IAN MKHIZE - A HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGNER OF TONGAAT ON THE KWAZULU-NATAL NORTH COAST WHO PLAYED A MAJOR ROLE IN PROMOTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF PEOPLE AT ALL LEVELS OF SOCIETY

                                                                

                                                      (IAN WINSTON SIPHO MKHIZE)

HAMBANATHI AND TONGAAT ACTIVIST WHO IS MISSED AT THIS TIME OF SERVICE DELIVERY PROBLEMS IN THE TOWN

 

As we as South Africans and especially the people of Tongaat and other areas on the North Coast face severe disruptions to the delivery of water and electricity supplies, I would like to recall the life of Ian Mkhize, a local activist in Hambanathi and Tongaat, who promoted the values and principles of development, non-racialism and democracy.

A local leader and educationist, who also played a leading role in the United Democratic Front and other activist organisations, was prepared to lay down his life for a new South Africa. He died in March 2011 at the age of 69.

 

                         A TRIBUTE TO IAN MKHIZE

 

Ian Winston Sipho Mkhize was an educationist, community leader, and struggle activist who fought and suffered for the human rights of the oppressed people of the black township of Hambanathi and the nearby town of Tongaat on the North Coast of the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa from 1975 to 1984 and then for the people of South Africa in general until his death in 2011.

He became a house-hold name in 1985 when he and 40 others sought refuge at the Mahatma Gandhi Settlement in Phoenix, near Durban, after being forced to flee Hambanathi by apartheid agents. At this time, he led the campaign against the forced incorporation of Hambanathi into the then KwaZulu bantustan. But Ian Mkhize and his comrades were soon forced to flee the Gandhi Settlement as well when hordes of apartheid agents carried out a cleansing operation to rid the nearby Inanda area of people of Indian-origin. At this time the former National Party Government was embarking on a programme to incorporate Inanda and other "Zulu-dominated" areas in and around Durban into the former KwaZulu bantustan.

The rampaging mobs, after forcing the Indian-origin people to flee for their lives, began to descend on the Gandhi Settlement. Ian Mkhize and his comrades, after being informed of the arrival of the spear-wielding mob, fled in a hurry after staying in the settlement for only two weeks.

The plight of Ian Mkhize, his comrades and the Indian-origin people who were forced to flee from their homes made head-line news in South Africa, India and other parts of the world.

Ian Mkhize caught the attention of the people for his bravery and fortitude.

Who was this outstanding individual who refused to allow the oppressive actions of the apartheid regime and their cohorts to deter him? 

Born in Pietermaritzburg in 1941, Ian Mkhize moved to Tongaat in the early 1970s after joining the Tongaat Hullett Group as a Personnel Officer. He had earlier worked for the Department of Education after qualifying as a teacher. As an employee of Tongaat Hullett he was offered accommodation at Hambanathi, one of the residential areas for Africans in Tongaat at that time.

He soon became involved in the struggles of the people and agreed to contest the Black Local Council in an attempt to improve the conditions of the township of Hambanathi. He was even elected Mayor in the late 1970s but soon became disillusioned because the apartheid authorities had no intention of developing the township.

                   INTERACTION WITH OTHER ACTIVISTS

He came into contact with local activists such as Siva Naidoo and Logie Naidoo and began to play a crucial role in organising the community of Hambanathi to join the anti-apartheid struggles.

But the apartheid forces had other ideas and he was forced to resign his position at the Tongaat Hullett Group and had to flee Hambanathi township in 1983. Despite his absence, he kept in close contact with his people in Hambanathi and worked with Indian-origin activists in Tongaat.

According to Siva Naidoo, Ian Mkhize took a conscious decision to join the non-governmental sector. 

"He became the Executive Chairperson of the Durban Crisis Network, a structure set up primarily to provide support for victims of apartheid. From there he proceeded to join the Diakonia Council of Churches as the Education Programme Officer from 1987 to 1992. It was during this period that Ian provided sterling leadership as Chairperson of the National Education Co-ordinating Committee, just two years after founding the National Education Union of South Africa, the forerunner of SADTU.

"Between 1992 and 1994 Ian was appointed the Provincial Director of SACHED Trust, which was responsible for providing strategic inputs for the transformation of tertiary institutions and the evolution of Community Colleges. From there on Ian became the Provincial Director of Operation Upgrade and later as its Director of External Relations. Operation Upgrade was the premier adult basic education and training outfit in the province."

                        JOINT RENT ACTION COMMITTEE

At the height of the anti-apartheid struggle period in the 1980s and early 1990s, Ian Mkhize assisted in the founding of the Joint Rent Action Committee (JORAC) and became its Publicity Secretary.  As a leading anti-apartheid exponent, he ensured that JORAC and the Durban Housing Committee (DHAC) became two of the most important constituents of the UDF.

Because of his work he was placed under surveillance by the former dreaded apartheid security police and was detained in 1986 and 1987 along with activists such as Siva Naidoo and Logie Naidoo.

INVOLVEMENT AFTER THE RELEASE OF NELSON MANDELA IN EARLY 1990

Ian Mkhize played a vital role in the mobilisation of the people after Nelson Mandela was released from 27 years in prison and after the ANC and other organisations were unbanned in 1990. As a leading NGO activist, Ian Mkhize was part of a team that went to Zimbabwe in 1992 to prepare exiles to return home.

Since 1994, after the election of the country's new non-racial democratic government, Ian Mkhize received a number of accolades in recognition of his anti-apartheid activities. These included recognition in 1997 in the Tribute Magazine's "Roll of persons contributing to the well-being of South Africa". In the same year he received a merit award by the former University of Durban-Westville for his outstanding role in the struggle for human rights.

                     TONGAAT CIVIC ASSOCIATION 

In 1992 the Tongaat Civic Association presented him with a Civic Award for his outstanding contribution to community service. And in October 2000 the University of Durban-Westville conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate in the Faculty of Humanities. This was in recoginition of his contributions to the struggle for "a fair, just and equitable system of education" for all South Africans.

Siva Naidoo, in his tribute, described Ian Mkhize as a struggle activist and humanitarian who was "totally committed to the struggle for freedom and democracy".

"He was so committed to the freedom struggle that he was prepared to pay the highest price. He was also a democrat in a true sense of the word and eschewed all forms of racism."

Ian Mkhize was indeed a true son of Tongaat and South Africa. One hopes that other former activists who worked with him and also those from other parts of the country will strive to live the life of Ian Mkhize to the full instead of using the new democracy to promote their egos and to enrich themselves through corrupt means. Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com June 22 2022

MRS VICTORIA NONYAMESELO MXENGE – POLITICAL TRIALS LAWYER AND ACTIVIST WHO WAS BRUTALLY MURDERED BY APARTHEID AGENTS IN AUGUST 1985 IS TO BE HONOURED BY THE DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT........ THE KWAZULU-NATAL DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH HAS ANNOUNCED THAT IT HAS DECIDED TO CHANGE THE NAME OF DURBAN’S KING EDWARD V111 HOSPITAL TO VICTORIA MXENGE HOSPITAL. SHE STUDIED MID-WIFERY AT THE HOSPITAL IN HER EARLY LIFE

 

 

 

 

 

WHO IS VICTORIA MXENGE?

I AM RE-PUBLISHING A PROFILE OF MRS MXENGE THAT I HAD WRITTTEN A FEW YEARS AGO. IT WAS BASED ON AN ARTICLE THAT I HAD FIRST PENNED IN AUGUST 1985 AFTER HER BRUTAL MURDER

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION:

 

On August 8 1985, the Press Trust of SA Third World News Agency, which paid a heavy price for supplying the world with news and reports about the struggles in South Africa at that time, published a lengthy article about the life of political trials lawyer, Mrs Victoria Nonyameselo Mxenge. We at PTSA had written the profile on Mrs Mxenge  only seven days after she was brutally murdered in the driveway of her home in the Umlazi township in Durban. She was stabbed and shot to death by four unknown assailants after she got out of a car driven by the Reverend Mcebisi Xundu, who was the chairperson of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in Natal at that time. 

 

 

(Mrs Mxenge with her husband, Griffith, at their law office in the former Grey Street area of Durban in 1980)

 

Her husband, political activist, political trials lawyer and former Robben Island prisoner, Griffith Mxenge, was stabbed to death brutally more than 40 times five years earlier in 1981. Her death raised suspicions that apartheid death squads were cold-bloodedly culling the ranks of black activists in South Africa. 

Mrs Mxenge, who was one of the defence attorneys in the trial in which 16 UDF leaders faced high treason charges, was the 40th black activist to have been killed brutally or to have disappeared mysteriously since the violence in the townships erupted once again in September 1984.

After our freedom in 1994, it was disclosed that apartheid security agents, led by Dirk Coetzee, had been responsible for their brutal murders. Sadly, they were granted amnesty by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) after they disclosed their roles in the murders of the Mxenges. 

This article, written as a tribute to Mrs Mxenge’s sacrifices and dedication to the struggle, was supplied to news organisations and radio stations around the world in August 1985. The article was based mainly on interviews that this correspondent, Subry Govender, had conducted with her after the brutal death of Griffith Mxenge in November 1981.

(SOME WOMEN STALWARTS ATTENDING HER FUNERAL IN KING WILLIAM'S TOWN IN 1985) BLACK SOUTH AFRICA LOSES ANOTHER CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER AT THE HANDS OF A DEATH SQUAD 

 

Mrs Victoria Nonyameselo Mxenge was only 43-years-old when she was brutally murdered.
She had been a widow for almost five years since the murder of her husband, prominent political trials lawyer and activist, Mr Griffith Mxenge. He was found with 45 stab wounds at the Umlazi stadium, near the port city of Durban, on 18 November 1981.
At the time of Mrs Mxenge’s murder in August 1985, the brutal murder of Griffith Mxenge remained unsolved. Mrs Mxenge had come a long way from growing up as a country girl in a little village in the Eastern Cape region of the country.
When I interviewed her in 1982, she represented the life of being a typical political widow who had been forced out of circumstances to fill the roles of mother, father, breadwinner and even a political personality in the community. 

 

                                   BORN IN TAMARA IN THE EASTERN CAPE

 Nonyameselo was born in January 1942 in the dusty village of Tamara, which was cut off from the strife, hustle and bustle of the larger towns and cities. In this little village, she grew up with a sister and two brothers who spent their young lives in carefree oblivion of the political situation developing in the rest of the country.
Nonameselo, the second child of simple and humble parents who were ordinary teachers, began her education in the local village school where she was one of the top pupils in her class. At the tender age of 12 she had to leave home to attend secondary school at Beaufort West, also in the Eastern Cape. After obtaining her matriculation certificate, she joined the Lovedale Hospital in the university town of Alice to train as a nurse. 

 

 

                                  MET GRIFFITH MXENGE

 

 

It was during her student days at the hospital that the young and idealistic Griffith Mxenge came into her life when he visited an aunt in Tamara.
The young couple became friends after their first introduction. Nonyameselo and Griffith, who was studying for his law degree at the University of Fort Hare at this time, began dating and by the time he went to Durban to complete his LLB (Bachelor of Law) degree at the University of Natal, their romance had blossomed. 

 

                                       MOVED TO DURBAN IN 1964

 

They continued to meet during Griffith’s holiday breaks and married in November 1964. In 1965, Nonyameselo moved to the then Natal province to join her husband and enrolled at the King Edward V111 Hospital for a course in midwifery.

The young couple got their first taste of Pretoria’s political repression against opponents of apartheid when in April 1966 Griffith was detained by the then dreaded security police for 190 days.
 At the end of the detention, he was charged under the Suppression of Communism Act and taken to Johannesburg where he and a friend, Albert Dlomo, were asked to be state witnesses in the trial of Durban attorney, Roley Arenstein. But Griffith and Dlomo refused to turn traitors against a fellow freedom fighter and in February 1967 were convicted for three and two years respectively.

They were imprisoned and Griffith served a part of his sentence on Robben Island with such greats as Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Raymond Mahlaba, Govan Mbeki, Andrew Mlangeni and Ahmed Kathrada. While Griffith was one the island, Nonyameselo gave birth to their first child, Madasa. She told me in the interview that it was a difficult period because, although she had always known of her husband’s political views, she was not ready to be cast into the role of a “political prisoner’s widow”.

But, she said, after her first visit to Griffith on Robben Island, she was able to cope with the situation better because he himself had accepted his imprisonment cheerfully and as part of the sacrifice in the freedom struggle.


“That was typical of him. He never moaned about the unpleasant things in life. If he thought something was wrong or bad, he would fight rather than become bitter. It was for this reason that he joined the African National Congress during his student days while the organisation was still legal.”

Although life with a newly-born son and without work was traumatic, she managed to make ends meet with the help of friends. When Griffith was released at the end of his three-year term, he was served with a two-year banning order and prevented from continuing with his studies at the University of Natal. All was, however, not lost.
The head of the law department, Professor Tony Matthews, assisted him with written lectures and even helped him with his studies at his home in the Umlazi township, near Durban. Despite the pressures of security police harassment and financial problems, Griffith completed his law degree in February 1968. 

 

                         

(PROMINENT PEOPLE ATTEND MRS MXENGE'S FUNERAL IN KING WILLIAM'S TOWN IN 1985)

 

                   
GRIFFITH MXENGE JOINS RABBI BUGWANDEEN'S LAW FORM AS AN ARTICLED CLERK

 

 

And when his banning order expired at the end of 1971, Griffith joined Natal Indian Congress official, Rabbi Bugwandeen’s law form as an articled clerk.
But the security police and the apartheid system did not leave him alone. Just when he was about to complete his articles in 1973, he was slapped with another banning order. Although they had to put up with the accompanying difficulties and problems, the marriage of Nonyameselo and Griffith thrived and in December 1973 their second son, Viwe, was born.
By this time, Nonyameselo had completed her midwifery course and joined a clinic in Umlazi where she worked with a “wonderful white doctor”, Dr Wolfgang Bordenstein.

“When I went for an interview, I told the doctor all about Griff’s political activities but the good doctor accepted me without any question.
“The matter, however, did not rest there. A few days after I began work, the security police called on Dr Bordenstein and told him about my background. But since he was already aware of my position, he treated me with the greatest of respect.”
She said that the years at the clinic and her activities as a community health worker, opened her eyes to the harsh realities of the apartheid system. For the first time she realised that the diseases and sickness that beset black people were not caused by ignorance but by the socio-political factors. When she visited patients suffering from malnutrition in their shanty homes, she realised that malnutrition was caused by abject poverty and nothing else. In 1975, with the birth of their daughter, Nounhla, Griffith who had just started his own legal practice in the Grey Street area of Durban, insisted that Nonyameselo stay at home to look after the children.
At this time the Mxenges were not only supporting their own children but five others from the homes of less-privileged relatives. Nonyameselo gave up her job and stayed at home. But soon became bored and frustrated because she had nothing to do once she had completed her household chores.

In the meantime, her husband’s newly-established legal practice was booming and Griffith was finding it difficult to cope with the work-load. He was looking for someone to assist him and soon found that he could not find a better person than Nonyameselo. 

 

 

VICTORIA MXENGE JOINS HER HUSBAND'S LAW FIRM AS A CLERK

After some cajoling on her part, Griffith employed her as his clerk. From the life of a nurse-housewife, legal work was a completely new field for Nonyameselo and she found that working in a legal office gave her a completely new perspective of life. She used to regard lawyers as “cavorters of criminals” but now became intrigued and fascinated by law. Totally engrossed in her work and sometimes putting in more hours than any other staff member, Nonyameselo realised that the only way she could talk to her husband on equal terms in the legal field was by furthering her studies. She enrolled with the University of South Africa and by the end of 1979 had passed all her subjects except for one – Afrikaans. 

 

GRIFFITH MXENGE BRUTALLY BUTCHERED TO DEATH IN NOVEMBER 18 1981 BY MEMBERS OF THE APARTHEID DEADTH SQUAD

With the assistance of a friend, she passed Afrikaans in 1980 and in 1981 joined Griffith as a fully-fledged lawyer in her own right. But just when Griffith and Nonyameselo had earned the respect of the entire black community as dedicated political trial lawyers, she was woken up in the early hours of November 18 1981 and told her husband was found dead at the local Umlazi stadium.
When discussing her husband’s death, Nonyameselo conceded that she was very bitter.
“The perpetrators of the dastardly deed were not satisfied with the taking of his life only but like the butchers they are, they savaged every part of his body.

“Every vital organ in his body was savaged. His ears, stomach and even his liver was ripped open,” she whispered and the pain was clearly etched on her face.

And as if the brutality inflicted on her husband was not enough, she had to bear the further pain of seeing the confusion suffered by her children, who could not understand why their father had been butchered in such a manner.
“My six-year-old daughter wanted to know why her father, who was so young had to die when her grandfather was still alive?”

“What could I tell her?”, she asked with tears streaming down her face.
“And my eldest son, who was in the middle of his Junior Certificate examination, became a ‘zombie’ after he learnt of his father’s death. “He was completely unapproachable. He did not shed a tear but just drew into himself. As his mother I could not even talk to him because I did not know what to say to him.

“Yet he completed his examination and after writing his last paper, flew with his father’s body from Durban to King William’s Town where the funeral took place.

“Amazingly he passed his examination. Today at 16 he seems to have overcome the initial shock of his father’s death and has matured far beyond his tender years. He sees himself as ‘the man of the house’ and behaves like one.”
In 1982, almost a year after Griffith death, Nonyameselo Mxenge was picking up the pieces and building a new life for herself and her children without her beloved husband. She and her children were going about their lives in the full knowledge that Griffith had not died in vain – they were in fact confident that the freedom struggle would be won with a matter of a few years.
 “One day – in the lifetime of my children and myself – we will be free and independent.” 

 

 

                                 Some prominent people at the funeral in August 1985

VICTORIA MXENGE ALSO KILLED BRUTALLY ON AUGUST 1 1985

 

But, sadly she was not able to witness the arrival of freedom and the installation of Nelson Mandela as the first democratic president after the elections in April 1994.
Like her husband, Griffith, she too was brutally hacked to death on August 1 1985.
Nonyameselo Mxenge had come a long way from the carefree days in the dusty backdrop of Tamara in the Eastern Cape and had filled an important position in the black community.

It was a painful and sorrowful life and, one hopes that she and her husband had not sacrificed their lives in vain. Their lives should become part of our history and not forgotten in our new South Africa. Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com August 20 2020.

 

 

BEYERS NAUDE - RECALLING A PROGRESSIVE LIFE AT A TIME WHEN SOUTH AFRICANS ARE CAUGHT UP IN RACIAL DEBATES 

 

Researching through my work at the Press Trust of News Agency in the 1980s and early 1990s, I came across an article that we wrote about the life of an Afrikaner church leader who turned his back on the Broederbond and joined the ranks of the anti-apartheid movements in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s.

The article was about Dr Beyers Naude who also came under the hammer of the apartheid regime even though he was a former official of the Afrikaner Broederbond.

Dr Naude passed away at the age of 89 on September 7 2004.

He was one of the leaders who stood out on the side of progressive forces who ditched the conservative background of the Dutch Reformed Church in the early 1960s to join the anti-apartheid struggles and rose to become secretary general of the South African Council of Churches (SACC) in 1985. He was one of the white leaders who attended the funeral of black consciousness leader, Steve Biko, in King William’s Town on September 25 1977.

He was banned, house-arrested, harassed and intimidated by the security police, and denied several opportunities to travel overseas prior to 1994. 

I am re-publishing an article we at the Press Trust News Agency wrote about his banning and life in November 1982 and distributed throughout the world. The article is being re-published at a time when the lives of people like Dr Naude should be brought to the attention of the people.

 

TEXT

                     

               TRUE PATRIOT OF AFRICA

 

On September 25 1977 at the funeral of black consciousness leader, Steven Bantu Biko, a prominent Afrikaner, who turned his back on his people’s bigotry and racial prejudices, joined the more than 20 000 mourners in giving the power salute and shouting: “Amandhla Awethu – Power to the People”.

A black colleague watching this historic event whispered to this correspondent:

“He is a true patriot and son of Africa.”

But 24 days later the black journalist, Mono Badela, who was serving a banning order at that time, and the people as a whole heard with shock and disbelief that the “true patriot”, Dr Beyers Naude, had been served with a five-year banning and house arrest order.

At the time of his banning, Dr Naude was Director of the Christian Institute – a peace organisation he had joined after resigning as a member of the Afrikaner secret body, the Broederbond, and as a dominee of the Afrikaner church, the Nederuitse Gereformede Kerk (NGK).

Dr Naude was silenced when the Pretoria regime in one major crackdown on October 19 1977 banned the Christian Institute, 17 black organisations and their leaders.

 

                           CHRISTIAN INSTITUTE

 

Five years later, just when his banning order was about to expire, Dr Naude, who was 66-years-old at that time, had been bestowed with an unique honour by the publication of a book, “Not without honour, Tribute to Beyers Naude”.

The book, compiled by academic Peter Randall, comprised contributions by top personalities such as the chairperson of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Southern Africa, Archbishop Denis Hurley; Professor Peter Walshe of the University of Cape Town and Peter Randall himself.

The book reflected on Dr Naude, who because of his Christian beliefs, turned his back on apartheid and chose to promote racial peace and harmony between the black and white people of South Africa. His own people, the book reflected, labelled him as a heretic, agitator, communist, fellow traveller and advocate of violence.

 

                    THE CHANGE IN LIFE

 

The change in Dr Naude’s life began in 1960 when two events shook his conservative upbringing and threw doubts about the policy of apartheid.

The first event was the Sharpeville massacre in March 1960 when 57 people, who were protesting against the “dompass” system, were shot dead by the police, and the second was nine months later, when he joined 80 South Africans and six World Council of Churches representatives to discuss the situation in South Africa.

The gathering, which was known as the Cottesloe conference, made a number of statements, including declarations that racially-mixed marriages could not be condemned on Biblical grounds; that everyone, irrespective of race, had the right to buy land where they lived, and that there could be no objection in principle to so-called coloured people being represented in Parliament by coloured people themselves.

These events prompted him to take a greater interest in reconciliation between the race groups in spite of being labelled a traitor by his fellow Afrikaners.

 

                      PRO VERITATE

 

In 1963 he started an ecumenical newspaper, Pro Veritate, to promote inter-racial dialogue and became its first editor. And when in the same year he was offered the position of Director of the Christian Institute, he broke all links with Afrikanerdom by resigning as a dominee of the NGK church in the former Transvaal.

As he came into greater contact with black people, he realised that the mere reforming of apartheid would not do and that there had to be a complete change in the status quo and the disenfranchised blacks had to be given full rights.

He also became a strong critic of white minority rule and supported the principles of the black consciousness movement in the early 1970s.

He freely associated with black people and radical leaders such as Winnie Mandela, Dr Nathatho Motlana and Bishop Desmond Tutu.

In 1973, he refused to give evidence to the Schlebusch Commission, which was set up by the regime to inquire into various organisations, including the Christian Institute. He objected to the secrecy of the Commission and the fact that it was not a judicial body.

He was subsequently found guilty of refusing to testify and instead of paying the R50 fine, he presented himself for imprisonment.  But the fine was paid for him by an anonymous person.

His open flirtation with the opponents of the white regime earned him the wrath of the white people and he became the victim of threatening telephone calls, security police harassment and intimidation. His passport was withdrawn in 1977 and in October 1978 he was banned for five years. This banning order was renewed for another two years in 1982.

During his years of banning he had been refused permission to travel to Stockholm to collect a R4 450 prize for his promotion of racial peace; refused permission to attend the funeral of a close friend; his car had been wrecked by a mysterious explosion; and in September 1982 refused permission to travel to West Germany to attend a book fair.

 

       SOUTH AFRICAN COUNCIL OF CHURCHES

 

After his banning order was lifted on 26 September 1984, joined the South African Council of Churches (SACC) as its general secretary. He succeeded Archbishop Desmond Tutu in this position and served in the Council from February 1985 until July 1988.

As chief of the SACC he played a vital role in helping progressive community-based and other organisations around the country.

After 1994, when the new South Africa was achieved following the election of Nelson Mandela as the new president, Dr Naude, in addition to receiving recognition for his promotion of justice and peace, was welcomed back into the Dutch Reformed Church. He was lauded as a prophet during a general synod of the DRC in 1994.

He was also awarded recognition by a number of universities in Europe and by the University of Natal in 1991 and the University of Durban-Westville in 1993.

One of the best-known landmarks in his honour is the Dr Beyers Naude motor way in Johannesburg.

Dr Naude, who was born in Roodepoort in Johannesburg in May 1915, passed on in September 2004 at the age of 89. Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com  May 19 2022 

RECALLING A STRANGE APARTHEID-INITIATED TERROISM CASE AGAINST TRADE UNION LEADER – SAM KIKINE – IN THE EARLY 1980s

 

(This photo of Mr Sam Kikine was taken a few years ago at a function at the Durban City Hall)

Researching through my work at the Press Trust of SA News Agency in the 1980s, I found an article on Mr Sam Kikine, a trade union leader who came under the scrutiny of the former apartheid security police. He was charged with High Treason even though the state did not have any evidence against him.

I am re-publishing this article, STRANGE CASE OF SAM KIKINE, as part of my Rich History series in order to highlight the humanitarian struggles pre-1994.

Mr Kikine, who is now 73 years-old and resides in Durban, was a leader of the South African Allied Workers Union (SAAWU) at that time in the 1980s and early 1990s.

 

THIS IS THE ARTICLE:

 

August 13 1982

                     STRANG CASE OF SAM KIKINE

 

Kikine

Mr Sam Kikine, a leading black South African trade unionist, is a person who is not easily ruffled by the problems he encounters in the course of his work but a current court action against him under the country 's Terrorism Act leaves him dumfounded.

Mr Kikine, the 33-year-old secretary general of the 95 000-strong South African Allied Workers Union(SAAWU), has already appeared four times in a Durban magistrates’ court but the authorities have not yet specified the charges against him.

He is out on bail of R500, the first time that a Terrorism Act accused has been allowed bail while the authorities frame charges. Mr Kikine, who is based in the Durban office of SAAWU ), was first brought to court with two other senior SAAWU officials in Johannesburg on June 28 after being held in detention without trial for eight months.

      Kikine was detained on November 27 1981 in Durban - two days after he played a leading role in organising the funeral of Durban political trials lawyer, Griffith Mxenge, who was brutally slain by people believed to be members of the white right-wing.

Kikine, who is a popular personality in the black community in Durban, was first held under the General Laws Amendment Act which allows the authorities to detain a person incommunicado for 14 days. He was later transferred to Section 6 of the Terrorism Act.

In March this year he was taken to a Durban hospital for psychiatric treatment and was held under police guard.

At the same time the president of SAAWU, Mr Thozamile Gqweta, was also admitted for psychiatric treatment at a Johannesburg hospital. 

Sometime after his discharge from hospital, Mr Kikine was taken to Johannesburg where on June 28 1982 he was charged with Mr Gqweta and another senior SAAWU official, Mr Sisa Njikelane, in connection with charges under the Terrorism Act.

Details of their charges were not disclosed by the authorities.  Mr Kikine was told that he  would be transferred to Durban for trial while his colleagues would be transferred to Grahamstown. But 30 minutes later he was taken back to court and told that the charges against him had been withdrawn.

However, he was immediately re-detained and taken to Durban under police escort. On June 29 he appeared in a Durban magistrates’ court court and told that he was facing charges in connection with the Terrorism Act but no specific charges were preferred against him.

He was taken into police custody once again and the authorities stated that he was being held under a section of the Internal Security Act that did not allow for bail.

But his lawyers made a successful bail application and on July 13 he was out on R500 bail. Since then he has appeared twice in court but no specific charges were put to

him. Because Mr Kikine is facing trial, he declined to grant the Press Trust of South Africa an interview for fear of breaking the sub-judice rule.

His record so far, however, shows that he, like his fellow SAAWU officials, has been a constant victim of harassment and psychological intimidation.

Late in 1981 - about twelve days before he was detained - he claimed that his telephone was being tampered with almost daily and that his offices had been broken into.

During one of his telephone calls, a third person coughed on the phone and when Mr Kikine asked who was there, a man replied :

"Don 't you know Sam? This is the security police, Cape Town,"

And on another occasion, someone telephoned him and said that there was a bomb in the building his union occupied in Durban's Victoria Street.

Not unexpectedly, the authorities and the security police denied any knowledge of the telephone interference and said they were not responsible.

Many observers in South Africa are not surprised at  Mr Kikine’s harassment because "intimidation and harassment was part of the life of all people engaged in the fight for a just society in South Africa”.

But they are, however, baffled at the action which the authorities have brought against him.

One observer said that normally when a person was charged under the Terrorism Act he was held in solitary confinement until the end of the trial.

"But in Mr Kikine 's case it seems the authorities have nothing against him and they are just trying to make his life intolerable," said the observer. Ends – Press Trust of SA News Agency August 13 1982