Robert Sobukwe

 

 
 

 

 

 
 
 
   


 

 

 

 

Robert Sobukwe

 

Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe
1924 - 1978

 

Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe, founding president of the Pan Africanist Congress, was born in Graaff-Reinet in 1924. His Xhosa first name, 'Mangaliso' means 'man of wonders'. As a student, lay preacher and teacher of the 1940s and 1950s, Sobukwe was an outspoken opponent of apartheid. He lost his student bursaries for speaking out against missionaries and white liberals, who, he said, had sown division among the African people. He also lost his first teaching job because he refused to teach the official apartheid history.

Sobukwe's politics was Africanist. Like him, his biographers have been careful to note that this was not a racist politics, as he defined 'Africans' not by the colour of their skin but by their commitment to Africa. Sobukwe was instrumental in the formation of the Pan Africanist Congress in 1959, a breakaway group from the African National Congress, seeking the establishment and maintenance of an 'Africanist socialist democracy'. The PAC differed from the ANC in its refusal to accept any white liberal or communist leadership. It stood for a complete overthrow of the apartheid system, not equality and power sharing between its proponents and what it called 'true' Africans.

After the Sharpville massacre in March 1960, in which the police shot protesters against the restrictive pass laws, both the PAC and the ANC were banned. Sobukwe was tried for his role in the anti-pass campaign and sentenced to three years in prison. The PAC had a policy of 'no bail, no defence, no fine' as they did not recognise the authority if the apartheid courts, and so he was not defended in court. In 1963, after completion of the three-year sentence, Sobukwe was detained further by a special Act of Parliament, and transferred from Pretoria to what was by then becoming the central political prison of the apartheid system, Robben Island. In justifying this unprecedented step, John Vorster, then minister of the country, said of Sobukwe, 'He is a man with magnetic personality, great organising ability and a divine sense of mission.' Vorster said he intended detaining Sobukwe 'until this side of eternity'. The government was worried that the rising tide of Africanist militancy, represented by an offshoot of the PAC called Ama-afrika Poqo ('The real owners of Africa'), or Poqo for short, Sobukwe's release could trigger a massive uprising among Africans.

The special statute under which Sobukwe was detained on the Island, known as the 'Sobukwe Clause' had to be approved annually, which it was until his release from the Island. On the Island, he enjoyed slightly better conditions than the other political prisoners, but he was completely isolated from them. At first he was kept in a house formerly used by a 'coloured' warder (all black warders were removed from the Island in 1963), but later in 1963 he was transferred to a small bungalow which had been part of the 'coloured' school. In this place he grew a small garden, with seeds donated by the Defence and Aid Fund in Cape Town. His pumpkins, squashes and cucumbers grew well, except when water shortages on the Island forced him to stop watering them. He studied by correspondence with the University of London for an economics degree, which he passed in 1968. But his time on the Island was profoundly lonely, its monotony broken only by the occasional visits from his wife Veronica and their children, and by the silent salutes of passing prisoners from the main prison. When the other prisoners were marched by, Sobukwe used to go outside and take a handful of the soil from his garden, allowing the sand to run through his fingers, as if to say that nothing mattered more than the recovery of their land.

After Sobukwe's release from the Island - prompted by official fears that years of solitary confinement might permanently damage him psychologically - he was sent to Kimberley, a place where he had never lived before, and kept under house arrest until his death in 1978.

Text adapted from The Island: A History of Robben Island 1488 - 1990. Edited by Harriet Deacon

 

 

 

 
Robert Mangaliso, which means ' wonderful ', Sobukwe was born in Graaff-Reinet in the Cape Province in 1924. His father was a farm labourer and his mother had no formal education. Sobukwe showed signs of being an excellent student from an early age and won a scholarship to the Methodist boarding school at Healdtown in the Eastern Cape. Following the completion of his schooling he enrolled at Fort Hare University, where he displayed a keen interest in literature.

At Fort Hare, where generations of young Black South Africans were exposed to politics, he joined the African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) in 1948. The organisation had been established on the campus by Godfrey Pitje, who later also became president of the ANCYL. In 1949 Sobukwe was elected as president of the Fort Hare Students' Representative Council, where he proved himself to be a good orator.

In 1950 Sobukwe was appointed as a teacher at a high school in Standerton, a position he lost when he spoke out in favour of the Defiance Campaign in 1952. He was, however, reinstated. During this period he was separated from mainstream ANC activities, but still held the position of secretary of the ANC branch in Standerton.

In 1954 Sobukwe was appointed as a lecturer in African Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand. He moved to Johannesburg and soon his outstanding intellect was recognised. During his time in Johannesburg he edited ' The Africanist ' and soon began to criticise the ANC for allowing itself to be dominated by what he termed 'liberal-left-multi-racialists'. He was an ardent supporter of an Africanist future for South Africa and rejected the idea of working with Whites.

'The Prof', as his friends knew him, was a charismatic speaker, and in 1958 was instrumental in a breakaway from the ANC, resulting in the birth of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC). He was unanimously elected as the president of the movement at its inaugural congress. Sobukwe's eloquence as a public speaker, his intelligence and commitment to his cause soon established him as natural leader, and helped him rally support for the PAC. On 21 March 1960, at the launch of the PAC anti-pass campaign, he resigned from his post as teacher. He made last minute arrangements for the safety of his family and left his home in Molofo. He intended to give himself up for arrest at the Orlando police station in the hope that his actions would inspire action among other Black South Africans. On the 8 km walk to the police station small groups of men joined him from neighbouring areas like Phefeni, Dube and Orlando West. The small crowd arrived at their destination and most of them, including Sobukwe, were arrested.

He was given a surprisingly harsh sentence of 3 years ' imprisonment, at the end of which Parliament enacted a General Law Amendment Act, which empowered the Minister of Justice to prolong the detention of any political prisoner indefinitely. He was moved to Robben Island, where he remained for six additional years.

On his release in 1969 Sobukwe was allowed to join his family in Kimberley while remaining under twelve-hour house arrest. He was also restricted from any active political activity as a result of a banning order. During his incarceration Sobukwe had obtained an Honours Degree in Economics from the University of London, and had also started a Law Degree. He articled in Kimberley and started his own law practice in 1975.

Although he was offered several teaching posts at American universities he was prevented from going overseas by the government of the day. Robert Sobukwe passed away on 27 February 1978.

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

  

 

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was a court-like body assembled in South Africa after the end of Apartheid. Anybody who felt they had been a victim of violence could come forward and be heard at the TRC. Perpetrators of violence could also give testimony and request amnesty from prosecution. The hearings made international news and many sessions were broadcast on national television. The TRC was a crucial component of the transition to full and free democracy in South Africa and, despite some flaws, is generally regarded as very successful.

 

Creation and Mandate

The TRC was set up in terms of the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act, No 34 of 1995, and was based in Cape Town. The mandate of the commission was to bear witness to, record and in some cases grant amnesty to the perpetrators of crimes relating to human rights violations, reparation and rehabilitation. The TRC had a number of high profile members: Archbishop Desmond Tutu (chairperson), Dr Alex Boraine (Deputy Chairperson), Mary Burton, Advocate Chris de Jager, Bongani Finca, Sisi Khampepe, Richard Lyster, Wynand Malan, Reverend Khoza Mgojo, Hlengiwe Mkhize, Dumisa Ntsebeza (head of the Investigative Unit), Wendy Orr, Advocate Denzil Potgieter, Mapule Ramashala, Dr Faizel Randera, Yasmin Sooka and Glenda Wildschut.

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Committees

The work of the TRC was accomplished through three committees:

  • Human Rights Violations (HRV) Committee investigated human rights abuses that took place between 1960 and 1994.
  • Reparation and Rehabilitation (R&R) Committee was charged with restoring victims' dignity and formulating proposals to assist with rehabilitation.
  • Amnesty Committee (AC) considered applications for amnesty that were requested in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

In theory the commission was empowered to grant amnesty to those charged with atrocities during Apartheid as long as two conditions were met: The crimes were politically motivated and the entire and whole truth was told by the person seeking amnesty.

No one was exempt from being charged. As well as ordinary citizens, members of the police could be charged and, most notably, members of the African National Congress, the ruling party at the time of the trial, could also be charged.

5392 people were refused amnesty and 849 were granted amnesty, out of 7112 petitioners (there were a number of additional categories, such as withdrawn).

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Findings

The commission brought forth many witnesses giving testimony about the secret and immoral acts committed by the Apartheid Government, the liberation forces including the ANC, and other forces for violence that many say would not have come out into the open otherwise.

On October 28, 1998 the Commission presented its report, which condemned both sides for committing atrocities.

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Impact

Due to the perceived success of this approach to dealing with human-rights violations after extensive political change, other countries have instituted similar commissions, though not always with the same scope or the allowance for charging of those currently in power.

Various films have been made about the commission:

  • The South African feature film Forgiveness (2004) directed by Ian Gabriel and featuring Arnold Vosloo as a disgraced ex-cop seeking forgiveness from the family of the activist he killed under the Apartheid regime. Also starring Quanita Adams and Zane Meas.

  • Also Zulu Love Letter (2004) directed by Ramadan Suleman and starring Pamela Nomvete.

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Criticisms

A 1998 study by South Africa's Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation & the Khulumani Support Group[1], which surveyed several hundred victims of human rights abuse during the Apartheid era, found that most felt the TRC had failed to achieve reconciliation between the black and white communities. Most felt that justice was a prerequisite for reconciliation rather than an alternative to it, and that the TRC had been weighted in favour of the perpetrators of abuse.

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See also

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External links

http://gbgm-umc.org/NWO/99ja/different.html#amnesty

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_and_Reconciliation_Commission"