Today in Kimberley's History
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23 days since beginning of the Siege of Kimberley, 1899
Extract from "The Diary of a Doctor's Wife – During the Siege of Kimberley October 1899 to February 1900" by Winifred Heberden.
To-day Wesselton, Beaconsfield, and the Sanatorium, where Mr Rhodes is staying, were chiefly aimed at by the Boer-German gunners. Not one shell did any more harm than the breaking of a cooking 'billy'; the pieces of shells being eagerly hunted for by little boys directly the explosion is over. These shells do not set anything alight; the dates on them vary between '91 and '96 - so perhaps the climate of the Republics has not agreed with them. From 1 shilling to 2 pounds sterling are being given for fragments of, or nearly complete shells.
Extract from "The Diary of a Doctor's Wife – During the Siege of Kimberley October 1899 to February 1900" by Winifred Heberden.
To-day Wesselton, Beaconsfield, and the Sanatorium, where Mr Rhodes is staying, were chiefly aimed at by the Boer-German gunners. Not one shell did any more harm than the breaking of a cooking 'billy'; the pieces of shells being eagerly hunted for by little boys directly the explosion is over. These shells do not set anything alight; the dates on them vary between '91 and '96 - so perhaps the climate of the Republics has not agreed with them. From 1 shilling to 2 pounds sterling are being given for fragments of, or nearly complete shells.
Helen Suzman is born - 1917
Politician and Anti-Apartheid activist, Helen Suzman, was born in Germiston, South Africa. During her 36 years in Parliament she defended the right to freedom of expression for all South Africans; with great courage she used every opportunity to speak out against discriminatory legislation. She entered politics when she represented the United Party (UP) in Parliament in 1953. Six years later she founded the Progressive Party (PP) and became its sole representative in Parliament. As a Member of Parliament she was able to visit prisons, among them Robben Island, where she inspected the living conditions of prisoners. She visited former President Nelson Mandela several times at Robben Island. When Nelson Mandela signed the new constitution in 1996, Suzman was along side him. In the course of her career the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard have awarded her honorary doctorates. Her struggle against apartheid won her the United Nations Human Rights Award in 1978 and in 1980, the Medallion of Heroism. The Helen Suzman Foundation was been established to promote liberal democracy in South Africa.
Politician and Anti-Apartheid activist, Helen Suzman, was born in Germiston, South Africa. During her 36 years in Parliament she defended the right to freedom of expression for all South Africans; with great courage she used every opportunity to speak out against discriminatory legislation. She entered politics when she represented the United Party (UP) in Parliament in 1953. Six years later she founded the Progressive Party (PP) and became its sole representative in Parliament. As a Member of Parliament she was able to visit prisons, among them Robben Island, where she inspected the living conditions of prisoners. She visited former President Nelson Mandela several times at Robben Island. When Nelson Mandela signed the new constitution in 1996, Suzman was along side him. In the course of her career the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard have awarded her honorary doctorates. Her struggle against apartheid won her the United Nations Human Rights Award in 1978 and in 1980, the Medallion of Heroism. The Helen Suzman Foundation was been established to promote liberal democracy in South Africa.
Dr Letele and seven other Galeshewe executive ANC members arrested - 1952
Resistance to apartheid in Kimberley was mounted as early as mid-1952 as part of the Defiance Campaign. Dr Arthur Letele put together a group of volunteers to defy the segregation laws by occupying 'Europeans Only’ benches at Kimberley Railway Station on September 16th 1952 – which led to arrest and imprisonment.
On 7th November 1952 protesters demonstrated against apartheid by occupying racially segregated public spaces in Kimberley. Dr Letele and seven other Galeshewe executive ANC members were arrested. The arrests fuelled further resentment and led to public uprisings in the streets of No. 2 Location, where both public and private property were destroyed. The protest continued on 8th November.
Resistance to apartheid in Kimberley was mounted as early as mid-1952 as part of the Defiance Campaign. Dr Arthur Letele put together a group of volunteers to defy the segregation laws by occupying 'Europeans Only’ benches at Kimberley Railway Station on September 16th 1952 – which led to arrest and imprisonment.
On 7th November 1952 protesters demonstrated against apartheid by occupying racially segregated public spaces in Kimberley. Dr Letele and seven other Galeshewe executive ANC members were arrested. The arrests fuelled further resentment and led to public uprisings in the streets of No. 2 Location, where both public and private property were destroyed. The protest continued on 8th November.
Nelson Mandela sentenced to five-year imprisonment for incitement and leaving the country without a passport - 1962
It was 27 May 1963, and just over six months since he had been sentenced to five years in prison for leaving the country without a passport and inciting workers to strike. Contrary to what some believe, prisoners are not sentenced to a particular prison; they are sentenced by the courts and the prison authorities decide where to send them. In Mr Mandela’s case, he started serving his five-year sentence at Pretoria Local Prison after he was sentenced on 7 November 1962.
Without any warning, on Monday 27 May 1963 he was transferred to the bitterly cold Robben Island, where he faced the harshest of his periods in prison. On the first day the prisoners had to remove every item of clothing and throw them into water, and then dress in the cold, soaked garments.
A couple of years after his release, he related the following story from this part of his imprisonment: “This Captain says, ‘Now why is your hair long?’ to one of us. Now he chose a chap, you know, who was very gentle, a gentleman, you know, didn't want to quarrel with anybody, wouldn't hurt a fly and he was finding it difficult to answer. So this Captain says, ‘I’m talking to you! You know the regulations! Your hair should have been cut off!’ … So I say to him, ‘Now look here.’ Oh, it was enough! I couldn’t continue with the sentence. He says, ‘never talk to me like that!’ and he was now advancing. So I say, ‘You dare touch me ... by the time I'm finished with you, you will be as poor as a church mouse.’ Well, he stopped ... I was frightened; it was not because I was courageous, but one had to put up a front and so he stopped.”
On 12 June 1963, two weeks after his arrival on the Island, and again without notice, Mr Mandela was transferred back to Pretoria. At the time it was suggested that it was to “protect” him from members of the PAC, an assertion he disputes. “They issued a statement to the effect that they moved me from Robben Island because the PAC wanted to assault me, which was absolutely untrue … these were youngsters in their 20s … very respectful and they wanted a lot of information from me. And after work I spent a lot of time conversing with them ... Then, when I subsequently went back, after the Rivonia Trial, a Colonel said to me, ‘We had to rush you back to Pretoria because we discovered we had made a mistake. We had transferred you without proper authority to Robben Island.’”
It has been assumed that the Rivonia Trial was the reason for his transfer back to Pretoria, but he was moved almost a month before the 11 July 1963 raid on Liliesleaf farm in Rivonia, in which a number of his comrades were captured. In October he met them for the first time as they emerged from 90-day detention, and they first appeared in court on 9 October 1963.
On 12 June 1964, the day after having been convicted of sabotage, Mr Mandela and seven others were sentenced to life imprisonment. On 13 June – almost a year to the day since he had left the Island – he, Govan Mbeki, Walter Sisulu, Raymond Mhlaba, Ahmed Kathrada, Elias Motsoaledi and Andrew Mlangeni arrived on Robben Island. Denis Goldberg, because he was white, was sent to Pretoria.
Source: Nelson Mandela Foundation
It was 27 May 1963, and just over six months since he had been sentenced to five years in prison for leaving the country without a passport and inciting workers to strike. Contrary to what some believe, prisoners are not sentenced to a particular prison; they are sentenced by the courts and the prison authorities decide where to send them. In Mr Mandela’s case, he started serving his five-year sentence at Pretoria Local Prison after he was sentenced on 7 November 1962.
Without any warning, on Monday 27 May 1963 he was transferred to the bitterly cold Robben Island, where he faced the harshest of his periods in prison. On the first day the prisoners had to remove every item of clothing and throw them into water, and then dress in the cold, soaked garments.
A couple of years after his release, he related the following story from this part of his imprisonment: “This Captain says, ‘Now why is your hair long?’ to one of us. Now he chose a chap, you know, who was very gentle, a gentleman, you know, didn't want to quarrel with anybody, wouldn't hurt a fly and he was finding it difficult to answer. So this Captain says, ‘I’m talking to you! You know the regulations! Your hair should have been cut off!’ … So I say to him, ‘Now look here.’ Oh, it was enough! I couldn’t continue with the sentence. He says, ‘never talk to me like that!’ and he was now advancing. So I say, ‘You dare touch me ... by the time I'm finished with you, you will be as poor as a church mouse.’ Well, he stopped ... I was frightened; it was not because I was courageous, but one had to put up a front and so he stopped.”
On 12 June 1963, two weeks after his arrival on the Island, and again without notice, Mr Mandela was transferred back to Pretoria. At the time it was suggested that it was to “protect” him from members of the PAC, an assertion he disputes. “They issued a statement to the effect that they moved me from Robben Island because the PAC wanted to assault me, which was absolutely untrue … these were youngsters in their 20s … very respectful and they wanted a lot of information from me. And after work I spent a lot of time conversing with them ... Then, when I subsequently went back, after the Rivonia Trial, a Colonel said to me, ‘We had to rush you back to Pretoria because we discovered we had made a mistake. We had transferred you without proper authority to Robben Island.’”
It has been assumed that the Rivonia Trial was the reason for his transfer back to Pretoria, but he was moved almost a month before the 11 July 1963 raid on Liliesleaf farm in Rivonia, in which a number of his comrades were captured. In October he met them for the first time as they emerged from 90-day detention, and they first appeared in court on 9 October 1963.
On 12 June 1964, the day after having been convicted of sabotage, Mr Mandela and seven others were sentenced to life imprisonment. On 13 June – almost a year to the day since he had left the Island – he, Govan Mbeki, Walter Sisulu, Raymond Mhlaba, Ahmed Kathrada, Elias Motsoaledi and Andrew Mlangeni arrived on Robben Island. Denis Goldberg, because he was white, was sent to Pretoria.
Source: Nelson Mandela Foundation