Langa Massacre and SA in 1985 — Vignettes for resisting global authoritarianism

Excerpts from Mark Swilling’s new book, 1985: The Langa Massacre and the End of White Rule in South Africa, graphically tell the story of 1985 and why it was a historic turning point that many in our increasingly authoritarian world can learn from.

Mark Swilling is a Professor at the Centre for Sustainability Transitions at Stellenbosch University.

“They shot at the front row in front of us and I saw that the police were all visible from the top of the Hippos. The one behind was also shooting. They also shot up to the third row. I was holding a girl, she fell, and as I started to pick her up, I was shot in the back. I let go of her and I started running and I was grazed by the bullet. I ran up to the house which was in front and I looked back at the scene, and I looked at what was happening. There were people trying to stand up but these were shot at again.” – Sydney Ntlanjeni, resident of Langa, Uitenhage, giving evidence to the Kannemeyer Commission of Inquiry into the Langa Massacre that occurred on Sharpeville Day, 21 March 1985. Forty-seven people died that day, 35 were shot in the back.

“And there was a bicycle which was also moving along Maduna Road. I cannot say where it originally came from. […] The policeman on top of the white truck made a sign to the person riding the bicycle to move between the two vehicles. […] The bicycle was […] in front of the crowd. I saw that the policeman on top of the white prisoner truck shot at the one riding the bicycle and as he was hit, he was almost thrown into the air and I saw that he was shot through the head.” – E Thembani, giving evidence to the Kannemeyer Commission.

“At no stage until I left the scene was there a bicycle on the scene.” – Warrant Officer Pentz of the South African Police, giving evidence to the Kannemeyer Commission.

The story of the boy on his bicycle who was shot first on 21 March 1985 is the very centre of the story I tell in my new book, 1985: The Langa Massacre and the Ending of White Rule in South Africa (University of Johannesburg Press). What follows are excerpts from the book that graphically tell the story of 1985 and why it was a historic turning point that many in our increasingly authoritarian world can learn from.

All the policemen who gave evidence at the Kannemeyer Commission in 1985 confirmed Pentz’s story. They assumed the boy on the bicycle had died and therefore there was no chance of their story being contradicted. Moses Bucwa was that boy on the bicycle.

“What they did not know is that Molly Blackburn, leader of the human rights group Black Sash who was assassinated on 28 December 1985, had managed to find Moses Bucwa. Knowing how crucial his testimony would be, she hid him away in her home. […] Because of his wound, he was confined to a wheelchair.