Thoughts on struggle songs, old flags and anthems

At the funeral of white supremacist leader, Eugene Terre’blanche, his supporters were seen waving the old South African flag and singing the old national anthem Die Stem van Suid Afrika. Black South Africans would understandably have been upset. The song and the flag are symbols of Apartheid. At the same time, Julius Malema, the ANC Youth League and the ANC are still under attack over the struggle song Ayasab’ amagwala [the cowards are scared], following the death of Terre’blanche. Malema has just returned from his trip to Zimbabwe, where he not only met Robert Mugabe, but also sang the song in defiance of the ban on the song.

Every time we see some silly person waving the old South African flag at a rugby match, it once again draws South Africans into a national debate about history. The ANC is quick to condemn and voice disapproval whenever the old flag rears its ugly head. The people who wave it say that they are simply remembering their history; black South Africans and others say that it is a history of oppression and racism that is being remembered, because that is what the old flag and anthem represents. It would be like a German person waving the old flag of Nazi Germany.
The ANC defended the singing of Ayasab’ amagwala. It has argued that the controversial lyrics, dubul’ iBhunu [shoot the Boer] are not literal. It is metaphorical, and not actually saying ‘shoot the Boer’, or ‘shoot the farmer/white man’ if you prefer. They slammed the banning of the song, saying that when struggle songs are sung, it is not to incite hatred against white people, but merely to remember the history of the struggle.

I’m unsure if the ANC realises that while they support remembering its own history, it is unwilling to remember the other side of the history of Apartheid. It wants a ban on the old flag and anthem. I am not declaring support for Apartheid in any way, I am merely pointing out that the ANC is speaking with a forked tongue; remember the past, as long as it’s our past. If the ANC wants to erase symbols associated with Apartheid, then it should erase symbols associated with the struggle against Apartheid. Because the two narratives are all put of the grander narrative of the history of South Africa. The narratives of resistance and the struggle for freedom cannot be told without knowing the narratives of oppression and tyranny, otherwise we will never know why oppression and tyranny existed in the first place. And then we will never learn from the mistakes of Apartheid and racial segregation.
Julius Malema is a good example of someone who knows the history of the struggle, but doesn’t really understand it. He knows the romantic side of the struggle against Apartheid i.e the armed campaign, singing liberation songs. He doesn’t know anything about Apartheid itself. So he wouldn't know that a song like Ayasab’ amagwala was sung in the context of rising tensions between black and white, and the escalation of the armed struggle. Likewise, those that wave the old flag and anthem do not realise what it represents. They do not understand that the flag and the anthem represent a nation that discriminated against and violently oppressed the majority of its population on the basis of skin colour.

I do not believe that banning either the old South African flag and anthem or Ayasab' amagwala is good for anything.  These relics of the past should belong where most democracies keep relics of their national history; in textbooks, in museums and libraries. We need not forget the history of the struggle or Apartheid, because it made South Africa what it is today. But it is the past, and not the present or the future.

Eugene Terre'blanche's death should be a lesson

Eugene Terre'blanche, the leader of the white supremacist Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (Afrikaner Resistance Movement), has died. He was murdered by two of his farm workers, allegedly over a pay dispute. Terre'blanche gained notoriety as the charismatic, oratorical leader of his organisation, which was modelled on the Nazis and other fascist paramilitary groups. 

In the aftermath of Nelson Mandela's release and the beginning of negotiations to end Apartheid, Terre'blanche and his supporters vowed to create an all-white republic based in the areas of the old Boer republics. They were not hesitant to resort to violence in order to achieve their aims. He was imprisoned in 2001 after assaulting a black petrol station worker, which left the victim mentally and physically impaired. When he was released in 2004, he claimed to have re-discovered God and although he still envisioned an all-white republic, he claimed to have moderated his views. His death essentially marks the end of one of the most violent chapters of South African history; ironically enough, by violent means.

In the aftermath of his death, government and ANC leaders have appealed for calm and have condemned the murder. Opposition parties have also appealed for calm, but linked his murder with the controversy over the singing of the song Ayesab' amagwala (the cowards are scared), which contains the lyrics Dubul' ibhunu (shoot the Boer), by ANC Youth League leader, Julius Malema. Furthermore, members of Terre'blanche's organisation have blamed Malema and the ANC and vowed revenge after Terre'blanche's funeral.

Terre'blanche's murder should be a lesson. Violence begets violence. Terre'blanche was clearly unafraid to resort to violence when he saw it was necessary. And now, he has come to a violent end. His death should serve as a warning to Malema, another divisive figure. Malema is a threat to racial reconciliation in South Africa, with his utterances. Terre'blanche was the same. Malema once vowed to declare war against the South African Communist Party when he was heckled at a Communist Party rally. Terre'blanche was the same; he declared war on the notion of a multiracial democracy. Malema clearly has a problem with people of a different skin colour and those who do not share his world view; Terre'blanche was the same. If Terre'blanche should meet his end the way he lived his life, then Julius Malema should be wary. Because Terre'blanche condoned and waged violence against black people, and the violence that he condoned and waged came back to take him. If Malema does not cease to racially divide South Africa and condone violence against minorities, then he will meet a similar end to Terre'blanche.

                                                                                 
                                             

Jesse Ventura and lessons in politics

Having watched this video, there's one thing that I now resolutely believe. Jesse Ventura is a model politician. Well, Ventura has been out of government for nearly seven years, so he's not really a politician anymore. He declined a second term of governor of his home state of Minnesota for personal reasons. His wrestling career is well and truly over, he hasn't tried any wrestling resuscitation attempts, unlike certain individuals. He's resigned himself to the roles of public speaker, author and political commentator. So I should rather say that Jesse Ventura is a model to those with an aspiring career in politics. He has some very important lessons in politics, that perhaps we either need to remember or teach ourselves.

What makes Ventura different is that instead of taking a side in the now very dull and boring battle between Democrats and Republicans, Ventura stood as an independent in the Minnesota gubernatorial election 1998. Broadly speaking, he could be identified as a libertarian, once stating "I want Democrats out of the boardroom and Republicans out of my bedroom." Yet he's a far cry from political commentators on radio and TV who like to call themselves libertarian, but are really closet Republicans. It is not very easy to pigeonhole him. In this sense, he is a true role model to political independents.
In America, one has to be either a liberal/Democrat or a conservative/Republican. It's pretty much the same in the UK. Only the Conservative Party and the Labour Party realistically have a chance of getting into power. Political independents and moderates are really without a home in both countries, and in order for one's vote to count, they end up having to vote for one of the two. What Ventura demonstrated and emphasised is the importance of third parties in the political arena. A true multiparty democracy is not one in which the leadership of the country rotates between two political parties.

As you will have seen in the video, Ventura publicly questions the government on a number of issues, ranging from the use of torture on terror suspects, the conduct of the War in Iraq and even the official explanations regarding the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He has shown us that it is not unpatriotic to question one's government. In fact, in the American tradition, NOT fairly criticising the government is unpatriotic. I remember the words of Mark Twain: "the only rational form of patriotism is loyalty to your country, and loyalty to the government when it deserves it."
Justifiable criticism of the government is rarely seen these days. Nobody has thought of properly taking Tony Blair to task over the War in Iraq or his role in ruining the British economy for generations to come. Jesse Ventura has shown us the importance of remembering that patriotism comes from the heart, and should not be rooted in love of the government. It should be rooted in the true values and ethics that your country espouses, and from which it derives its political institutions.

So, if you have an aspiring career in politics, remember your old friend Jesse Ventura. Remember that true democracy is not a battle between two competing political parties, and that fealty to your government is not a prerequisite for being a patriot. The real patriots of their countries are the ones who are speaking their minds and questioning their governments.

Free speech? As long as it doesn't insult the ANC

A big piece of news in the last few weeks is that Kader Asmal, an African National Congress stalwart and veteran of the anti-Apartheid struggle has come under fire from left, right and centre. Fikile Mbalula, former leader of the ANC Youth League and now Deputy Minister of Police called him another ‘Don Quixote’ and a ‘lunatic.’ The Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association told Asmal to go to the nearest cemetery and die. Gwede Mantashe, the ANC Secretary-General warned Asmal, “self-destruction can bleed you to death.” Why? Because Asmal committed the cardinal sin of criticising the government, and by proxy, the ANC.

At a press club function, Asmal said that government proposals to turn the South African Police into a paramilitary organisation, in order to better fight crime, were ‘crazy.’ He also accused Mbalula of ‘low-level political opportunism’ for making statements to that effect. After the shit hit the fan, Asmal reiterated that he was merely exercising his constitutional right to free speech. He warned of the creeping intolerance for dissent within the ANC. And herein lies the big problem.
The ANC is increasingly becoming an authoritarian organisation whereby debate and difference of opinion is quashed. It speaks volumes that Asmal, whose credentials include helping to start up anti-Apartheid movements both in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, drafting the South African constitution and helping to write the bill of rights, has been so viciously attacked. If a struggle stalwart like Asmal has his mouth shut like that for speaking his mind, then can the ANC honestly call itself a democratic organisation? Can an organisation that is either apathetic or ignorant to its members making statements such as “kill for Zuma” and calling for a shoot-to-kill policy on criminals honestly call itself democratic? Asmal himself made these same lamentations, and those of us who remember the old ANC are lamenting with him. We're lamenting that the democratic ethics that were upheld by greats like Oliver Tambo, Walter Sisulu, Chief Albert Luthuli, and Nelson Mandela are being forgotten. These men didn't hold democracy just as a policy. They held it as an attitude and a way of life.

Of course it’s too much to ask of Nelson Mandela himself to speak up in his frail state and old age. Doctors within the last two years have warned him to stay away from political controversy because of the stress involved. That’s why we need struggle heroes like Asmal to make sure that the true values and ethics of the old ANC are upheld and aren’t lost to the new ANC of people like Mbalula, Julius Malema and the Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association.

A master stroke by Question Time

Having Nick Griffin appear on a public television debate against the Home Secretary, Jack Straw is a master stroke of genius by the media moguls. Of course, those who position themselves on the far left will accuse me of being a sympathiser and an enabler for the BNP. Neither of which sum up my position. I do not sympathise or feel any sense of solidarity on any of the issues which the BNP claim to stand for or against. I am resolutely opposed to racism and discrimination.

That being said, I do not feel any threat or any sense of danger from this decision by Question Time. I believe this, because the BNP has been able to summon its strength from the underground, and from the Internet. The BNP has been outlawed, which means that its members congregate together and discuss their views without fears of reprisals. The reason that the BNP has been able to generate so much support is because their views are not aired in public, and thus cannot be debated and challenged. It is too much to ask of impressionable people to question Nick Griffin at one of his Nuremberg-style rallies. Because the BNP is essentially in hiding, they can manipulate their views to be seen as "acceptable." But by putting him on TV, Nick Griffin will essentially be put on trial, and will have to explain his views to the British public. Drawing Nick Griffin out from the crevice in which he cowers and into the light of public debate will allow people to see the views of the BNP for what they really are - utterly baseless and full of hot air.

Putting Nick Griffin on TV shows the public that the authorities have nothing to fear from him. Once everyone can see the BNP for what they really are, the government and the country will have no reason to worry about them. They will become as worthless as other neo-Nazi groups operating in this country.