• Raliphi ‘Master Push’ Xolelizwe from Chief Mogale writes:
A Human Rights Day event in Kagiso was marred by heckling as ANC members sang while speakers addressed the crowd. Celebrations coincided with the Sharpeville massacre, which took place on March 21, 1960, at the police station in the township, where 69 people were shot and killed by the police after a day of demonstrations. The crowd had been peaceful.
The ANC booed every speaker but cheered when a Progressive Civics Congress (PCC) representative took to the podium to address the crowd. The Pan African Congress (PAC) has long believed the ANC has hijacked the Sharpeville commemoration from it.
A programme director was angered by the ANC. Sometimes he was drowned out when he tried to introduce the new speaker. The event held at Chief Mogale Hall also featured live entertainment, with music wafting through the air, along with singing by PCC, PAC and ANC supporters.
As a Gauteng PCC and PAC member, I want to take a swipe at the ANC, arguing that the 69 dead were ‘ordinary people’ and should not be ‘privatised or claimed’.
Let us respect them. In contrast to the festive atmosphere at the Chief Mogale Hall, it was business as usual for Kagiso residents.
At the hall, immediately after the speeches were finished, the real celebration started.
As music pumped from huge speakers organised by the event, the young people started gathering. Some did not even know why Human Rights Day was being celebrated but were just happy to see their favorite musicians perform.
Under the pass-law system, all black men and women were compelled to carry a passbook, commonly known as the dompas, for identification, anytime, anywhere. This was to restrict the movement of black people around the country and to check on their whereabouts. Anyone found without their dompas could be arrested and detained for up to 30 days.
A young boy who was dancing among the crowd said he was grateful to the 69 people who lost their lives fighting against the pass laws.
“I cannot even begin to imagine what it is like to be arrested for a dompas in your own country. I’m glad apartheid was abolished,” the boy said.
