SIPHO NGHONA’S ADDRESS TO THE GAUTENG COPE STUDENT MOVEMENT CONFERENCE HELD AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA ON SATURDAY, 3 OCTOBER 2009
When student bodies were established at tertiary institutions in South Africa, the rationale for their very existence was primarily to encourage and promote political activism, ensure that there was a progressive voice in places of learning that would not only represent the interests of the down trodden, but promote a culture of defiance against the system of oppression, thereby carrying out and fulfilling the liberation movement’s resolution to making the country ungovernable.
Before answering the question of what should characterize the culture of a modern student movement, we should first begin with putting student activity and protests into perspective by understanding and defining their historical role. As a result of apartheid and racial intolerance, oppression by the Government increased and was accompanied by the weakening of liberation movements and persons who accepted the consequences of open opposition to the State. The 1960’s were ushered in by the Sharpeville massacre. Defiance by the masses led to the introduction of the State of Emergency whereby two of the country’s major opposition forces (at the time as COPE was still not born), the African National Congress and the Pan Africanist Congress were banned. As a consequence, South Africa became a police state.
Young people became more impatient and aware of the country’s volatile political situation, and physically involved themselves in shaping the country’s fate through militant and sometimes violent means. Also, taking into account that black Africans were not permitted to attend white universities, black student movements succeeded in recruiting large numbers of young people into their ranks without them necessarily being students, but fighting the liberation cause through this vehicle. The agenda at the time was simply; better quality education and access to all institutions as enshrined in the freedom charter. A culture of robust and intense debates, resulting in the creation of a cadre capable to hold his own when debating matters of national and international importance was created through this process.
We can track the country’s first student movement as the Students` Christian Association, established in 1896 at Stellenbosch University which was regarded as the centre of Dutch culture and intellectual life. This student movement identified race relations as a focus point throughout its life and work in emancipating the down trodden. Although since its inception, its work among black Africans was done separately from that of European students, a speech by the first secretary for African work, given at the University of Stellenbosch in l926, relates the sentiment of the time as follows:
“The appearance of Native speakers on an open platform to address European audiences, and especially university students, is an event in the history of the Native question in South Africa, of far reaching consequences … When students of a university are willing to listen to a Native speaker, we feel that by that very act an important bridge has been thrown over the gulf between black and white in South Africa.”
At a student conference held at the University of Fort Hare, the home of black intellectualism in 1930 where the gathering was opened by the country’s famous liberal statesman, Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, one of the motions to the conference was “whether or not the gain of one race had to be secured at the cost of the other’s loss, whether or not the races had to be a menace to each other”. The answer was an emphatic NO!
In a wonderful gesture, the African section of the Student Christian Association had invited white students to participate in this conference. Despite the Africans arranging separate eating and sleeping facilities, generally compliant with the country’s legislation, the European delegates voted in favour of common meals. History tells us that 275 members attended the conference, and of these approximately 80 were European (English and Afrikaners). This, inevitably indicated a rise in liberalism where both black and white students could debate matters at a conference, whilst sharing facilities.
Following the conference at Fort Hare, in December l93O, at a meeting of the Council of the SCA (the highest decision making body) issued the following resolution regarding the 1926 Stellenbosch gathering:
“With regard to the criticisms which have been levelled against certain happenings at the conference, the Council… readily recognises the fact of existing racial differences, as evidence of which recognition it would point to the existence in the SCA organisation of two sections, European and Bantu. This fact and its implications are also fully acknowledged by the Bantu students themselves, as witnessed by the following statement voluntarily made by the members of the SCA branch of Fort Hare:
“Whereas it has come to our knowledge that certain people entertain some fear regarding our aims and aspirations with respect to the social relationship between Black and White in South Africa, we, the Executive and members of the South African Native College Students` Christian Association, wish to state that although we shall always expect and work for social justice for all, and shall appreciate any helpful offer or invitation from the white section of the community, we do not wish to press for any intimate social intercourse between the two races.
“The meeting of Bantu and European at the same tables and in athletic competition was unpremeditated and no part of the original programme. Strong exception has been taken to this intermingling of the races, and we recognise that deference is due to the feelings of a large portion of the South African people. From this point of view, we regret that what has happened has given rise to misunderstanding and estrangement. The Council urges all concerned to have considerate regard on all occasions for the country’s feelings in the matter of social intermingling.”
Following the success of the Nationalist Party in 1948 at the national election, and the introduction of new legislation, promulgated in 1959 such as Segregation Act, and other laws that forced the death of liberalism, this led to considerable factions and tensions within the SCA that led to its inevitable death.
The National Union of South African Students (NUSAS) established in 1924 was an organization that limited its business and concerns to student affairs. However, they were forced to take a more direct militant style due to the government’s interference in the universities internal affairs by promoting segregation. In response to the government’s segregation policies, NUSAS became involved in active opposition to the policies of apartheid.
NUSAS played a leading role in the opposition to the legislation and it was this that set the pattern for the organisation`s subsequent opposition to apartheid, and led to the formation of many other student movements that essentially fought apartheid and the state against segregation laws.
The dawn of a new political dispensation in 1994 where a black liberation movement became Government and all educational facilities were opened to all races, the role of the student movements became a blurred one without a specific definition or role, and one that still continues to grapple with its identity. This was the same grave mistake made by the governing party by failing to make the transition from being a liberation movement to one that controls the state. Student Movements too, became too embroiled in the same politics of yesteryear, in political rhetoric that had no bearing on the plight and needs of students who needed to be on-boarded into tertiary life and assisted financially, and simply failed to unite students of different colour and race. Student politics became a springboard for those with political ambitions, with some “students” going on to spend 10 years in a tertiary institution without ever studying or qualifying. Even in this day and age, you would hear people bragging that “I was a leader of COSAS or SASCO” most of which were just involved in these structures not for the right reasons, but for political careerism and advancement, whilst failing their courses in the process.
What makes a modern and progressive Student Movement of the 21st century? We should have reached a juncture where we are able to distinguish between a Student Movement, a Youth Movement and a parent body. Whilst their collective responsibility is to pursue and implement their respective mandates, it is critical that these be separated and be different operationally, though ideologically the same. Student needs vary vastly from those of a youth movement member who is employed or seeking employment or to those of more mature members belonging to the parent body.
A modern student movement in a democratic and progressive society of the 21st century should be one that subscribes to:
1) Being passionate for progressive educational reform in our country;
2) Taking a keen interest in the strategic direction of the country’s educational framework. One would have expected students to engage the Ministry of Education for their careless proposal to decrease our educational standards (bring down distinction from 80% to 70%);
3) Having student leaders setting an example by passing their exams. One point to note, nobody can ever take away your education;
4) Being willing to be a selfless mouthpiece and advocates of student concerns and needs without bashing the infrastructure and emptying out rubbish bins on our campuses;
5) Holding the university council, as well as the education ministry accountable to the plight of students through fact based and constructive engagement – that’s what builds a student cadre;
6) Encouraging a culture of intellectual, content based debate that would yield and build the next crop of leaders that can hold their own in a globally competitive environment;
7) Taking their role to being role models and custodians for the interests of students seriously (not treat the SM as a platform for pushing certain political agenda’s and factions, hence the separation between a youth organisation, a student movement and a parent body); and
Espousing ethics and morals fit for future academics, business and political leaders of our country.
We should also take into cognisance that the primary reason for people to attend tertiary institutions is to equip and prepare them for their future participation in the economic main stream, use the acquired education and knowledge for economic benefit and means, whilst also placing a large emphasis on ploughing back to the communities to which we come from. In his book, I Write What I Lke, written in 1975, Steve Biko said:
“Political freedom without economic freedom is meaningless, and if we have a mere change of face in governing positions, what is likely to happen is that black people will continue to be poor, and you will see a few blacks filtering through into the so-called elite.”
We shall not only attain economic freedom through Black Economic Empowerment, winning tenders, buying minority stakes in white owned businesses, but through sustainable business opportunities linked to true enterprise development, with corporations that are wholly or majority owned by our people based on delivery, merit and qualification. As reflected in the Japanese and Canadian economic model, this is true economic empowerment! That is the long term view and the undertone to the revolution that would forever transform our society.
Student movements in the 21st century have a fundamentally important responsibility to revolutionize the manner they have been doing things, and we should treat this as “BUSINESS UNUSUAL.” We operate in a globally competitive environment where these movements should be partaking in a process of bridging the critical skills shortage in the country by properly and constructively engaging the education ministry and university councils to make available bursary schemes to assist in bridging the talent shortages we face. According to research conducted by Statistics South Africa, it revealed that 97% of the economically active white youth who hold qualifications in the business, commerce and management fields are employed, while only 53,3% of African youths with qualifications in the same field were successful to find employment. This paints a bleak picture. One of the reasons for this could be based on the subjects we choose, and modern student movements have a responsibility to not only make a noise, but provide guidance where it is needed.
The youth of 1976 fought a revolution to emancipate our people from the shackles of apartheid, and left an amazing legacy in ensuring that we became a democratic society. As the youth of the 21st century, the question that is still left to be answered is: what legacy are we to leave behind? We should accept that we are no longer fighting a liberation struggle, and the days of militant rhetoric to make institutions of learning ungovernable belong in the rubbish dump!
The revolution we face has far reaching and dire consequences to the well-being of our country and our positioning in Africa and the rest of the international community. This revolution we should be fighting now is; defending the gains of our constitutional democracy, access to quality education but more importantly, we should be leading an economic revolution. We shall never succeed in our endevours to change the status quo if we don’t take our place in history by firmly taking charge of our destiny which is to revolutionize student movement activity in our country.
History has beckoned, history has chosen you, COPE Student Movement to live your legacy today, failing which, history will judge you very harshly for not having taken the opportunities presented to you.
We shall be watching your progress with a keen interest, and we shall always avail ourselves to ensure that through COPE, to which we all belong, the much needed agenda for hope and change in all sectors of society shall be realised. In conclusion, I leave you with an extract by Ben Okri, one of Africa’s renowned authors from his book “A way of being free”, which reads as follows:
“There are no joys without mountains having been climbed. There are no joys without the nightmares that precede them and spring them into light…The joys that spring from the challenges are profound. And the challenges will always be there. As long as there are human beings there will be challenges. Let no one speak of frontiers exhausted, all challenges met, all problems solved. There is always the joy of discovering, uncovering, and forging new forms, new ways.…”
Best of luck for the rest of your conference, and we look forward to engaging you on your policy resolutions, and in all we do, let us not forget our ideology that COPE “is a people centred movement, subscribing to the ideals of progressivism.”
Matla!
