeopardised.

“If granted a visa, Mangla will be in Australia for about three years,” she said.

Dr Goonam said Mr Munsami might work in Australia to support himself during his three-year stay.

“Of course, we will do our best to help him all the way,” she said. Ends – Daily News Reporter March 29 1974

 

          “BLACKS WILL CONTEST SURF MARATHON”

 

While waiting to leave for Australia, Mangla Munsami at the same time continued to make his intentions known to participate in local paddle-ski competitions controlled by the establishment sector.

Mangla was one of three Durban paddle-ski athletes who had applied to contest a paddle-ski marathon from Port Elizabeth in East London.

I wrote the story and it was published under the headline: “Blacks will contest surf marathon” on November 13 1974.

The story read:

The participation of three Durban black lifesavers in next year’s Port Elizabeth to East London paddle-ski marathon is expected to be the first of many more opportunities for black lifesavers.

The three lifesavers, who will become the first blacks to compete officially in an event organised by the Surf Lifesaving Assoiciation of South Africa, are Mangla Munsami of the Durban Indian Surf Lifesaving Club, and Mr Leonard Pillay and Mr Mahomed Khan of the Tiger Rocks Surf Lifesaving Club of Isipingo.

The chairman of the Durban Indian Surf Lifesavinf Club, Mr K T Maistry, said today he believed the official acceptance of the three lifesavers was the start of “better things to come”.

Mr P J Dreyer, chairman of the Central Natal Surf Lifesaving Association, said the three blacks would make up a team of 20 lifesavers from Natal for the gruelling 244 race.

“We had no difficulty at all in getting the black lifesavers accepted as official participants,” he said.

Mr Munsami, the 1973 black life-saver-of-the-year, took part unofficially in the race in 1972, but did not finish.

Four lifesavers from the British Isles – Tony King, John Howard, Alan Homes and Peter Gaisford – will take part in next year’s race. Ends – Daily News Reporter Nov 13 1974

 

          “TOP BLACK LIFESAVER REFUSED A PASSPORT”

 

In addition to facing problems about obtaining a visa to travel to Australia, Mangla Munsami faced more hassles in November 1975 when the Pretoria regime refused to grant him a passport.

I wrote this story and it was published under the headline: “Top black lifesaver refused a passport” on November 3 1975.

The story read:

Mr Mangla Munsami, the 1973 South African black Lifesaver of the Year who has been trying for more than two years for a visa to enter Australia, has now been refused a passport by the Minister of Interior, Dr Connie Mulder.

The 24-year-old surf and paddle-ski champion, who recently obtained an Australian visa after securing a job in that country, has sought the assistance of the Progressive Reform Party’s Senator, Eric Winchester, to pursue the matter with the Department of Interior.

Senator Winchester confirmed today that Mr Munsami had approached him.

“I have asked Mr Munsami to give me all the details so that I can take up the matter,” he said.

Meanwhile, officials of the Durban Indian Surf Lifesaving Club, of which Mr Munsami is captain, have approached Mrs Helen Suzman, PRP MP, and Indian Council executive chairperson, Mr J N Reddy, also to pursue the matter.

Mr Reddy told the Daily News today he would take up the issue with the Department of Indian Affairs.

The Department of Interior has given no reason for its decision. Mr Munsami has not been involved in any political activity. He has only participated unofficially in a number of whites-only competitions.

Mr M N Pather, general secretary of the non-racial South African Council of Sport, said the department’s action was “absurd” and an “act of madness”.

“In the case of Mangla Munsami, a lifesaver, who has made several bids to gain recognition, I cannot see what he has done to deserve this awful punishment,” he said.

Mr Munsami’s battle to enter Australia began in 1973 when the Manly Surf Lifesaving Club of Sydney invited him to impart his knowledge of surf lifesaving as a coach.

Repeated attempts to obtain a visa failed because the Asuralian Government stipulated it would consider an application only if Mr Musami was offered a job in Australia.

After more than two years of frustration he recently secured a job as a carpenter. Ends – Daily News Reporter Nov 3 1975

 

      “GERMAN OLYMPIC STAR IN LOVE WITH TOP BLACK                                                   LIFESAVER”

 

Mangla Munsami, as a top sports star, attracted the media’s attention not only when trying to pursue his talents, but also in other aspects of life. In March 1975 he drew the attention of the media when he was found to be in a love-relationship with a visiting German sports woman. This was at a time when he was waiting for a passport to travel to Australia.

I wrote the story and it was published under the headline: “German Olympic star in love with top Black lifesaver” on March 9 1976.

The story read:

West German Olympic canoeist Heidi Diederichs, who visited Durban for a fortnight in January, has fallen in love with South Africa’s champion lifesaver, Mangla Munsami.

Miss Diederichs, 20, who represented West Germany in the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, confesses her love for the lifesaver in a recent letter to a Durban woman friend.

Miss Diederichs, of Lipstadt, says in her letter that she told her parents about Mr Munsami and they had accepted him without any fuss.

She added that she was planning to go to Australia, where she intends to meet him.

“I miss him very much,” she says in the letter.

Miss Diederichs has won 36 medals for her canoeing achievements. She won a gold medal at the international canoeing championships in Holland, medals in France and Switzerland, and also canoed her way to become the West German champion.

                                  “Good Friend”

Mr Munsami, who is anxiously waiting for a passport to go to Australia, confirmed that he had received love letters from Miss Diederichs.

“I can tell you only that she is a very good friend of mine. I have no plans to marry any one at this stage.

“I first want to further my knowledge in canoeing and lifesaving before thinking of marriage,” he said.

The 24-year-old surf and paddle-ski champion, who recently obtained an Australian visa after securing a job in that country, has re-applied for a passport after at first being denied one by the Minister of Interior, Dr Connie Mulder.

No reasons were given for the refusal. Ends – Daily News Reporter March 9 1976

 

          “PASSPORT GRANTED TO BLACK LIFESAVER”

 

In June 1976 Mangla Munsami, after persistent interventions by a wide range of role players, was granted a passport to embark on his trip to Australia.

The story I wrote was published under the headline: “Passport granted to Black lifesaver” on June 15 1976.

The story read:

Mr Mangla Munsami, 1973 black lifesaver of the year, has been granted a passport for one year by the Minister of Interior, Dr Connie Mulder. He has been waiting for more than year for a travel document.

Mr K T Maistry, chairman of the Durban Indian Lifesaving Club of which Mr Munsami is the captain, said today that Mr Munsami was granted a passport to travel to Australia to further his knowledge in lifesaving.

Mr Maistry, who is handling Mr Munsami’s travel arrangements, said that a letter had already been written to the Australian consulate in Cape Town for a visa.

He said that negotiations were also under way with an airline for Mr Munsami’s ticket to be sponsored.

“After more than two years of problems we are really grateful to all those people who assisted us in acquiring a passport for Mr Munsami.

“Our club is now doing everything possible to see that he gets to Australia before his passport expires,” said Mr Maistry.

“We are confident that Mr Munsami will be a good ambassador for our club there,” he added.

Mr Munsami’s battle to enter Australia began in 1973 when the Manly Surf Lifesaving Club of Sydney invited him to instruct them in surf lifesaving.

Repeated attempts to obtain a visa failed because the Australian Government stipulated it would consider an application only if Mr Munsami was offered a job in that country.

After more than two years of frustration he secured a job as a carpenter early this year. But when he applied for a South African passport, the minister refused without giving a reason. Ends – Daily News Reporter June 15 1976

 

“ANGER OVER LIFESAVER’S R500 DEPOSIT FOR PASSPORT”

A month after he was informed that he would be granted a passport, Mangla Munsami’s backers reacted with anger after the Department of Interior forced him to pay a deposit of R500.

I wrote this story and it was published on July 12 under the headline: “Anger over lifesaver’s R500 ‘deposit’ for passport”.

The story read:

After battling for more than a year for a passport, Durban black lifesaver Mangla Munsami leaves today (July 12 1976) for London enroute to Australia to pursue a career in surf life-saving.

Munsami, the 1973 black lifesaver of the year, was granted a passport by the Minister of Interior, Dr Connie Mulder, after paying in a deposit of R500.

Dr K Goonam, his mentor and financier, today criticised the Government for asking Munsami to pay a deposit of R500 before being granted his passport.

“The Government grants passports to most other people without any bother but Mangla was forced to pay such a high price for his passport.

“Mangla will spend about two years in Australia where he will learn to be a coach and become proficient in all aspects of surf life-saving.

“When he returns, he will coach other black lifesavers on the finer points of life-saving. We are confident that he will reach great heights in Australia,” she said.

Mr J L S Fourie, the secretary for the Department of Interior, said that it was policy to request a deposit from “certain people” before a passport was issued.

Mr Munsami’s case was not peculiar because it was done quite often.

“Mr Munsami should be happy he has been given a passport now,” he said. Ends – Daily News Reporter July 12 1976

 

   “DURBAN MAN HITS THE TOP AS AUSSIE LIFESAVER”

 

More than a year after Mangla Munsami arrived in Australia and settled in Sydney, he sent me a note about his progress in the surf lifesaving field.

Mangla informed me that his life had now taken a positive note and that he was “truly happy” after a long battle.

I wrote the story and it was published under the headline: “Durban man hits the top as Aussie lifesaver” on December 2 1977.

The story read:

Mangla Munsami, the Durban man who went to Australia in July 1976 to further his surf lifesaving experience, is a top lifesaver of the Bondi Beach Surf Lifesaving Club in Sydney.

Mangla won the black surf lifesaving championship in 1973.

In a letter to the Daily News, he says he made the right decision in going to Australia because “at last I am truly happy here”.

He is employed by the Sydney Water Board at a salary of R10 000 a year.

He passed three stringent surf lifesaving examinations – advanced resuscitation certificate, the Australian surf bronze medal and instructor’s certificate – set by the Surf Life Saving Association of Australia.

At the Bondi Beach Club, he is the board and ski captain, a member of the management committee and a member of the tour committee.

Mangla will be coming to Durban soon for a few months to coach blacks in surf lifesaving, swimming, canoeing and surfing. Ends – Daily News Reporter December 2 1977

 

          LETTER TO MANGLA IN NOVEMBER 1977

After I received a communication from Mangla in November 1977, I wrote to him to inform him about the latest developments in South Africa, especially the banning of 18 black organisations two months earlier.

One of the organisations that was banned included the Union of Black Journalists (UBJ), of which I was the Durban chairperson at that time.

I also informed Mangla that I had held talks with Dr Kesaval Goonam, who was now involved with the Anti-SAIC Committee. - ends - subrygovender@gmail.com (Oct 4 2021)