Welcome to Afro-I-Can

There is enough media around that speaks to the failures of Africa and Africans. This seeks to be a little corner that speaks to and about the triumphs. In the world that I hope for, it would not be necessary to start with some conceptual framework and glossary of terms. In that world, people would read with honesty and open minds - no agendas, hidden or otherwise. While we wait for that world let us agree on some terms and the meaning we would like to attribute to them in this space (this is not compulsory though), this will primarily be the meaning I have in mind when I use these terms.

An African is a reference to a person who lives in Africa and accepts the political rule by the majority, it is not meant to be anything but denotative. This meaning of the term African is borrowed from the writings and teachings of one Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe (more about him later).

This space does not set out to counter or oppose other media (of any kind) or contributions that may be made on this space, that speaks to and of African failure. This space hopes to be a forum for open debate on matters ranging from xenophobia to the question of the united states of Africa (hopefully primarily by African including the diaspora). In moving this contribution forward I ask that we look back to the 20 years between the 60's and 80's. I ask that we specifically look towards the southern most country of the continent during this 20 year period.

This is the time in history and a place on the continent where had we been alive and old enough we would have come accross Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe. I wish to start with this giant of a man for a variety of reasons chief of which being his gradual fading from the South African contemporary history. There are various publications that one could get in order to read about Prof, as he was reportedly fondly referred to by his friends. The most current of the publications that I would recomend is titled "How can man die better - the life of Robert Sobukwe" a book by Benjamin Pogrund. When Sobukwe passed on I was only 10 years old so I do not pretend to speak with any authority of his life and work.

I invite contributions from those who knew the man or of the man in order to preserve this legacy. It is the legacy similar to that of Patrice Lumumba (more about him in the future).

In brief: Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe was the founder member and President of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), one of many liberation organisations during the struggle of South Africans against apartheid and all that it stood for. A lot can be said about the break away from the African National Congress by what became the PAC and I hope this debate will be taken forward on this space. I would however wish to share my thoughts, for what they are worth, on one of the life altering dates of Sobukwe's life and indeed of South Africans - 21 March 1960. On this day members of the PAC and members of the community of Sharpeville (various actions in other townships also took place) and surrounding areas went to the Sharpeville police station to hand themselves over to be arrested. A little bit of context may be useful at this point I believe. Sharpeville is a township (equivalent of a ghetto) on the outskirts of Vereeniging, a town along the banks of the Vaal river some 40 minutes (give or take) south of Johannesburg. 1960 was around the time when the apartheid government heightened repression and was more brutal than before in dealing with protests, which protests were also on the increase. It was also a time in the history of South Africa that black people (men more than women, cause women were not even allowed in the urban areas except in small numbers), were forced to carry what was then referred to as a pass or reference book. This was a crude identity document which among others would be endorsed to allow the bearer to be in a particular magesterial district of South Africa; it also contained details of the bearer's employer since being employed in an urban area was the only legally recognised reason for a black South African to be in an urban area. Black people were not to venture anywhere without this pass and failure to produce it when demanded by the police would result in immediate imprisonment. The so-called dompas (dumb pass) shackled black people, reducing them to prisoners in their own country. It was as a result of this and other oppressive measures of the then government that as a form of protest the passes would be burned and people would hand themselves over to be arrested for failure to have a pass on their person as was required by law. There are various versions of what happened on the day, however by the end of that day some 69 people were killed and almost 200 were injured, all shot by the police. Shortly thereafter scores of people were arrested including Sobukwe, it was a turning point in the struggle against apartheid and the beginning of lengthy prison sentences for scores of the leaders of the broader anti-apartheid movement. It was the beginning of immerssion of the South African society into a cesspit of violance culminating in the state of emergency, wanton murder and destruction. This day came to be known as Sharpeville Day and to me, so it shall remain.

Today March 21st is referred to and it is listed among official public holidays as Human Rights Day. Any other day could have been named human rights day; the day on which the congress of the people adopted the Freedom Charter could have in my view more appropriately been named as such. The events of 21 March 1960 should never be re-written even for the most reconciliatory of objectives. These events are the beacons which we hope will guide future powers that-be away from similar atrocities. In this space, every 21 March we will remember Sharpeville Day, for our children.