The stories of the women who braved the “Seven-Day War” of 1990 are finally being told.

On Thursday, a few them stood beside their portraits at a Wall of Fame at the KwaZulu-Natal Museum at the launch of an exhibition and book titled “Amazwi Omame — In Our Own Voices.”

The weeklong fighting in KZN in April 1990 claimed at least 80 lives and left 20 000 people homeless.

The exhibition, which will be on display for a year, shines a light on the overlooked contributions of women during the political violence of the late 1980s and early 90s in the KZN Midlands.

For nearly 40 years, the stories of resilient women from communities such as Esigodini, Ashdown, Imbali, Slangspruit, Caluza, and Dambuza, who lived through and survived those tumultuous times, have remained untold.

By sharing their powerful narratives, “Amazwi Omame” aims to honour and recognise the bravery of these women, bringing their stories to the forefront and raising awareness about their significant roles in the community’s history.

Speaking to The Witness, facilitator Jabu Bhengu said people needed to know about what happened so that it will never be repeated.

She added that the exhibition was the idea of late activist Sibongile Mkhize.

“We need to have a record of how the violence impacted them and how they responded to the situation. We first met in 2016, here at the museum. We invited the women through an advert in ‘Echo’ newspaper just to find out if they would be interested. Unfortunately, there were some delays because we didn’t have funding.”

Funding for the project was obtained in 2018.

“Then, Covid -19 came, and things were halted, but most of the stories had been recorded. The stories had been transcribed, translated and edited but we didn’t have the funds for printing,” said Mkhize.

“Fortunately, we received funding from the Church Land Programme (CLP), and in the early 2023 we were able to launch the book.

“When you read about the period of the violence, you hear about what the leaders did, but the role played by women activists was not evident. We appreciate that the museum saw it worth it to have a display about this period.”

One of the writers, Jabu Dlalisa from Esigodini in Edendale, said it was not an easy time.

“It was hard as we had stopped reporting to work due to fear.

“We have known each other from the struggle. We have become like a family now. I am pleased to have been given a chance to share my experience. We are grateful that we have left a mark,” she said.

Viranna Frank, who is in charge of public relations and marketing at the KZN Museum, said it is pointless to put up displays at the museum that people cannot relate to.

Community involvement and participation allows us to connect with the community that we serve so that people can take ownership of an institution like this. Our museum is for the community. The exhibition allows people to relate to what they are saying.