THE
MARIKANA MASSACRE
WHAT
WOULD STEVE BIKO HAVE SAID AND DONE?
- Aubrey Mokoape, St. Philip's Anglican Church, Fingo Village, Grahamstown, 19 September 2012
Comrade
Programme Director, comrades from the Black Consciousness Party,
various formations of the BCM, comrades from the Unemployed People’s
Movement and other Social Movements, comrades from the Clergy and the
entire religious community, comrades from community organizations and
civic bodies, comrades from the academia and the entire academic
community, citizens of Grahamstown and compatriots from near and far,
all fellow fighters in the fight for a truly human egalitarian
society I greet you all in the name of our great beloved leader,
brother, revolutionary Steve Bantu Biko and that of our fallen
victims of the Marikana Massacre. I greet you in the name of Steve
Biko the visionary, the intellectual, the revolutionary socialist,
the activist, the anti-racist. I greet you in the name of the
Socialist Azanian Republic for which Steve Biko died.
LONG
LIVE THE SPIRIT OF STEVEN BANTU BIKO LONG LIVE!!!! LONG LIVE THE
MARIKANA MINERS AND ALL THE EXPLOITED WORKERS OF OUR LAND.
We
meet here today as we do every year at the shrine of Steve Biko to
commemorate him, to remember his inspirational leadership, his
martyrdom on our behalf and draw solace and inspiration. This is
always a day of mixed emotions. On one hand it evokes immense sadness
when we contemplate our loss, especially now when our country is
drafting rudderless in a sea of violence, avarice and ignorance. We
are also deeply pained by the painful barbarity of his murder and we
cannot and must not forget on the other hand, that this is a day of
hope and optimism. That such a young man could have such hope and
courage to shoulder the aspirations of a forlorn nation gives us
hope. As he said “IT IS BETTER TO DIE FOR AN IDEA THAT WILL LIVE
THAN LIVE FOR AN IDEA THAT WILL DIE.”
It
is in that spirit that we come here: to imbibe, to nourish, to
refresh and to recommit to that idea so that indeed it will be
immortalised. The idea in his words, of “TOTAL LIBERATION”.
Mark, total liberation,
not merely the removal of apartheid. But if for a moment we had been
lulled into slumber or beguiled into complacency by the sweet
sounding words like new South Africa and miracle constitution or
Rainbow Nation, it is just as well to be jolted back into reality by
the guns of Marikana.
The
Marikana Massacre is the most egregious illustration of what happens
when the interests of the state clash with the interests of the
people. The state took the side of Lonmin and the new black induna
class and callously mowed down poor black workers who were merely
asking for a living wage. But for the colour of the indunas, it is
the same state that murdered black people at Sharpeville, Langa,
Bisho and countless other places. It is a black government today that
dispatched police to mercilessly massacre black workers who voted it
into power. It sounds ridiculously ironic but maybe it isn’t.
That’s
why we ask what would Steve Biko have said and done about the guns of
Marikana? But before we ask Steve the question let’s find out who
he was. A lot of things have been said and written about Biko, some
right and others wrong. I had the privilege to live with him and to
fight politically and ultimately collaborated with him in the
evolution of the Black Consciousness philosophy. When he joined me
in 1966 at medical school I was already in second year and older than
him and was already a political veteran having been sentenced to
three years for my involvement at Sharpeville in 1960. Steve was not
awed by all of this and engaged me politically from the onset.
Steve
was a consummate revolutionary. For a start he was a very easy and
casual man, at ease with everyone. Even as he carved his place in
history there was nothing messianic in his demeanour. He had an
abiding love for people and this is what inspired him. He was a
socialist but he expressed his socialist beliefs in simple everyman’s
language. He was a humanist, a scientist and a philosopher. He was an
activist who always listened and sought to persuade. Underlying all
these many qualities was a steely determination and a sense of
mission. He was a natural leader around whom people congregated
easily. I personally found no difficulty in deferring to him although
I was theoretically his senior.
The
last time I saw him was during his testimony in our case in Pretoria.
I tried very hard to persuade him to go into exile but he flatly
refused. He said he could not abandon our people alone in their hour
of need. Earlier he had already committed class suicide when he
spurned the prospect of becoming a medical doctor and instead chose
the struggle. In his own words “LEADERSHIP AND SECURITY ARE
BASICALLY INCOMPATIBLE, A STRUGGLE WITHOUT CASUALTIES IS NO
STRUGGLE”. The question before us is: what would Steve have said
and done about the Marikana Massacre?
I
believe the first thing he would say would be shocking and blood
curdling as the Marikana massacre is, it has been predictable. If we
had paid careful heed towards what’s been happening around us and
media reports we would have seen a series of mini Marikanas happening
all over the country. There have been dry runs for over ten years now
with protests occurring with increased frequency and intensity and
police pitted against the people with a variety of weapons. The most
dramatic prelude to Marikana was the brutal murder of Andries Tatane
by the police which was played out in front of all of us. If we had
paid enough heed we would have noticed that the 1994 settlement had
left the colonial racist capitalist socio-economic structure intact.
The masses of black people were left without their land, their labour
and their liberty. They were left poor, ignorant and powerless
labouring on white men’s farms and mines. Steve would have told us
that extending the vote to black people without restoring the land
and transforming the socio-economic landscape in favour of the black
majority was tantamount to legitimising apartheid.
I
think he would paraphrase Aime Cesaire thus:
“When I turn on my TV and see
landless poor blacks toiling in the white men’s mines and farms, I
know apartheid is not dead.
When I turn on my TV and see little
black children walking miles on end, crossing rivers to go to mud
schools, I know apartheid is not dead.
When I see poor desperate black
miners being callously mowed down with heavy machine guns for simply
asking for a living wage, I know apartheid is not dead.
Apartheid is alive and well in the
union buildings, in parliament, in homes, in school and everywhere.”
The
only difference is that it is now being overseen by a black
government and a black induna class instead of Afrikaners.
Apartheid
is alive and well because the 1994 so called democracy was a
monumental sell out. The people’s revolution was hijacked by
imperialism and local capitalist conspiring with our current black
government. The vast black masses were beguiled with an avalanche of
propaganda about a miracle constitution, a rainbow nation and some
such new speak. Of course the masses were given the vote to vote for
an absentee government which spends its time on golf courses and
banqueting halls. They were given freedom of movement with nowhere to
go but to squatter camps. They were given the right to education but
denied books. They were given the right to form trade unions but no
employment. They were given freedom of speech but no-one to talk to.
Marikana was actually woven into the fabric of the new South Africa.
It was always coming.
What
we are seeing is an escalation of state violence against the black
masses. Since the government has chosen the side of the bosses who
have money against the people the question is: when and where will
the next Marikana occur?
It
is quite clear that this government has run out of ideas. Key sectors
of social delivery like education, health, justice, welfare are in
crisis. Morale among the professional classes like teachers, nurses,
doctors and police is at an all time low. The working classes and the
unemployed have reached the end of their tether. They are seen
everyday manning barricades and throwing stones in every township and
village.
On
the other hand the language from the government and its allies is
ominous and chilling. It is reminiscent of the language of Jimmy
Kruger and P W Botha. We now regularly hear of inciters, third force,
law and order and phrases like “we shall not tolerate”. This is
the language of a government that is losing legitimacy and barring
its teeth.
Any
government that fails to deliver on its mandate to its people and is
focused on self-enrichment will face increasing levels of popular
resistance such as at Marikana. History has shown that such a
government increasingly resorts to repression.
I
believe that Steve would have urged the Black Consciousness Party and
all formations of the BCM to mobilise all progressive people, the
black working class, peasants, students and women to overthrow the
capitalist system that is strangulating our people and replace it
with a just non-exploitative socialist society. He would have
reminded us of the crucial role of the BCM in the 1960’s when the
struggle of the people was facing extinction. He would have told us
that this is again the time for the BCM to step up and resume its
historic role. In tribute to Steve Biko and the miners who fell at
Marikana we commit to these goals.
In
conclusion we support the miners at Marikana and elsewhere in their
quest for a living wage. We also extend our sincere condolences to
their families. We condemn the government for siding with the
capitalists against the people and for using high handed repressive
methods instead of negotiating peacefully.
