Reflecting on apartheid

One of the aspects of life in South Africa that is well known around the world is the years of apartheid and we were keen to find out more about this during our visit.  We knew this would not be an easy thing to do but felt that it was important to learn some of the national history.  I can’t hope to do it all justice in a short blog but will give it my best shot!

We visited the Apartheid Museum which was opened in 2001.  The museum was developed as a way of telling the story of apartheid in all its complexity in a way that informed people about the history but also to bear witness to suffering, heroism and tragedy.  It was also built in the hope it would serve as a warning of what happens when people believe in the superiority of one group of people over another.  The museum took us on a dark and difficult journey that ended in hopefulness for the future. 

At the ticket office we were randomly given tickets classifying us as either ‘white’ or ‘non-white’ and we had to enter through different gates allocated to our race group.  Mark and Rachel had ‘white’ tickets and mine was ‘non-white’ so I had to enter separately.  In a very small way I experienced the uncertainty and vulnerability of being separated from my group and wasn’t sure if that meant I would be spending the day alone as it was not clear where and if we would meet up. 

We saw many of the signs that were used during the apartheid years to keep the races separate in all aspects of life.  Some of these shocking signs are below.

    

   

We learned some of the history of the nation of South Africa which is very long and complex! Here is a bulleted summary!

•      Originally African people – Zulu, Xhosa and others

•      1487 – Portuguese settled

•      1647 – Dutch – settled – became known as Boers

•      British Rule – 1795 – 1803

•      Dutch Rule – 1803 – 1806

•    British Rule again – 1806 – became part of the British Empire and people began to move there and colonize the country

•      Diamonds discovered 1867 and gold in 1884 – British determined to keep control of the native people

•      1879 – Anglo-Zulu war – Zulus defeated

•      Anglo-Boer wars 1880-1881 and 1899-1902

•      Union of South Africa formed 1910

•    Natives Land Act 1913 – Gave 8% of land to the native Africans and 92% of the land to the white people

•      Apartheid introduced in 1948 by the National Party who came to power in this year – they set about creating laws that separated people in terms of race.  We saw plaques listing 148 apartheid laws that affected every aspect of people’s lives.   Hendrick Verwoed who was then minister of native affairs said that ‘the effort to solve the ‘native problem’ lay at the heart of the apartheid project’ and spoke of the need to create ‘permanent solutions’.  He called apartheid a ‘policy of good neighbourliness.’ He also declared that ‘African education should be inferior to that of other races’.  He later went on to become Prime Minister of South Africa in 1953 and was assassinated in 1966. 

•      Protests within the country and from outside

•      Nelson Mandela imprisoned for anti-apartheid protests for 27 years – released in 1990

•      Apartheid ended in 1994 with fully democractic elections – Nelson Mandela voted as President

•      A new South African flag was designed as a flag of union between the different groups in the country

•      A new constitution was introduced in 1996 founded on equality, justice and freedom for all.

Coming away from the museum left me reflecting on how appalling injustice like this can be allowed to take place but I remembered that this has happened time and again throughout history and even good and well-meaning people have stood by and allowed their fellow human beings to be treated in sub human ways – it still happens today where there is oppression of people around the world.  It made me wonder if there are ways in which I am complicit in the oppression of others through my lifestyle or through keeping silent where I ought to speak out.  I pray that if I am aware of the ill treatment of others I would have the courage to speak out, act in their defense and be prepared to change my way of life accordingly.  Not an easy thing to do.  

The museum ended with a feeling of hopefulness for the future and for the healing of hurts and division and gave me a fresh impetus to pray for this wonderful nation. 

‘South Africa so utterly improbably is a beacon of hope in a dark and troubled world.’ Archbishop Desmond Tutu

The Flame of Democracy

The preamble from the South African Constitution

    

Pray for South Africa (some of this is based on information from Operation World)

•      New President Cyril Ramaphosa – that he will deal with corruption in the Government and lead with integrity and wisdom.

•      High crime rates fuelled by poverty, desperation, lack of justice and illegal firearms – pray for the police, those working with children and young people at risk, the jobless, prisoners and the hopeless and desperate.

•      Continued legacy of apartheid – inequality, poverty, racism. 

•      For the church to lead the way in unity and reconciliation.

•    The nation is 75% Christian so pray that the believers will unite to seek to address injustice and poverty.

•    Pray for healing and unity – especially where some Christians were seen as slow to denounce apartheid and divisions remain.

•     Pray for the refugees and migrants living in or travelling through South Africa and those who seek to help them.