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The prophetic witnessAlbert John Mvumbi LuthuliPresident-General of the ANC

December 1952 until his death in 1967

The prophetic witnessAlbert John Mvumbi LuthuliPresident-General of the ANC

December 1952 until his death in 1967

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“What we need is the courage that rises with danger. – Luthuli, in his Nobel Peace Prize lecture, December 1961”

THE white berries on theAssegai tree outsideParliament have just

finished flowering. Beautiful,some have turned pink, somered. Soon, they will attractloeries and doves, bats, evenmonkeys – drawn into the strongbranches that even Cape Town’smost vicious southeaster canbarely bend.

It’s a powerful evergreen thatwill still live for at least another20 years, planted five years afterthe first elections to mark thedistinguished life of ChiefAlbert Luthuli.

If it was climbing to its fullheight in a forest, in a differenttime, its trunk and brancheswould have been cut to make theshafts of real assegais.

It’s the right tree, anindigenous tree, to symbolise agreat man and it’s in the rightposition – outside the buildingswhose doors Luthuli so longed tosee opened.

The Assegai was planted in1999, about 100 years afterLuthuli was born nearBulawayo in then-Rhodesia. Hishumble, God-fearing parentshad travelled far across thecolonial borders as ardentSeventh Day Adventistmissionaries and he was theirthird son – given the nameAlbert John by his father, JohnBunyan Luthuli, and the nameMvumbi by his mother, Mtonya.It is legendary that he alwayspreferred his evocative Zuluname, meaning “continuousrain”, yet all his life he used“Albert”.

It would have beenimpossible to predict the extentto which the righteous youngman, born oppressed into thelate 19th-Century world ofWestern empires, wouldinfluence a nation. But with hisbroad smile, towering drive,warmth and constantlyflowering zeal, Luthuli wouldnot stand back for anyoneagainst injustice. Although hisfather died when he was a baby,he carried a fearless moralitywhich would be the making ofhim. It would, almost certainly,result in his cruel death in July1967 when his body was found onrailway tracks.

A 69-year-old Luthuli, whowas still the President-Generalof the African NationalCongress, had apparently beenout walking near his home inGroutville when he was hit by atrain. Grief-stricken, fewbelieved the official explanationand so the tragedy remains amystery that has yet to be solved.

While Luthuli always paidadmiring tribute to theexceptional men of the AfricanNational Congress who wentbefore him – the John Dubes andthe Pixley kaSemes – heaccomplished some of the mostmoving acheivements in thehistory of the country. Despitesavage laws and State-sponsoredviolence, the masses were drawnunder his leadership from 1952into significant acts of power.

Luthuli was not young, atnearly 50, when he first took uphis national role in the ANC, buthe had a mighty political career.

The massive DefianceCampaign, the drafting andadoption of the FreedomCharter, the formation of thenon-racial Congress Alliance,the women’s Anti-Pass March onthe Union Buildings andheightened political activitythroughout the cities andcountry towns of South Africaall took place while Luthuliearned the praise of the workingpoor and international leaders.

In marking the centenary ofhis birth at a celebration inkwaDukuza in 1998, then-

President Nelson Mandeladescribed Luthuli as “acolossus and yet a foot soldierof our people”. The two titanswere in court together,alongside Luthuli’s successorOliver Tambo, in the firstRivonia Trial of 1956. Andalthough there was afracturing in their relationshipwhen Mandela launched thepeople’s army, Umkhonto weSizwe – apparently againstLuthuli’s avowed non-violentprinciples – the other NobelPeace Prize winner always

claimed Luthuli as a masterand mentor.

“His memory will last foreverto us who worked with him andfollowed in his footsteps,” saidMandela. “This giant chosepersecution, including the fact ofbeing deposed as an elected chiefby a regime that despisedeverything African anddemocratic. In doing so hetaught us the lesson that realleaders must be ready tosacrifice all for the freedom oftheir people.”

Mandela said that the words

Luthuli had spoken after theRivonia trialists were sentencedin 1964 (see this page) had heldthem rapt “through the prisonyears. “He evoked the vision of apeaceful, united and just societywhich sustained our peoplethrough the long years ofstruggle.”

Luthuli studied his lifelongChristian values from hisparents and then his uncleMartin – who was chief of theUmvoti Mission Reserve inGroutville, where Luthuli grewup – and became a Methodist lay

preacher and teacher at a youngage.

His life would take anirrevocable political switch in1935, when the elders of theAbase-Makolweni Tribe askedhim to accept the Groutvillechieftaincy. Luthuli remainedtrue to the precious rigours ofthat position – “a servant of (my)people.. the voice of (my) people..part and parcel of the tribe, andnot an agent of the government”– for the next 17 years until theapartheid State dismissed himin 1952.

Luthuli had becomedangerous to it. A year before, hehad become the Natal provincialleader of the ANC – which wasstill a legal organisation at thattime. But it had been six years ofincreasingly exuberant politicalinfluence that had turnedLuthuli into a target for theNational Party. Since 1946, whenthe esteemed ANC leader Dubedied, Luthuli had been drawndeeper and deeper into nascentrevolutionary politics.

By 1952, he would be electedANC president-general, themajority of those who electedhim affected by his Christiancharisma, and his down-to-earthunderstanding of traditionalleadership.

In 1967, the raising of theANC’s black, green and gold flagin public, in front of theapartheid police, was almostunknown. The raising of theright thumb, the ANC salute,was a gesture for theunderground. The wearing ofkhaki uniforms at a funeral for a

fallen hero would have beenalmost taboo. The open singingof Nkosi sikelel’ iAfrika wouldhave been an anthem for danger.

Yet under clear skies on aJuly morning, when Luthuliwas buried, it was with the ANCflag hoisted in many of the 10 000hands of those at his funeral inthe Groutville African Reserve.His coffin was surrounded bysolemn men and womenwearing the black berets andgreen blouses of the liberationmovement. There were thumbsraised. Those people who hadbeen herded into the section ofthe church designated forNatives, audaciously sangEnoch Sontonga’s old churchhymn.

All around them were thepolice. All white. All waiting.There wasn’t much they coulddo at that moment. There weretoo many Western diplomatsamong the crowd and in thechurch. But no-one there wouldnot say their farewellsappropriately.

Chief Albert Luthuli was theANC leader, a man of the people,and his words would resonate:“(Our) policies are inaccordance with the deepestinternational principles ofbrotherhood and humanity.”

And his prescience, deliveredout of his own commitment tothe ordinary South Africans ofall races, surely echoes:“Without leadership,brotherhood and humanity maybe blasted out of existence inSouth Africa for long decades tocome.”

A leader and a man of the people

• Born in 1898 nearBulawayo in a Seventh DayAdventist mission

• In 1908, his mother sendshim to the family'straditional home at UmvotiMission Reserve,Groutville, Natal

• In 1920, he gets a Statebursary to train as ateacher at Adams College

• He joins the educationcollege staff where heteaches and lectures

• In 1935, he accepts thechieftaincy of Groutvillereserve

• He goes home to becomean administrator of tribalaffairs for the next 17 years

• In 1938, he travels to Indiafor a missionaryconference

• In 1946, ANC leader John LDube dies, and Luthulibegins his political careerout of winning a by-election

• In 1948, he spends ninemonths touring the UnitedStates for the church

• In 1951, he becomes Natalprovincial president of theANC

• In 1952, the DefianceCampaign sets him on apath of direct conflict withthe apartheid State

• In November 1952, thegovernment dismisses himfrom his position as Chief

• In December 1952, Luthuliis elected ANC president-general by a majority

• In 1954, he travels toJohannesburg to protestthe forced removals inSophiatown.

• He is banned for anothertwo years

• In 1955 he is re-elected asANC president-general

• In December 1956, he isarrested with 154 othersfor treason

• In late 1957, he is released,together with OR Tambo,for lack of evidence

• In 1958, he is elected ANCpresident-general again

• In 1959, he is banned tothe Lower Tugela districtfor five years

• In March 1960, as theSharpeville massacre isunfolding, he is testifyingin court for the remainingtrialists

• The apartheid governmentbans the ANC and otherliberation organisations

• Luthuli publicly burns hisPass in Pretoria, and isdetained until August

• In 1961, a year after he wasnamed as the Nobel PeacePrize winner, he travels toOslo to receive his award

• On July 21,1967, whilewalking near his Groutvillevillage home, Luthuli diedafter being said to havebeen hit by a train

TIMELINE

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“Indeed we do need in this world of ours at the present moment peace and friendship. These are becoming very rare commodities in the world. – Luthuli, in his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, December 1961”

JUNE 12 1964

SENTENCES of lifeimprisonment have beenpronounced on Nelson

Mandela, Walter Sisulu,Ahmed Kathrada, GovanMbeki, Dennis Goldberg,Raymond Mhlaba, EliasMotsoaledi and AndrewMlangeni in theRivonia Trial

in Pretoria. Over the long years, these

leaders advocated a policy ofracial co-operation, of goodwill,and of peaceful struggle thatmade the South Africanliberation movement one of themost ethical and responsible ofour time. In the face of the mostbitter racial persecution, they

resolutely set themselvesagainst racialism. In the

face of continuedprovocation, theyconsistently chose

the path of reason.The African

NationalCongress, with

allied

organisations representing allracial sections, sought everypossible means of redress forintolerable conditions, and heldconsistently to a policy of usingmilitant, non-violent means ofstruggle. Their common aimwas to create a South Africa inwhich all South Africans wouldlive and work together asfellow-citizens, enjoying equalrights without discriminationon grounds of race, colour orcreed.

To this end, they used everyaccepted method: propaganda,public meetings and rallies,petitions, stay-at-home-strikes,appeals, boycotts. So carefullydid they educate the people thatin the four-year-long Treason

Trial, one police witness afteranother voluntarily testified tothis emphasis on non-violentmethods of struggle in allaspects of their activities.

But finally all avenues ofresistance were closed. TheANC and other organisationswere made illegal; their leadersjailed, exiled or forcedunderground. The governmentsharpened its oppression of thepeoples of South Africa, usingits all-white Parliament as thevehicle for making repressionlegal, and utilising everyweapon of this highlyindustrialised and modern stateto enforce that “legality”.

The stage was even reachedwhere a white spokesman for

the disenfranchised Africanswas regarded by theGovernment as a traitor. Inaddition, sporadic acts ofuncontrolled violence wereincreasing throughout thecountry. At first in one place,then in another, there werespontaneous eruptions againstintolerable conditions; many ofthese acts increasingly assumeda racial character.

The ANC never abandonedits method of a militant, non-violent struggle, and of creatingin the process a spirit ofmilitancy in the people.However, in the face of theuncompromising white refusalto abandon a policy whichdenies the African and other

oppressed South Africans theirrightful heritage – freedom – noone can blame brave just menfor seeking justice by the use ofviolent methods; nor could theybe blamed if they tried to createan organised force in order toultimately establish peace andracial harmony.

For this, they are sentencedto be shut away for long years inthe brutal and degradingprisons of South Africa. Withthem will be interred thiscountry`s hopes for racial co-operation. They will leave avacuum in leadership that mayonly be filled by bitter hate andracial strife.

They represent the highest inmorality and ethics in the South

African political struggle; thismorality and ethics has beensentenced to an imprisonment itmay never survive. Theirpolicies are in accordance withthe deepest internationalprinciples of brotherhood andhumanity; without theirleadership, brotherhood andhumanity may be blasted out ofexistence in South Africa forlong decades to come.

They believe profoundly injustice and reason; when theyare locked away, justice andreason will have departed fromthe South African scene.

This is an appeal to savethese men, not merely asindividuals, but for what theystand for. In the name of justice,

of hope, of truth and of peace, Iappeal to South Africa’sstrongest allies, Britain andAmerica. In the name of whatwe have come to believe Britainand America stand for, I appealto those two powerful countriesto take decisive action for full-scale action for sanctions thatwould precipitate the end of thehateful system of apartheid.

I appeal to all governmentsthroughout the world, to peopleeverywhere, to organisationsand institutions in every landand at every level, to act now toimpose such sanctions on SouthAfrica that will bring about thevital necessary change and avertwhat can become the greatestAfrican tragedy of our times.

Statement by Chief Albert Luthuli onthe conclusion of the Rivonia Trial

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NOBEL Peace Prize laureate ChiefAlbert Luthuli delivered his Nobellecture in the auditorium of theUniversity of Oslo.

The occasion saw some firsts inNobel ceremonies. Luthuli wasasked to bring his wifeNokukhanya to the platform,which was something that hadnever been done before done, andafter much applause at the end ofhis lecture, Luthuli sang in Zuluthe anthem, Nkosi Sikelel iAfrika,joined by other Africans who wereat the ceremony.

The text of his lecture is takenfrom Les Prix Nobel en 1961. But itis a recording of it which revealsLuthuli’s marvellous deliveryincluding an informal, quiteamusing opening paragraphwhich is not in the prepared text.

IN years gone by, some of thegreatest men of our century havestood here to receive this award,

men whose names and deeds haveenriched the pages of human history,men whom future generations willregard as having shaped the world ofour time. No one could be leftunmoved at being plucked from thevillage of Groutville, a name many ofyou have never heard before andwhich does not even feature on manymaps – to be plucked frombanishment in a rural backwater, tobe lifted out of the narrow confines ofSouth Africa’s internal politics andplaced here in the shadow of thesegreat figures.

It is a great honour to me to standon this rostrum where many of thegreat men of our times have stoodbefore.

The Nobel Peace Award that hasbrought me here has for me athreefold significance. On the onehand, it is a tribute to my humblecontribution to efforts by democratson both sides of the colour line to finda peaceful solution to the raceproblem.

This contribution is not inany way unique. I did notinitiate the struggle toextend the area ofhuman freedom inSouth Africa. OtherAfrican patriots –devoted men – did sobefore me. I also, as aChristian and patriot,could not look onwhile systematicattempts were made,almost in everydepartment of life, todebase the God-factor inman or to set a limitbeyond which the humanbeing in his black formmight not strive toserve his

Creator to the best of his ability. To remain neutral in a situation

where the laws of the land virtuallycriticised God for having created menof colour was the sort of thing I couldnot, as a Christian, tolerate.On theother hand, the award is a democraticdeclaration of solidarity with thosewho fight to widen the area of libertyin my part of the world. As such, it isthe sort of gesture which gives meand millions who think as I do,tremendous encouragement.

There are still people in the worldtoday who regard South Africa’s raceproblem as a simple clash betweenblack and white. Our government hascarefully projected this image of theproblem before the eyes of the world.This has had two effects. It hasconfused the real issues at stake inthe race crisis. It has given some formof force to the government’scontention that the race problem is adomestic matter for South Africa.This, in turn, has tended to narrowdown the area over which our casecould be better understood in theworld.

From yet another angle, it iswelcome recognition of the roleplayed by the African people duringthe last 50 years to establish,peacefully, a society in which meritand not race would fix the position ofthe individual in the life of thenation.

This award could not be for mealone, nor for just South Africa, butfor Africa as a whole. Africapresently is most deeply torn withstrife and most bitterly stricken withracial conflict. How strange then it isthat a man of Africa should be hereto receive an award given for serviceto the cause of peace andbrotherhood between men. There hasbeen little peace in Africa in our time.

From the northernmost end ofour continent, where war has ragedfor seven years, to the centre and tothe south there are battles being

fought out, some with arms, somewithout. In my own country, in theyear 1960, for which this award isgiven, there was a State ofEmergency for many months. AtSharpeville, a small village, in asingle afternoon, 69 people were shotdead and 180 wounded by small armsfire, and in parts like the Transkei, aState of Emergency is stillcontinuing.

Ours is a continent in revolutionagainst oppression. And peace andrevolution make uneasy bedfellows.There can be no peace until the forcesof oppression are overthrown.

Our continent has been carved upby the great powers. Aliengovernments have been forced uponthe African people by militaryconquest and by economicdomination. Strivings for nationhoodand national dignity have beenbeaten down by force. Traditionaleconomics and ancient customs havebeen disrupted, and human skills andenergy have been harnessed for theadvantage of our conquerors. Inthese times there has been no peace.There could be no brotherhoodbetween men.

But now, the revolutionarystirrings of our continent are settingthe past aside. Our peopleeverywhere from north to south ofthe continent are reclaiming theirland, their right to participate ingovernment, their dignity as men,their nationhood. Thus, in theturmoil of revolution, the basis forpeace and brotherhood in Africa isbeing restored by the resurrection ofnational sovereignty andindependence, of equality and thedignity of man.

It should not be difficult for youhere in Europe to appreciate this.Your continent passed through alonger series of revolutionaryupheavals, in which your age offeudal backwardness gave way to thenew age of industrialisation, truenationhood, democracy and risingliving standards – the golden age forwhich men have striven forgenerations. Yourage ofrevolution,stretchingacross all theyears fromthe 18th-Centuryto ourown,

encompassed some of the bloodiestcivil wars in all history.

By comparison, the Africanrevolution has swept across threequarters of the continent in less thana decade. Its final completion iswithin sight of our own generation.Again, by comparison with Europe,our African revolution – to our credit– is proving to be orderly, quick andcomparatively bloodless.

This fact of the relativepeacefulness of our Africanrevolution is attested to by otherobservers of eminence. Professor CWde Kiewiet, president of theUniversity of Rochester, UnitedStates, in a Hoernlé MemorialLecture for 1960, has this to say:“There has, it is true, been almost noserious violence in the achievementof political self-rule. In that sensethere is no revolution in Africa – onlyreform.”

Professor DV Cowen, thenprofessor of comparative law at theUniversity of Cape Town, SouthAfrica, in a Hoernlé MemorialLecture for 1961, throws light on thenature of our struggle in thefollowing words: “They (the whites inSouth Africa) are again fortunate inthe very high moral calibre of thenon-white inhabitants of SouthAfrica, who compare favorably withany on the whole continent.”

Let this never be forgotten bythose who so eagerly point a finger ofscorn at Africa.

Perhaps, by your standards, oursurge to revolutionary reforms islate. If it is so – if we are late injoining the modern age of socialenlightenment, late in gaining self-rule, independence, and democracy, itis because in the past the pace has notbeen set by us. Europe set the patternfor the 19th and 20th-Centurydevelopment of Africa. Only now isour continent coming into its ownand recapturing its own fate fromforeign rule.

Though I speak of Africa as asingle entity, it is divided in manyways by race, language, history andcustom; by political, economic and

ethnic frontiers. But in truth,despite these multipledivisions, Africa has a singlecommon purpose and a singlegoal – the achievement of itsown independence.

All Africa, both landswhich have won theirpolitical victoriesbut have still to

overcome the legacyof economic

backwardness, and lands like myown whose political battles have stillto be waged to their conclusion – allAfrica has this single aim: our goal isa united Africa in which thestandards of life and liberty areconstantly expanding, in which theancient legacy of illiteracy anddisease is swept aside, in which thedignity of man is rescued frombeneath the heels of colonialismwhich have trampled it.

This goal, pursued by millions ofour people with revolutionary zeal,by means of books, representations,demonstrations and in some placesarmed force provoked by theadamancy of white rule, carries theonly real promise of peace inAfrica. Whatever meanshave been used,the effortshave gone toend alienrule andraceoppression.

There is aparadox in thefact that Africaqualifies forsuch an award inits age of turmoiland revolution.How great is theparadox and howmuch greater thehonour that anaward in support ofpeace and thebrotherhood of manshould come to onewho is a citizen of acountry where thebrotherhood of man is anillegal doctrine – outlawed,banned, censured, proscribedand prohibited. Where to work, talkor campaign for the realisation in factand deed of the brotherhood of manis hazardous, punished withbanishment or confinement withouttrial or imprisonment. Whereeffective democratic channels topeaceful settlement of the raceproblem have never existed these300 years and where whiteminority power rests on the mostheavily armed and equippedmilitary machine in Africa.

This is South Africa.Even here, where white rule

seems determined not to changeits mind for the better, the spiritof Africa’s militant struggle forliberty, equality andindependenceasserts itself.

I,

together with thousands of mycountrymen,have in the course of thestruggle for these ideals, beenharassed and imprisoned, but we arenot deterred in our quest for a newage in which we shall live in peaceand in brotherhood.

It is not necessary for me to speakat length about South Africa. Itssocial system, its politics, itseconomics and its laws have forcedthemselves on the attention of theworld. It is a museum piece in ourtime, a hangover from the dark pastof mankind, a relic of an age whicheverywhere else is dead or dying.

Here the cult of race superiorityand of white supremacy isworshipped like a god. Few whitepeople escape corruption and manyof their children learn to believe thatwhite men are unquestionablysuperior, efficient, clever, industriousand capable; that black men are,equally unquestionably, inferior,slothful, stupid, evil and clumsy. Onthe basis of the mythology that “thelowest amongst them is higher thanthe highest amongst us”, it is claimedthat white men build everything thatis worthwhile in the country – itscities, its industries, its mines, and its

agriculture andthat they

alone are thus fitted and entitled as ofright to own and control these things,while black men are only temporarysojourners in these cities, fitted onlyfor menial labor, and unfit to sharepolitical power.

The prime minister of SouthAfrica, Dr Verwoerd, then minister ofBantu Affairs, when explaining hisgovernment’s policy on Africaneducation had this to say: “There isno place for him (the African) in theEuropean community above the levelof certain forms of labour.”

There is little new in thismythology. Every part of Africawhich has been subject to whiteconquest has, at one time or anotherand in one guise or another, sufferedfrom it, even in its virulent form ofthe slavery that obtained in Africa upto the 19th-Century. The mitigatingfeature in the gloom of those far-offdays was the shaft of light sunk byChristian missions, a shaft of light towhich we owe our initialenlightenment.

With successive governments ofthe time doing little or nothing toameliorate the harrowing sufferingof the black man at the hands of slavedrivers, men like Dr DavidLivingstone and Dr John Philip andother illustrious men of God stoodfor social justice in the face ofoverwhelming odds.

It is worth noting that the names Ihave referred to are still anathema tosome South Africans. Hence the

ghost of slavery lingers on to thisday in the form of forced labour

that goes on in what are calledfarm prisons.

But the tradition ofLivingstone and Philip

lives on, perpetuated by afew of their line. It is

fair to say that evenin present-day

conditions,Christian

missions havebeen in the

vanguardof

Chief Albert Luthuli’s Nobel lecture“Though I speak of Africa as a single entity, it is

divided in many ways by race, language, history andcustom; by political, economic and ethnic frontiers. Butin truth, despite these multiple divisions, Africa has a

single common purpose and a single goal – theachievement of its own independence.”

“It is important to stress the fact that he continued with his method of non-violence to his death. – Dr Kenneth Kaunda, in the second Chief Albert Luthuli memorial speech, October 2005, University of KwaZulu-Natal”

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initiating social services provided forus. Our progress in this field has beenin spite of, and not mainly because of,the government. In this, the churchin South Africa, though belatedly,seems to be awakening to a broadermission of the church in its ministryamong us.

It is beginning to take seriouslythe words of its founder who said: “Icame that they might have life andhave it more abundantly.” This is acall to the church in South Africa tohelp in the all-round development ofman in the present, and not only inthe hereafter. In this regard, thepeople of South Africa, especiallythose who claim to be Christians,would be well advised to take heed ofthe conference decisions of the WorldCouncil of Churches held atCottesloe, Johannesburg in 1960,which gave a clear lead on themission of the church in our day.

It left no room for doubt about therelevancy of the Christian messagein the present issues that confrontmankind. I note with gratitude thisbroader outlook of the World Councilof Churches. It has a great meaningand significance for us in Africa.

There is nothing new in SouthAfrica’s apartheid ideas, but SouthAfrica is unique in this: the ideas notonly survive in our modern age butare stubbornly defended, extended,and bolstered up by legislation at thetime when, in the major part of theworld, they are now largely historicaland are either being shamefacedlyhidden behind concealingformulations or are being steadilyscrapped. These ideas survive inSouth Africa because those whosponsor them profit from them.

They provide moral whitewashfor the conditions which exist in thecountry: for the fact that the countryis ruled exclusively by a whitegovernment elected by an exclusivelywhite electorate which is a privilegedminority. For the fact that 87 percentof the land and all the bestagricultural land within reach oftown, market and railways arereserved for white ownership andoccupation, and now through therecent Group Areas legislation non-whites are losing more land to whitegreed.

For the fact that all skilled andhighly-paid jobs are for whites only.For the fact that all universities ofany academic merit are exclusivelypreserves of whites. For the fact thatthe education of every white childcosts about £64 per year while that ofan African child costs about £9 peryear and that of an Indian child orcoloured child costs about £20 peryear. For the fact that white educationis universal and compulsory up to theage of 16, while education for the non-white children is scarce andinadequate. And for the fact thatalmost one million Africans a yearare arrested and jailed or fined forbreaches of innumerable pass andpermit laws, which do not apply towhites.

I could carry on in this strain andtalk on every facet of South Africanlife from the cradle to the grave. Butthese facts today are becomingknown to all the world. A fiercespotlight of world attention has beenthrown on them. Try as ourgovernment and its apologists will,with honeyed words about “separatedevelopment” and eventual“independence” in so-called “Bantuhomelands”, nothing can conceal thereality of South African conditions.

I, as a Christian, have always feltthat there is one thing above all about“apartheid” or “separatedevelopment” that is unforgivable. Itseems utterly indifferent to thesuffering of individual persons, wholose their land, their homes, theirjobs, in the pursuit of what is surelythe most terrible dream in the world.This terrible dream is not held on toby a crackpot group on the fringe ofsociety or by Ku Klux Klansmen, ofwhom we have a sprinkling. It is thedeliberate policy of a government,supported actively by a large part ofthe white population and toleratedpassively by an overwhelming whitemajority, but now fortunatelyrejected by an encouraging white

minority who have thrown their lotwith non-whites, who areoverwhelmingly opposed to so-calledseparate development.

Thus it is that the golden age ofAfrica’s independence is also thedark age of South Africa’s declineand retrogression, brought about bymen who, when revolutionarychanges that entrenchedfundamental human rights weretaking place in Europe, were closedin on the tip of South Africa – and somissed the wind of progressivechange.

In the wake of that decline andretrogression, bitterness betweenmen grows to alarming heights; theeconomy declines as confidence ebbsaway; unemployment rises;government becomes increasinglydictatorial and intolerant ofconstitutional and legal procedures,increasingly violent and suppressive;there is a constant drive for morepolicemen, more soldiers, morearmaments, banishments withouttrial and penal whippings.

All the trappings of medievalbackwardness and cruelty come tothe fore. Education is being reducedto an instrument of subtleindoctrination; slanted and biasedreporting in the organs of publicinformation, a creeping censorship,book banning and blacklisting – allthese spread their shadows over theland.

This is South Africa today, in theage of Africa’s greatness.

But beneath the surface there is aspirit of defiance. The people ofSouth Africa have never been a docilelot, least of all the African people. Wehave a long tradition of struggle forour national rights, reaching back tothe very beginnings of whitesettlement and conquest 300 yearsago. Our history is one of oppositionto domination, of protest and refusalto submit to tyranny.

Consider some of our greatnames: the great warrior and nationbuilder Shaka, who welded tribestogether into the Zulu nation fromwhich I spring; Moshoeshoe, thestatesman and nation-builder whofathered the Basotho nation andplaced Basotholand beyond the reachof the claws of the South Africanwhites; Hintsa of the Xhosas, whochose death rather than surrenderhis territory to white invaders.

All these and other royal names,as well as other great chieftains,resisted manfully white intrusion.Consider also the sturdiness of thestock that nurtured the foregoinggreat names. I refer to our forebearswho, in trekking from the north tothe southernmost tip of Africacenturies ago, braved rivers that areperennially swollen, hacked theirway through treacherous jungle andforest, survived the plagues of the-then untamed lethal diseases of amultifarious nature that abounded inequatorial Africa and wrestedthemselves from the gaping mouthsof the beasts of prey.

They endured it all. They settledin these parts of Africa to build afuture worthwhile for us, theiroffspring. While the social andpolitical conditions havechanged and the problems weface are different, we too, theirprogeny, find ourselves facing asituation where we have tostruggle for our very survivalas human beings. Althoughmethods of struggle maydiffer from time to time, theuniversal human strivingsfor liberty remainunchanged.

We, in our situation,have chosen the path ofnon-violence of our ownvolition. Along this pathwe have organised manyheroic campaigns. Allthe strength ofprogressive leadershipin South Africa, all mylife and strength, havebeen given to the

pursuance of this method, in anattempt to avert disaster in theinterests of South Africa, and [we]have bravely paid the penalties for it.

It may well be that South Africa’ssocial system is a monument toracialism and race oppression, but itspeople are the living testimony to theunconquerable spirit of mankind.Down the years, against seeminglyoverwhelming odds, they have soughtthe goal of fuller life and liberty,striving with incredibledetermination and fortitude for theright to live as men – free men.

In this, our country is not unique.Your recent and inspiring history,when the axis powers overran mostEuropean states, is testimony of thisunconquerable spirit of mankind.People of Europe formed resistancemovements that finally helped tobreak the power of the combinationof Nazism and Fascism, with theircreed of race arrogance andherrenvolk mentality.

Every people has, at one time oranother in its history, been plungedinto such struggle. But generally thepassing of time has seen the barriersto freedom going down, one by one.Not so South Africa. Here thebarriers do not go down. Each stepwe take forward, every achievementwe chalk up, is cancelled out by theraising of new and higher barriers toour advance.

The colour bars do not get weaker;they get stronger. The bitterness ofthe struggle mounts as liberty comesstep by step closer to the freedomfighter’s grasp. All too often theprotests and demonstrations of ourpeople have been beaten back byforce, but they have never beensilenced.

Through all this crueltreatment in the name of lawand order, our people, with a fewexceptions, have remained non-violent.

If today this peace award isgiven to South Africa througha black man, it is not becausewe in South Africa have wonour fight for peace and humanbrotherhood. Far from it.Perhaps we stand farther fromvictory than any other people inAfrica. But nothing which wehave suffered at the hands of thegovernment has turned us from ourchosen path of disciplined resistance.

It is for this, I believe, that thisaward is given.

How easy it wouldhave been in SouthAfrica for thenatural feelings

of resentmentat white

domination tohave been

turned intofeelings of

hatred and adesire forrevengeagainstthewhite

community. Here, where every day, inevery aspect of life, every non-whitecomes up against the ubiquitous sign“Europeans Only” and the equallyubiquitous policeman to enforce it –here it could well be expected that aracialism equal to that of theiroppressors would flourish to counterthe white arrogance toward blacks.

That it has not done so is noaccident. It is because, deliberatelyand advisedly, African leadership forthe past 50 years, with the inspirationof the African National Congress,which I had the honour to lead for thelast decade or so until it was banned,had set itself steadfastly againstracial vaingloriousness.

We know that in so doing wepassed up opportunities for an easydemagogic appeal to the naturalpassions of a people denied freedomand liberty; we discarded the chanceof an easy and expedient emotionalappeal. Our vision has always beenthat of a non-racial, democraticSouth Africa which upholds therights of all who live in our countryto remain there as full citizens, withequal rights and responsibilitieswith all others. For theconsummation of this ideal we havelaboured unflinchingly. We shallcontinue to labour unflinchingly.

It is this vision which promptedthe ANC to invite members of otherracial groups who believe with us inthe brotherhood of man and in thefreedom of all people to join with us

in establishing a non-racial,democratic South Africa. Thus theANC in its day brought about theCongress Alliance and welcomed theemergence of the Liberal Party andthe Progressive Party who, to anencouraging measure, support theseideals.

The true patriots of South Africa,for whom I speak, will be satisfiedwith nothing less than the fullestdemocratic rights. In government wewill not be satisfied with anythingless than direct, individual adultsuffrage and the right to stand forand be elected to all organs ofgovernment. In economic matters wewill be satisfied with nothing lessthan equality of opportunity inevery sphere, and the enjoyment byall of those heritages which form theresources of the country, which up tonow have been appropriated on aracial “whites only” basis.

In culture we will be satisfiedwith nothing less than the opening ofall doors of learning in non-segregated institutions on the solecriterion of ability. In the socialsphere we will be satisfied withnothing less than the abolition of allracial bars. We do not demand thesethings for people of African descentalone. We demand them for all SouthAfricans, white and black.

On these principles we areuncompromising. To compromisewould be an expediency that is mosttreacherous to democracy, for in theturn of events, the sweets ofeconomic, political and socialprivileges that are a monopoly ofonly one section of a communityturn sour even in the mouths ofthose who eat them.

Thus apartheid in practice isproving to be a monster created byFrankenstein. That is the tragedy ofthe South African scene.

Many spurious slogans have beeninvented in our country in an effortto redeem uneasy race relations –“trusteeship”, “separatedevelopment”, “race federation” andelsewhere, “partnership”. These areefforts to sidetrack us from thedemocratic road, mean delayingtactics that fool no one but theunwary. No euphemistic naming willever hide their hideous nature.

We reject these policies becausethey do not measure up

to the bestmankind

has

striven for throughout the ages. Theydo great offence to man’s sublimeaspirations that have remained truein a sea of flux and change down theages, aspirations of which the UnitedNations Declaration of HumanRights is a culmination.

This is what we stand for. This iswhat we fight for.

In their fight for lasting values,there are many things that havesustained the spirit of the freedom –loving people of South Africa andthose in the yet unredeemed parts ofAfrica where the white man claimsresolutely proprietary rights overdemocracy – a universal heritage.High among them – the things thathave sustained us – stand: themagnificent support of theprogressive people and governmentsthroughout the world, among whomnumber the people and governmentof the country of which I am todayguest; our brothers in Africa,especially in the independent Africanstates; organisations who share theoutlook we embrace in countriesscattered right across the face of theglobe; the UN jointly and some of itsmember nations singlely.

In their defence of peace in theworld through actively upholding thequality of man, all these groups havereinforced our undying faith in theunassailable rightness and justnessof our cause. To all of them I say:alone we would have been weak. Ourheartfelt appreciation of your acts ofsupport of us we cannot adequatelyexpress, nor can we ever forget, nowor in the future when victory isbehind us and South Africa’sfreedom rests in the hands of all herpeople.

We South Africans, however,equally understand that, much asothers might do for us, our freedomcannot come to us as a gift fromabroad. Our freedom we must makeourselves. All honest freedom-lovingpeople have dedicated themselves tothat task. What we need is thecourage that rises with danger.

Whatever may be the future ofour freedom efforts, our cause is thecause of the liberation of people whoare denied freedom. Only on thisbasis can the peace of Africa and theworld be firmly founded. Our cause isthe cause of equality betweennations and peoples. Only thus canthe brotherhood of man be firmlyestablished. It is encouraging andelating to remind you that, despiteher humiliation and torment at thehands of white rule, the spirit ofAfrica in quest for freedom has been,generally, for peaceful means to theutmost.

If I have dwelt at length on mycountry’s race problem, it is not asthough other countries on ourcontinent do not labour under theseproblems, but because it is here in theRepublic of South Africa that therace problem is most acute. Perhapsin no other country on the continentis white supremacy asserted withgreater vigour and determinationand a sense of righteousness. Thisplaces the opponents of apartheid inthe front rank of those who fightwhite domination.

In bringing my address to a close,let me invite Africa to cast her eyesbeyond the past and to some extentthe present, with their woes andtribulations, trials and failures, andsome successes, and see herself anemerging continent, bursting tofreedom through the shell ofcenturies of serfdom. This is Africa’sage – the dawn of her fulfillment. Yes,the moment when she must grapplewith destiny to reach the summits ofsublimity, saying: ours was a fight fornoble values and worthy ends, andnot for lands and the enslavement ofman.

Africa is a vital subject matter inthe world of today, a focal point ofworld interest and concern. Could itnot be that history has delayed herrebirth for a purpose? The situationconfronts her with inescapablechallenges, but more importantly

with opportunities for service toherself and mankind. She evades thechallenges and neglects theopportunities, to her shame, if nother doom.

How she sees her destiny is amore vital and rewarding quest thanbemoaning her past, with itshumiliations and sufferings.

The address could do no morethan pose some questions and leave itto the African leaders and peoples toprovide satisfying answers andresponses by their concern for highervalues and by their noble actions thatcould be

Footprints on the sands of time.Footprints, that perhaps another,Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,

A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,Seeing, shall take heart again (from A

Psalm of Life by Longfellow)Still licking the scars of past

wrongs perpetrated on her, could shenot be magnanimous and practiceno revenge? Her hand of friendshipscornfully rejected, her pleas forjustice and fair play spurned, shouldshe not nonetheless seek to turnenmity into amity? Though robbedof her lands, her independence andopportunities – this, oddly enough,often in the name of civilization andeven Christianity – should she notsee her destiny as being that ofmaking a distinctive contribution tohuman progress and humanrelationships with a peculiar newAfrica flavour enriched by thediversity of cultures she enjoys, thusbuilding on the summits of presenthuman achievement an edifice thatwould be one of the finest tributes tothe genius of man?

She should see this hour of herfulfillment as a challenge to her tolabour on until she is purged ofracial domination, and as anopportunity of reassuring the worldthat her national aspiration lies notin overthrowing white dominationto replace it by a black caste but inbuilding a non-racial democracythat shall be a monumentalbrotherhood, a “brotherlycommunity” with nonediscriminated against on grounds ofrace or colour.

What of the many pressing andcomplex political, economic andcultural problems attendant uponthe early years of a newlyindependent state? These, andothers which are the legacy ofcolonial days, will tax to the limit thestatesmanship, ingenuity, altruismand steadfastness of Africanleadership and its unbending avowalto democratic tenets in statecraft.

To us all, free or not free, the callof the hour is to redeem the nameand honour of Mother Africa.

In a strife-torn world, tottering onthe brink of complete destruction byman-made nuclear weapons, a freeand independent Africa is in themaking, in answer to the injunctionand challenge of history: “Arise andshine for thy light is come” (Isaiah).Acting in concert with othernations, she is man’s last hope for amediator between the East and West,and is qualified to demand of thegreat powers to “turn the swordsinto ploughshares” (Isaiah) becausetwo-thirds of mankind is hungryand illiterate.

To engage human energy, humanskill and human talent in the serviceof peace, for the alternative isunthinkable – war, destruction, anddesolation. And to build a worldcommunity which will stand as alasting monument to the millions ofmen and women, to such devotedand distinguished world citizens andfighters for peace as the late DagHammarskjöld, who have giventheir lives that we may live inhappiness and peace.

Africa’s qualification for thisnoble task is incontestable, for herown fight has never been and is notnow a fight for conquest of land, foraccumulation of wealth ordomination of peoples, but for therecognition and preservation of therights of man and the establishmentof a truly free world for a free people.

Copyright © The Nobel Foundation 1960

Chief Albert Luthuli’s Nobel lecture continued...“Footprints on the sands of time.Footprints, that perhaps another,Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,

A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,Seeing, shall take heart again”

“The ideals of Nobel should not merely be accepted or even admired, they should be lived, with a stress on, they should be lived! – Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, December 1961”

IHAVE beendismissed fromthechieftainship

of theAbase-

MakolweniTribe in the

GroutvilleMission Reserve. I

presume that this hasbeen done by theGovernor-General in hiscapacity as Supreme

Chief of the “Native”people of the Union of

South Africa, save those ofthe Cape Province.

I was dem-ocraticallyelected to this position in 1935 by

the people of Groutville MissionReserve and was duly approved and

appointed by the Governor-General.Previous to being a Chief, I was a

school teacher for about 17 years. Inthese past 30 years or so, I have

striven with tremendous zeal andpatience to work for the

progress and welfare of mypeople and for their

harmonious

relations with other sections of ourmulti-racial society in the Union of SouthAfrica.

In this effort I always pursued whatliberal-minded people rightly regarded asthe path of moderation. Over this greatlength of time I have, year after year,gladly spent hours of my time with suchorganisations as the church and itsvarious agencies such as the ChristianCouncil of South Africa, the JointCouncil of Europeans and Africans andthe now defunct Native Rep-resentativeCouncil.

In so far as gaining citizenship rightsand opportunities for the unfettereddevelopment of the African people, whowill deny that 30 years of my life havebeen spent knocking in vain, patiently,moderately and modestly at a closed andbarred door?

What have been the fruits of my manyyears of moderation? Has there been anyreciprocal tolerance or moderation fromthe Government, be it National-ist orUnited Party? No! On the contrary,the past 30 years have seen thegreatest number of lawsrestricting our rights andprogress – until today we havereached a stage where we havealmost no rights at all: no adequateland for our occupation, our only asset,cattle dwindling, no security of homes,

no decent and remunerativeemployment, more restrictions to

freedom of move-ment throughpasses, curfew regulations,

influx control measures.In short we have

witnessed in these yearsan intensification of oursubjection to ensure

and protect whitesupremacy.

It is with thisbackground, and

with a full sense

of responsibility, that, under the auspicesof the African National Congress (Natal),I have joined my people in the new spiritthat moves them today, the spirit thatrevolts openly and boldly againstinjustice and expresses itself in adetermined and non-violent manner.

Because of my association with theANC in this new spiritwhich has found aneffective andlegitimate way ofexpression in thenon-violentPassiveResistanceCampaign,I wasgiven atwo-

week limit ultimatum by the Secretaryfor Native Affairs calling upon me tochoose between the ANC and thechieftainship of the Groutville MissionReserve.

He alleged that my association withCongress in its non-violent PassiveResistance Campaign was an act ofdisloyalty to the State. I did not, and do not,agree with this view. Viewing Non-ViolentPassive

Resistance as a non-revolutionary and,therefore, a most legitimate and humane

political pressure technique for a peopledenied all effective forms of

constitutional striving, I saw noreal conflict in my dual

leadership of my people:leader of the tribe as

Chief and politicalleader in Congress.I saw no cause to

resign from either. Thisstand of mine which

resulted in my being sackedfrom the chieftainship might

seem foolish and disappointing tosome liberal and moderateEuropeans and non-Europeanswith whom I have worked thesemany years and with whom I stillhope to work. This is no parting of

the ways but “a launching furtherinto the deep”. I invite them to join us

in our unequivocal pronouncement ofall legitimate African aspirations and inour firm stand against injustice andoppression.

I do not wish to challenge my dismissalbut I would like to suggest that in theinterest of the institution of chieftainshipin these modem times of de-mocracy, thegovernment should define more preciselyand make more widely known the status,functions and privileges of Chiefs.

My view has been, and still is, that aChief is primarily a servant of his people.He is the voice of his people. He is the voiceof his people in local affairs. Unlike aNative Commissioner, he is part and parcelof the tribe, and not a local agent of thegovernment. Within the bounds of loyaltyit is conceivable that he may voice andpress the claims of his people even if theyshould be unpalatable to the government ofthe day.

He may use all legitimate modemtechniques to get these demands satisfied.It is inconceivable how Chiefs couldeffectively serve the wider and commoninterest of their own tribe without co-operating with other leaders of the people,both the natural leaders (Chiefs) andleaders elected democratically by thepeople themselves.

It was to allow for these widerassociations intended to promote thecommon national interests of the people asagainst purely local interests that thegov-ernment, in making rules governingChiefs, did not debar them from joiningpolitical associations so long as these

associations had not been declared “by theMinister to be subversive of or prejudicialto constituted Government.”

The ANC – its non-violent PassiveResistance Campaign – may be of nuisancevalue to the government, but it is notsubversive since it does not seek tooverthrow the form and machinery of theState but only urges for the inclusion of allsections of the community in a partnershipin the government of the country on thebasis of equality.

Laws and conditions that tend to debasehuman personality – a God-given force – bethey brought about by the State or otherindividuals, must be relentlessly opposedin the spirit of defiance shown by St Peterwhen he said to the rulers of his day: “Shallwe obey God or man?”

No one can deny that in so far as non-whites are concerned in the Union of SouthAfrica, laws and conditions that debasehuman personality abound. Any Chiefworthy of his position must fight fearlesslyagainst such debasing conditions and laws.If the government should resort todismissing such Chiefs, it may find itselfdismissing many Chiefs or causing peopleto dismiss from their hearts chiefs who areindifferent to the needs of the peoplethrough fear of dismissal by thegovernment. Surely the governmentcannot place Chiefs in such anuncomfortable and invidious position.

As for myself, with a full sense ofresponsibility and a clear conviction, Idecided to remain in the struggle forextending democratic rights andre-sponsibilities to all sections of the SouthAfrican community. I have embraced thenon-violent Passive Resistance techniquein fighting for freedom because I amconvinced it is the only non-revolutionary,legitimate and humane way that could beused by people denied, as we are, effectiveconstitutional means to furtheraspirations.

The wisdom or foolishness of thisdecision I place in the hands of theAlmighty.

What the future has in store for me I donot know. It might be ridicule,imprisonment, concentration camp,flogging, banishment and even death. I onlypray to the Almighty to strengthen myresolve so that none of these grimpossibilities may deter me from striving,for the sake of the good name of ourbeloved country, the Union of South Africa,to make it a true democracy and a trueunion in form and spirit of all thecommunities in the land.

My only painful concern at times is thatof the welfare of my family but I try even inthis regard, in a spirit of trust andsurrender to God’s will as I see it, to say:“God will provide.”

It is inevitable that in working forfreedom, some individuals and somefamilies must take the lead and suffer: theRoad to Freedom is Via the Cross.

Mayibuye! Afrika! Afrika! Afrika!

SPONSORED SUPPLEMENT8 Wednesday, November 24 2010 THE MERCURY

“He taught us the lesson that real leaders must be ready to sacrifice all for the freedom of their people.– Nelson Mandela at the Chief Albert Luthuli centenary celebration, KwaDukuza, April 1998”

THE ROAD TO FREEDOMIS VIA THE CROSSStatement by Luthuli, issued after the announcement

on November 12, 1952, of his dismissal as chiefALBERT Luthuli was dismissed from his position as chiefof his people in November 1952. He was a danger to thenew apartheid state, and it had to try and silence him by

all means. His response was to write one of the mostprofound speeches ever told: The Road to Freedom is Viathe Cross. It was a statement of belief – in non-racialism,

non-violence and the quest after justice. A month later,Luthuli succeeded then-ANC President James Moroka,and he would be confirmed in the position two more

times, surviving the banning of the organisation in 1960,his own bannings and the brutality of a government that

would stop at nothing to promote white supremacy.

9

YOUR Majesty, Mr.President, Ladies andGentlemen, here present!

On an occasion like thiswords fail one. This is the mostimportant occasion not only inmy life, but in that of my dearwife, Nokukhanya, who shareswith me this honour.

For, friends, herencouragement, not just mereencouragement but activesupport, made me at times fearthat she herself might end injail one day. She richly shareswith me this honour.

I will now, Mr President,humbly present my speech ofacceptance of this greathonour. A significant honourwhich I feel I least deserve, Sir.

I have committed intowriting what I have to say, I willproceed to read that.

This year, as in the yearsbefore it,mankind haspaid for themaintenance ofpeace the priceof manylives. Itwas inthe cause ofhisactivitiesin theinterestof peacethat thelateDag

Hammarskjöld lost his life. Ofhis work a great deal has beenwritten, but I wish to take thisopportunity to say how much Iregret that he is not with us toreceive the encouragement ofthis service he has renderedmankind.

I might here pause andinterject, friends, to say as I wasthinking of this unfortunateoccasion that brought about thepassing of Dag Hammarskjöld.I remember that many liveshave been lost in Africa,starting with Livingstone ofold to this day. Lives worthilylost to redeem Africa. It issignificant that it was in Africa,my home continent, that hegave his life.

How many times hisdecisions helped to avert aworld catastrophe will never beknown. But

there are many of suchoccasions, I am sure. But therecan be no doubt that he steeredthe United Nations through oneof the most difficult phases inits history. His absence fromour midst today should be anenduring lesson for all peace-lovers and a challenge to thenations of the world toeliminate those conditions inAfrica, nay, anywhere, whichbrought about the tragic anduntimely end to his life. This,the devoted Chief Executive ofthe world.

As you may have heard,when the South AfricanMinister of Interior announcedthat, subject to a number ofrather unusual conditions, Iwould be permitted to come toOslo for this occasion,conditions, Mr President, mademe literally to continue a badman in the free Europe. Heexpressed the view that I did

not deserve the Nobel PeacePrize for 1960. Such is the

magic of a peace prize,that it has even

managed toproduce an issue

on which I agreewith the

Governmentof South

Africa. Idon’t thinkthere arevery many

issues onwhich weagree.Althoughfordifferentreasons.

It is thegreatest

honour in thelife of any man to

be awarded the NobelPeace Prize, and no

one who

appreciates its profoundsignificance can escape afeeling of inadequacy, and I doso very deeply, when selected toreceive it.

In this instance, the feelingis the deeper, not only becausethese elections are made by acommittee by the most eminentcitizens of this country, but alsobecause I find it hard to believethat in this distressed andheavily-laden world I could becounted among those whoseefforts have amounted to anoticeable contribution to thewelfare of mankind.

I recognise, however, that inmy country, South Africa, thespirit of peace is subject tosome of the severest tensionsknown to men. Yes, it is idle tospeak of our country as beingin peace, because there can beno peace in any part of theworld where there are peopleoppressed. For that reasonSouth Africa has been, andcontinues to be, the focus ofworld attention. I thereforeregard this award as arecognition of the sacrificemade by many of all races,particularly the African people,who have endured and sufferedso much for so long.

It can only be on behalf ofthe people of South Africa, allthe people of South Africa,especially the freedom-lovingpeople, that I accept this award,that I acknowledge this honour.I accept it also as an honour notonly to South Africa, but for thewhole continent of Africa, tothis continent, Mother Africa!

To all its people, whatevertheir race, colour or creedmight be, and indeed, friends, Ilike to say, quite long ago myforefathers extended a hand offriendship to people of Europewhen they came to thatcontinent. What has happenedto the extension of that handonly history can say, and it isnot time to speak about that

here, but I wouldlike to say, as I

receive thisprize ofpeace, that

the hand

of Africa was extended. It was ahand of friendship, if you readhistory.

It is an honour for the peace-loving people of the entireworld and an encouragementfor us all to redouble our effortsin this struggle for peace andfriendship, for indeed we doneed in this world of ours at thepresent moment peace andfriendship. These are becomingvery rare commodities in theworld. For my part, I am deeplyconscious of the addedresponsibility which this awardentails. I have the feeling that Ihave been made answerable forthe future of the people ofSouth Africa, for if there is nopeace for the majority of themthere is no peace for any one.

As I said it is idle to speak ofpeace anywhere where thereare people still suffering underoppression. I can only pray,friends, that the almighty willgive me the strength to makemy humble contribution to thepeaceful solution of SouthAfrica’s and indeed, the world’sproblems, for it is not just SouthAfrica or Africa there are otherparts of the world where thereare tensions, and those placesare sorely in need of peace, aswe are in my own continent, aswe are in my own area of SouthAfrica.

Happily, I am only oneamong millions who havededicated their lives to theservice of mankind, who havegiven time, property and life toensure that all men shall live inpeace and happiness, and I liketo here say, that there are manyin my country who are doingso.

I have already said I havenoticed this award on behalf ofall freedom-loving peoples whowork day and night to makeSouth Africa what it ought tobe. It is appropriate, YourMajesty, Mr President, at thispoint, to mention the lateAlfred Nobel to whom we oweour presence here and who, byestablishing the NobelFoundation, placedresponsibility for themaintenance of peace onthe individual.

It is so easysometimes to hideunder groupswhen you dovery little for acause. Herethe stress ison theindividual, somaking peace,no less thanwar, is theconcern ofevery manand womanon earth,whetherthey be inSenegal orBerlin, in

Washington or in the shatteredtowns of South Africa.However humble the place, itcan make its contribution also,it is expected to make itscontribution to peace.

It is this call for quality inthe late Nobel’s ideals whichhave won for the Nobel PeacePrize the importance anduniversal recognition which itenjoys. For indeed it enjoysdeservingly this universalrecognition. In an age when theoutbreak of war would wipeout the entire face of the earth,the ideals of Nobel should notmerely be accepted or evenadmired, they should belived, with a stress on,they should belived!

It is so easy toadmire aperson, toadmire whathe or shestood for orstands for,and yetshrink fromcutting offthe missionof thepresent. Thechallenge,friends, isfor us to livethe ideals thatNobel tried touphold in theworld as enshrinedin the Nobel Peace Prizeand other prizes whichhe bequeathed tomankind.

Scientific inventions, at allconceivable levels shouldenrich human life, not threatenexistence. Science shouldbe the greatest ally, notthe worst enemy ofmankind. Only socan the world,not onlyrespond tothe worthyeffortsof

Nobel, but also ensure itselfagainst self-destruction. Indeedthe challenge is for us to ensurethe world from self-destruction.

In our contribution to peacewe are resolved to end suchevils as oppression, whitesupremacy and racediscrimination, all of which areincompatible with world peaceand security. There is indeed athreat to peace.

In some quarters it is oftendoubted whether the situation

in South

Africa is a threat to peace, it isno doubt that any situationwhere men have to struggle fortheir rights is a threat to peace.We are encouraged to know, bythe very nature of the awardmade for 1960 that in our effortswe are serving our fellow menin the world over.

May the day come soon,when the people of the worldwill rouse themselves, andtogether effectively stamp outany threat to peace in whateverquarter of the world it may befound. When that day comes,there shall be "peace on earth

and goodwill amongst men",as was announced by the

angels when that greatmessenger of peace,

Our Lord came toearth.

* From Les PrixNobel en 1960,

edited by GöranLiljestrand(NobelFoundation)Stockholm,1961

Chief Albert Luthuli’s acceptance speechOn the occasion of the award of the Nobel Peace Peace Prize in Oslo,

December 10 1961. The prize was reserved in 1960 and distributed in 1961

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10

THIS year the NobelCommittee of theNorwegian Parliament

has awarded two Peace Prizes.The prize for 1960 goes to AlbertJohn Luthuli, and the prize for1961 is awarded posthumouslyto Dag Hammarskjöld.

In many respects these tworecipients differ widely. AlbertJohn Luthuli’s life and workhave been molded by thepattern of the African tribalcommunity and by theinfluence of Christianity, whileDag Hammarskjöld’s were aproduct of Western culture.Luthuli’s activities have been,and are, confined to his owncountry, while DagHammarskjöld worked in theinternational sphere. Yetdespite these differences, theyhad one thing in common: bothfought to implant the idea ofjustice in the individual, in thenation, and among the nations;or we might put it like this: theyfought for the ideals expressedin the declaration of humanrights embodied in the Charterof the United Nations.

Albert John Luthuli wasborn in 1898. He comes from along line of Zulu chiefs, but hewas influenced by Christianityin his school days and in hislater education, first in theAmerican mission school heattended and afterwards duringhis training as a teacher. Afterpassing his examination atAdams College in Natal, hebecame a faculty member ofthe college, where he taught,among other subjects, thehistory of the Zulu people.During his seventeen years as ateacher, he took no part in thepolitical life of South Africa.

In 1935 a great change tookplace in Luthuli’s life when hewas called to assume thefunctions of tribal chief. Thechoice of a chief must beapproved by the state, whichpays his salary. It was on thebasis of this authority that thegovernment was able to removehim in 1952. His seventeenyears as a chief brought himdaily contact with theindividual members of thetribal community, as well as anactive part in the work of theChristian church in SouthAfrica, in India, and in theUnited States.

Both as a teacher and lateras a chief, Luthuli didoutstanding work. He took hisduties as chief very seriouslyand in doing so won theaffection of his tribe. Heendeavored to blend its ancientculture with the precepts ofChristianity and to promote itseconomic welfare in variousways – for example, byintroducing new methods ofsugar production.

Describing this period of hislife, he tells us: “Previous tobeing a chief I was a schoolteacher for about seventeenyears. In these past thirty yearsor so, I have striven withtremendous zeal and patienceto work for the progress andwelfare of my people and fortheir harmonious relationswith other sections of ourmultiracial society in theUnion of South Africa. In thiseffort I always pursued the pathof moderation. Over this greatlength of time I have, year afteryear, gladly spent hours of mytime with such organizationsas the church and its variousagencies, such as the ChristianCouncil of South Africa, theJoint Council of Europeansand Africans, and the nowdefunct Native RepresentativeCouncil.”

But it was neither as ateacher, nor as a chief, nor as anactive member of variousChristian organizations that hetook a focal position in whatwas to be his great effort in thepost war years.

The forces that inducedAlbert John Luthuli to abandonhis tranquil educationalactivities and enter politicswere unleashed by theincreasing pressure which theruling white race exerted onmembers of other races inSouth Africa. In 1944 he becamea member of the AfricanNational Congress, anorganization founded in 1912. In1952 he was elected itspresident, an office he helduntil the Congress was bannedin 1960. It is first and foremostfor the work he carried onduring these years – from the1940s to the present – that wehonor him today.

To get some idea ofLuthuli’s achievements, wemust know something of thesociety in which he worked.The white population of SouthAfrica settled there in the latterhalf of the seventeenth century.The first settlers were FrenchHuguenots, followed later byDutch farmers. They clearedthe land, and their descendants– the Boers – have lived thereever since. They look upon thecountry as their fatherland;they have no other. The Englishsettlers, who arrived on thescene at the end of theeighteenth century, maintainedclose contact with their mothercountry.

The first natives whom theDutch pioneers met wereHottentots and Bushmen. TheHottentots have now virtuallydisappeared as a separateracial entity; but throughintermarriage with Europeanand other races they havecontributed in large measure tothe racial characteristics ofthose so-called “the coloredpeople”.

When the Boers moved intothe interior, they encounteredother native tribes, amongthem the Zulus, whom theyfought and conquered. Thesetribes constitute the largestpart of the population of SouthAfrica today. In the course oftime other racial elements wereadded: the Dutch imported anumber of Malays from theEast Indies as slaves, while theBritish introduced Indian laborto the sugar plantations. In thenineteenth century twocommunities took shape: theBoer republics of Transvaaland the Orange Free State, andthe British colony of SouthAfrica, both ruled by whites. Atthe turn of the century thesetwo communities fought theBoer War of 1899-1902, fromwhich Britain finally emergedvictorious. The ultimate resultwas that the Union of SouthAfrica was set up as anindependent British Dominionin 1901. At that time the outsideworld heard little aboutrelations between whites andnonwhites.

During the fifty years thathave since elapsed, SouthAfrica, in common with somany other countries, hasdeveloped from an agriculturalcommunity into one in whichmining, industry, trade, andother such operations nowpredominate. As in other suchcountries, the urban populationhas increased rapidly.

The present-day populationof South Africa is some 14.7million, of whom only some 3.3million are white. Of the

remainder, 9.6 million areAfricans, some 0.4 millionAsian (mainly Indians) and 1.4million of mixed race (the so-called colored people). Of the9.6 million Africans, some 3.3million live in the agriculturaldistricts of the whites, alarge proportion of them asagricultural workers onwhite farms; 3.7 millionlive in the Africanreservations; and 2.6million live in thetowns.

Although someof these figuresare onlyapproximate,they still presenta picture of acommunitywhoseeconomy andthereforefuture aredependent oncooperationbetween allraces. Thefigures testifyto the fact thatpeople of allraces havehelped to buildthis community.The whites couldnever have done italone. This is anincontestable fact.But what is theposition of thenonwhite population?

In this community,nonwhites are denied allright to participate in thegovernment of the state.They are discriminatedagainst legally, economically,and socially. And thisdiscrimination between whitesand nonwhites has grownsteadily during the postwaryears. The aim of those nowruling the country is to draw aline between the twocommunities – between whitesand nonwhites – despite the factthat the march of events hasclearly shown that the wholecommunity has been developedby the efforts of all races. Icannot here go into the networkof laws and regulations passedin order to maintain the barrierbetween whites and nonwhites.The purpose of these laws is torestrict and regulate every facetof the life of the nonwhite. Hehas no vote, he has no part indetermining his own status;under the pass system, he isdeprived not only of the right tolive where he likes but also ofthe right to choose hisemployer; he has virtually noredress against police tyranny;he is not entitled to the sameschooling or education as thewhite; and any sexual relationbetween white and nonwhiteentails punishment for bothparties. An African Christian isfrequently not allowed toworship God under the sameroof as a white Christian. Inshort, nonwhites are treated asa subject race.

Is it surprising then that thenonwhites have protested

againstsuchtreatment? What issurprising is that the protesthas not been accompanied byacts of violence on their part.Their patience is remarkable,their moral strength in thestruggle boundless.

It was the discriminationbetween white and nonwhitethat prompted nonwhiteAfricans in 1912 to establish theAfrican National Congress. Itsfounders were nonwhiteAfricans who had obtained ahigher education, either abroador at home, in the days whenthey still had the opportunity todo so. At first the AfricanNational Congress tried toinfluence political developmentby means of petitions anddeputations to the authorities,but when the attempt provedfruitless and new lawsrestricting the rights ofnonwhites were passed, theAfrican National Congressadopted a more active line,especially after 1949. It was inthe mid-1940s that Luthulibegan to participate in thiswork of the African NationalCongress, of which he becamea member in 1944. He waselected to the Committee of the

NatalSection

in 1945 andin 1951 became

president of theNatal Section. In

December, 1952, he was electedpresident of the entire AfricanNational Congress, a positionhe retained until theorganization was banned by thegovernment in 1960.

It was during thesetransitional years of adoptingstronger action, based onboycotts, defiance campaigns,and strikes, that Luthuli cameto influence so profoundly theAfrican National Congress. Hesays himself that the Congressnever passed any specificresolution to the effect that itsstruggle was to be pursued bynonviolent means. Actually,however, it has been wagedwith peaceful means, a policy atall times supported by theCongress administration.Luthuli himself has alwaysbeen categorically opposed tothe use of violence. Within theorganization he has had toovercome opposition from twodifferent quarters: from theolder members, who supportedthe more passive approach, andfrom those members – mainlythe younger ones – who wantedto make South Africa anentirely nonwhite state.

As a result of Luthuli’sparticipation in the more activestruggle of the AfricanNational Congress, thegovernment presented himwith an ultimatum: he musteither renounce his position asa chief or give up his seat in theCongress. He refused to complywith either of these

alternatives and wasimmediately deposed as

chief, whereupon he issuedhis significantdeclaration entitled “TheChief Speaks”, whichconcludes with thewords: “The Road toFreedom is via theCross.” In hisdeclaration, he says:

“What have beenthe fruits of mymany years ofmoderation? Hasthere been anyreciprocaltolerance ormoderation fromthe Government, beit Nationalist orUnited Party? No!On the contrary, thepast thirty yearshave seen thegreatest number ofLaws restricting our

rights and progressuntil today we have

reached a stage wherewe have almost no rights

at all: no adequate landfor our occupation, our

only asset, cattle, dwindling,no security of homes, no

decent and remunerativeemployment, more restrictionsto freedom of movementthrough passes, curfewregulations, influx controlmeasures; in short, we havewitnessed in these years anintensification of oursubjection to ensure andprotect white supremacy.

It is with this backgroundand with a full sense ofresponsibility that, under theauspices of the AfricanNational Congress (Natal), Ihave joined my people in thenew spirit that moves themtoday, the spirit that revoltsopenly and boldly againstinjustice and expresses itself ina determined and nonviolentmanner...

The African NationalCongress, its nonviolentPassive Resistance Campaign,may be of nuisance value to theGovernment, but it is notsubversive since it does notseek to overthrow the form andmachinery of the State but onlyurges for the inclusion of allsections of the community in apartnership in the Governmentof the country on the basis ofequality.

Laws and conditions thattend to debase humanpersonality – a God-given force– be they brought about by theState or other individuals, mustbe relentlessly opposed in thespirit of defiance shown by St.Peter when he said to the rulersof his day: Shall we obey God orman? No one can deny that

insofar as nonwhites areconcerned in the Union ofSouth Africa, laws andconditions that debase humanpersonality abound. Any chiefworthy of his position mustfight fearlessly against suchdebasing conditions and laws...

It is inevitable that inworking for Freedom someindividuals and some familiesmust take the lead and suffer:the Road to Freedom Is via theCross.”

In 1952, after he had beendismissed from his position aschief and had been electedpresident of the AfricanNational Congress, he wasforbidden to leave his homedistrict for two years. In 1954 hewent to Johannesburg toaddress a meeting which hadbeen called to protest the forcedevacuation of colored peoplefrom Sophiatown toMeadowsland. He was refusedpermission to speak and wasbanned for another period oftwo years from leaving hishome district.

In 1956, together with 155other persons, he was arrestedand charged with high treason.In 1957 the charge against himand sixty-four others waswithdrawn; the rest were allacquitted in 1961. In 1959Luthuli took part in severalmass meetings, but was againsubjected to a travel ban, thistime for a period of five years.In 1960 there was a large massdemonstration against the passregulations which led to theevents in Sharpeville, wherepolice fired on the crowd,killing and wounding many. Astate of emergency wasdeclared and wholesale arrestswere made. Luthuli, who hadbeen summoned as a witness inthe treason trial, which haddragged on ever since 1956, wasamong those arrested but wasallowed to give evidence in thetrial.

During the last year, he haslived at home, debarred fromleaving his village and fromtaking part in any meetings.Moreover, he is now no longerpresident of the AfricanNational Congress, for thisorganization – as alreadymentioned – was dissolved byorder of the government inApril, 1960.

He now lives in his village,deprived of freedom ofmovement and of the right tospeak in open debate, but hestill maintains his avowedpolicy expressing his views inarticles published in thenewspaper Post. Just before thetravel ban was imposed on himin December, 1919 – the yearbefore the Union of SouthAfrica was to celebrate thefiftieth anniversary of itsfoundation – he wrote a longarticle entitled “Fifty Years ofUnion – A Political Review,”which he sent to the SouthAfrica Institute of RaceRelations. This presents, as faras I know, the clearest and themost complete statement of hisposition concerning the policypursued by the government ofSouth Africa.

In this article, his attack onthe policies of the SouthAfrican government is strongerand more detailed than before.This discussion and attack onthe policy of apartheid and itsplan that the nonwhitecommunity should developalong its own lines is new. Heasks: Who has drawn the lines?The answer is: Not those whoare to follow them, thenonwhites, but the whites inpower. The nonwhites have no

rights. There is therefore noreason, he says, for them torejoice or to participate in theFiftieth Anniversarycelebration. The only thing forthe nonwhites to do is to work,each and everyone, withcourage and patience, toachieve freedom anddemocracy for all.

Since he wrote this, SouthAfrica has become a republicand is no longer a member ofthe British Commonwealth.But this has not improvedrelations between whites andnonwhites, nor has it alteredLuthuli’s attitude in any way.He gives a most conciseexpression of the view he hasalways maintained in a letter toPrime Minister Striddom, inwhich he says: “We believe in acommunity where the whiteand the nonwhite in SouthAfrica can live in harmony andwork for our commonfatherland, sharing equally thegood things of life which ourcountry can give us inabundance.

We believe in thebrotherhood of peoples and inrespect for the value of theindividual. My congress hasnever given expression tohatred for any race in SouthAfrica.”

Time and again he hasreiterated this, right up to thevery present.

His activity has beencharacterized by a firm andunswerving approach. Neverhas he succumbed to thetemptation to use violentmeans in the struggle for hispeople. Nothing has shakenhim from this firm resolve, sofirmly rooted is his convictionthat violence and terror mustnot be employed. Nor has heever felt or incited hatred of thewhite man.

Albert John Luthuli’s fighthas been waged within theborders of his own country; butthe issues raised go far beyondthem. He brings a message toall who work and strive toestablish respect for humanrights both within nations andbetween nations.

Well might we ask: will thenonwhites of South Africa, bytheir suffering, theirhumiliation, and their patience,show the other nations of theworld that human rights can bewon without violence, byfollowing a road to which weEuropeans are committed bothintellectually and emotionally,but which we have all too oftenabandoned?

If the nonwhite people ofSouth Africa ever liftthemselves from theirhumiliation without resortingto violence and terror, then itwill be above all because of thework of Luthuli, their fearlessand incorruptible leader who,thanks to his own high ethicalstandards, has rallied hispeople in support of this policy,and who throughout his adultlife has staked everything andsuffered everything withoutbitterness and withoutallowing hatred and aggressionto replace his abiding love ofhis fellowmen.

But if the day should comewhen the struggle of thenonwhites in South Africa towin their freedom degeneratesinto bloody slaughter, thenLuthuli’s voice will be heard nomore. But let us remember himthen and never forget that hisway was unwavering and clear.He would not have had it so.

Let us all rise in silent andrespectful tribute to AlbertJohn Luthuli.

Presentation Speech by Gunnar Jahn,Chairman of the Nobel Committee

Mr. Jahn delivered this speech on December 10, 1961, in theauditorium of the University of Oslo. At its conclusion he presentedthe Peace Prize for 1960 (reserved in that year) to Mr. Luthuli, who

accepted in a brief speech. The English translation of Mr Jahn’sspeech is, with certain editorial changes and emendations , madeafter collation with the Norwegian text, that is carried in Les PrixNobel en 1960, which also includes the original Norwegian text.

IT is a great honour and privilege for meto participate in the Luthuli MemorialLecture here in Durban in the province

of KwaZulu-Natal. For it was in this regionthat young Albert Luthuli spent hisformative years as a youth. The years thatwere crucial for the role he played in hisadulthood in the liberation struggle ofSouth Africa and the rest of the continent.

Today we are meeting to celebrate thelife of a great man. A great son of Africaand indeed a world statesman.. raised byparents with very strong Christianconvictions.

This Christian upbringing had a lastinginfluence on him as he regarded peopleirrespective of their nationality, ethnicityor religious background as being equal. isdeep conviction about the equality of allpeople can be summed up in one of hispronouncements and I quote: “We expressour deep resentments at the claim by SouthAfrica to determine and shape our destinywithout consulting our wishes andarrogantly to assign us a position ofpermanent inferiority in our land, contraryto the plan and purpose of God our Creator,who created all men equal, and into us too,not to whites only, he breathed the divinespirit of human dignity”..

..This reminds me of another worldstatesman and civil rights campaigner wholed the campaign against racialdiscrimination in the United States ofAmerica. Reverend Martin Luther King Jr,who in his .. I Have a Dream speecg,appealed to all Americans for racialharmony and understanding. He envisagedhis country where little children of allraces would play together in peace andharmony. He envisaged a country where thecolour of a person’s skin did not determinehis place in society..

..Chief Albert Luthuli was a man whodeeply held the belief that domination ofone race over another was wrong andagainst Christian principles. He stronglybelieved in the dignity of man irrespectiveof race. And growing up in a country wherethe whites discriminated against people ofcolour he had a calling to join the freedomstruggle in South Africa..

..The role of Luthuli in the freedomstruggle was instrumental in raising thelevel of awareness among the oppressedpeople that they were not inferior to thewhite people. He led a sustained campaignof defiance of the apartheid systemthrough strikes and bus boycotts amongother forms of civil disobedience. In all hisyears of struggle against apartheid, heemployed the method of non-violence..

Like Mahatma Gandhi, Chief Luthulipreached a message of love, peace andharmony among all the people of the world.In my view, he was a true

servant of the people. As he himselfremarked when he ascended to the throneas Chief at Groutville, I quote: “My viewhas been, and still is, that a

chief is primarily a servant of hispeople. His is a voice of his people.”

Honest words from a sincere man, whoalways exhibited a deep sense of humilityand unfailing courtesy towards others..

..It is also necessary to mention thatalthough Chief Luthuli’s preferred methodof struggle was through non-violence, heunderstood fully well the dauntingchallenges his people were facing under thesuccessive apartheid regimes. He knew thateven peaceful demonstrations were quiteoften responded to with brutal force. Hetherefore did not criticise those whoadvocated for other means of struggle.

On this issue, he made the followingobservation, and I quote: “In the face ofuncompromising white refusal to abandona policy which denies heritage and freedom– no one can blame brave just men forseeking justice by the use of violentmethods, nor could they be blamed if theytried to create an organised force in orderultimately to establish peace and racialharmony.”

Given his deep belief in non-violence, itcan rightly be assumed that he clearlyunderstood that in their journey to attainjustice, freedom and nationhood, differenttactical options may be preferred byvarious wings of the same struggle. It isimportant however, to stress the fact that,inspite of this pronouncement, hecontinued with his method of non-violence

to his death.Director of Ceremonies, I am 81

years old now. I am an old freedomfighter and I remember that it was noteasy to wage a peaceful campaignagainst the apartheid regime in SouthAfrica. The leadership of Chief AlbertLuthuli therefore, gave inspiration tomany of us who joined the freedomstruggle in our respective territoriesthroughout Africa

Ladies and Gentlemen, as an oldfreedom fighter, this occasion evokesfond memories of the many otherheroes who led their people toindependence in their respectivecountries.. Many of the people I used tocall my heroes and friends are no more.To some, they were terrorists andtroublemakers. But to many, they wereheroes, liberators and leaders. Some ofthese are Patrice Lumumba, JuliusNyerere, Kwame Nkrumah, Seko Ture,Eduardo Mondlane, Jomo Kenyatta,Ben Bella, Amicar Calbral, SamoraMachel, Abdul Nasser, NnandiAzikiwe, Oliver Tambo and ChiefAlbert Luthuli, to mention but a few..

..The vision for Africa of these menwas that following politicalindependence, our succeedinggenerations would, in larger freedom,be able to move Africa to economicprosperity.. Africa now has 53independent nations.. We mustremember that our continent will notbe developed by people from outside butby us, as Africans taking the lead toliberate ourselves.

11

A lecture by Dr Kenneth KaundaLuthulu Memorial Lecture by the First President of the Republic of Zambia , Dr Kenneth

Kaunda, on October 21, 2005, at the Westville Campus of the University of KwaZulu-Natal

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12

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Message fromthe Premier ofKwaZulu-Natal,Dr Zweli Mkhize

THIS year marks 50 years of thefirst-ever Nobel Peace Award to aperson from the African

continent, Inkosi Albert MvumbiLuthuli - an outstanding leader of ourpeople.

As the people of KwaZulu-Natal, weare celebrating his great contributiontowards the creation of a prosperouscountry based on non-racialism, non-sexism, unity and equality.

The ushering in of democracy in ourcountry and the advent of peace in ourregion is the best tribute in gratitude forhis dedication to the cause of ourfreedom.

As we celebrate Inkosi AlbertLuthuli’s achievements, we need toremind ourselves that having ademocratic government is a privilege weshould never take for granted.

The people of KwaZulu-Natal saluteMadlanduna.

IN the postscript to his book,Let My People Go (FontanaBooks, 1962), Albert Luthuli

writes about the momentousevents of the late 1950s andearly 1960s, and about theatrocious conditions underwhich Africans worked in the-then Eastern Transvaal whereevery year, Africans who hadbeen arrested as Pass offenders,were carted out of jail andforced to harvest potatoes withtheir bare hands under theregular whip lashes of both thewhite farmers and their“baasboys” and made to live infilthy hovels.

AJ Luthuli says their diet“is unmentionable, a good dealworse than prison fare forAfricans - why keep them alivewhen there are more wherethey came from? “Inspection”amounts to a call on the whitefarmer, and a little chat overcoffee on the stoep. Murders,the result of prolongedbeatings and semi-starvation,or of sudden fits of anger, arecommitted”.

In the face of the criminalalliance between the apartheidstate, the police and farmers,that led to these terribleconditions, the ANC initiatedthe Potato Boycott, whichserved as a stimulus for othermass actions against a wholerange of oppressive measuresand mobilising the mass of the

people of this country fromPondoland to Sekhukhuneland,from Zeerust to AlexandraTownship and here inKwaZulu-Natal.

This momentum continuedinto 1960 and beyond, whenresistance and defiance definedthe lives of our peoplethroughout our country.

Having observed thedetermination and fortitude ofhis people in the face of brutalforce, and having realised thatthe struggle for freedom hadgathered the necessary speed,Albert Luthuli entitled hisarticle commenting on theseevents, “The Tempo Quickens!”

I have therefore given thislecture the same title, to paytribute to this great Africanleader on the occasion of theposthumous conferral of anhonorary Doctorate of Laws.We wish to take advantage ofthis solemn moment to reportto him and other heroes andheroines, that after 10 years ofthe final defeat of colonialismand white minority dominationon our continent, we aredetermined to quicken thetempo as we work to eradicatethe legacy of the defeateddouble-headed monster,colonialism and apartheid,transforming this land ofAlbert Luthuli into a non-racial, non-sexist andprosperous society.

I am therefore honoured todeliver this inaugural AlbertLuthuli Lecture about anoutstanding patriot whose life

and principled commitment tothe struggle for liberationshould serve as an example toall of us as we engage the

difficult and challenging task oftranslating his vision for hispeople and continent intoreality..

By the end of the 19thcentury, when Albert Luthuliwas born, the whole of Africa,with the exception of Ethiopia

and Liberia, was underdifferent European colonialpowers, despite the heroicstruggles of Africanseverywhere to defend theirindependence, fighting againstthe superior arms of thecolonial invaders..

..During the colonial wars inour country, one war-obsessedEnglish adventurer, StephenLakeman, gave his services tothe British colonial rulers inthe Cape. The historian NoelMostert explains one of thegrisly activities of Lakemanand the British imperial army,quoting from an accountrecorded during those years:

“One of his (Lakeman’smen) carried under his jacket abroken reaping-hook to cut thethroats of the women andchildren we had been takenprisoner on our nightexpeditions. Lakeman, whocarried a small copper vat withhim for his ‘Matutinal tubbing’,found on one occasion that ithad been commandeered by thesurgeon of the 60th, the RoyalAmerican Regiment, who, forscientific interest, was boilingabout two dozen Xhosa heads,which had been collected byLakeman’s own men.”

Lakeman commented that:“(The colonial army) turnedmy vat into a cauldron for theremoval of superfluous flesh.And there these men sat,

gravely smoking their pipesduring the live-long night, andstirring round and round theheads in that seething boiler, asthough they were cookingblack-apple dumplings.”(Frontiers, Jonathan Cape,1992).

Undoubtedly, in the courseof our long struggle forfreedom here at home, in Africaand elsewhere, we have seenhow those who engage in suchindecent acts become,themselves, debased; and thosewho condone and justifyinhuman behaviour alsobecome debauched, ending upas demented souls..

By always remembering thisrich history of our people, wewould, like Luthuli, be furthermotivated to persist in ourefforts as we face the many andvaried challenges that confrontus. Indeed, like Luthuli, weshould do our work driven bythe spirit of defiance, whichsays that however intractablethe challenges may be, we comefrom those who have neverbeen a docile lot.

We are descendents of thosewho see a setback and not adefeat, and accordingly usesuch reverses as anopportunity to learn, to go backto the planning room andrectify mistakes andshortcomings, emergingstronger..

Inaugural Albert Luthuli Memorial Lecture by the then President of South Africa, ThaboMbeki, at the Westville Campus of the University of KwaZulu-Natal on March 20, 2004

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MEMBERS of the LuthuliFamily HonourablePremier, Dr Zweli

Mkhize Hon Minister of Artsand Culture Mr Paul MashatileHis Majesty King ZwelithinikaBhekuzulu, isilo SamabandlaJudge President of the province,Justice Qeda Msimang HisWorship Mayor Obed MlabaHonourable leader of the IFP,Prince Mangosuthu ButheleziFellow South AfricansSanibonani, Dumelang,Namaste!

We have come together onthis special evening to celebratethe service to humanity of aman who left an indelible markin our lives and our history,Chief Albert John MvumbiLuthuli.

This memorial lectureaffords us the opportunity tocelebrate the life and teachingsof Chief Luthuli not only as anANC leader, but also as a leaderbeyond the confines of thecongress movement.

He made himself availableto serve in many communitystructures, in various capacities.

He is known as a traditionalleader, lay preacher, devotedChristian, teacher, collegechoirmaster, sports and culturalactivist.

The fact that he was also asugar cane farmer and led theSugar Cane GrowersAssociation proves his beliefthat you cannot divorcepolitical emancipation fromeconomic emancipation.

Given his outstandingleadership qualities, it is notsurprising that the ANCawarded him the prestigiousIsithwalandwe award, togetherwith Father Trevor Huddlestoneand Dr Yusuf Dadoo at theCongress of the People inKliptown, in 1955.

It was at this historicgathering of South Africansfrom all formations and walksof life that the Freedom Charterwas adopted.

Compatriots,Of significance this year in

2010, is also the fact that we aremarking 50 years of theawarding of the Nobel PeacePrize to Chief Luthuli, on 10December 1961.

He received the award withgreat humility and dedicated itto oppressed South Africans,Africans and all otherdowntrodden masses in theentire world.

He stated in his acceptancespeech: “This Award could notbe for me alone, nor for justSouth Africa, but for Africa as awhole”.

That historic award was oneof the most significantmilestones in the history of ourcountry and our continent. Itwas no small achievement for anation that was still inbondage.

It confirmed that ChiefLuthuli was the right leader atthe right time for the ANC andour country. The Award addedmuch needed energy andrenewed focus on theinternational campaign againstapartheid.

Compatriots,It is also truly befitting that

in the year that we celebrate 50years of the first Nobel PeacePrize to Africa, we also provedto the world that Africa iscapable of taking up anychallenge that comes her way.

We successfully hosted the2010 FIFA Soccer World Cuptournament just a few monthsago. Therefore, 2010 is a trulyspecial year for our country andour continent.

The Nobel Peace Prize wasnot the only contribution ofChief Luthuli to theinternational pillar of ourstruggle.

He was actually the firstSouth African to call forsanctions against this country,starting a movement that wasto gather untold momentum in

later years of the struggle. For sustainable sanctions,

the support of the internationalcommunity was of the essence.

In a joint statement to theUnited Nations with Dr MartinLuther King Junior, entitledChief Luthuli’s Appeal forAction against Apartheid, in1962, they stated, “Economicboycott is one way in which theworld at large can bring hometo the South African authoritiesthat they must either mendtheir ways or suffer fromthem.”

Chief Luthuli constantlyemphasised the importance ofinternational solidarity to endapartheid, and also the fact thatSouth Africa’s destiny wasintertwined with that of Africa.

He believed that SouthAfrica itself could not be freeuntil all the oppressed peoplesof the world were free.

Therefore his service tohumanity was not confined toSouth Africa only.

Ladies and gentlemen,What is it about Chief

Luthuli that made him standout as a leader and statesman?

Like a true leader, he did notbelieve in words without effect,in action without results. Hewas an active agent of change.

We learn that at his firstteaching post in Blaauwbosch,he emphasised the importanceof intellectual development.

He would not let childrensuffer what oppressors haddesigned for them – to behewers of wood and drawers ofwater.

As a chief of the abase-Makholweni people inGroutville, he engrossedhimself wholeheartedly in theproblems and circumstances ofhis people far beyond the call ofduty.

As a Christian, hedemonstrated the practicalrelevance of his religionthrough his devotion tomankind and fighting tirelesslyfor the liberation of his people.Most importantly, ChiefLuthuli was a born democrat.He believed in democracy. Hepracticed it, and made it histask to fight for democracy forthis country. Addressing theSouth African Congress ofDemocrats meeting inJohannesburg in 1958, hestated, “To me democracy issuch a lovely thing, that onecan hardly hope to keep it awayfrom other people. We don’tlive in Parktown, but weappreciate the beauties ofParktown. Can you ever-lastingly cut off a human beingfrom beauty? I suggest thatdemocracy, being the fine thingit is, the apex of humanachievement, cannot besuccessfully kept from theattainment of other men. I saynot”.

He was also known for hishumility, which was the source

of his strength. For example,when he was approached forleadership of the ANC as NatalPresident, he was veryreluctant, as he felt there wereothers more deserving. Hestated once: “My ambitions are,modest – they scarcely gobeyond the desire to serve Godand my neighbour, both at fullstretch”.

Disciplined andconsultative, he askedcomrades to determine ifindeed it was the generalfeeling that he becomes aleader. Once he was satisfied ofthe process, he became theprovincial President of theANC.

He was later elected ANCPresident-General in 1952,having joined the organisationonly in 1945.

The character of the ANC asan all-inclusive, non-racialbroad church that wasaccommodative to allideological persuasions was adefining feature of hispresidency of the ANC.

It was during this period forexample, that the relationshipbetween communists andnationalists thrived within thecongress movement, as hepromoted tolerance and co-existence. Under his leadership,nobody felt out of place.

Compatriots,In celebrating the service to

humanity of this illustrious sonof Africa, we must highlight hiscommitment to a non-racial,democratic society.

We speak of unity indiversity, and that is what ChiefLuthuli preached and practiced.

The Freedom Charterassertion that South Africabelongs to all who live in it,black and white, found truemeaning in his leadership.

Again addressing theconference of the South AfricanCongress of Democrats in 1958,he said, “I am not prepared toconcern myself with suchquestions as: “Where have youcome from?”, “Do you comefrom the North?” or “Did youcome from Europe?” It is notimportant. What is importantfor our situation is that we areall here.

“That, we cannot change.We are all here, and no onedesires to change it or shoulddesire to change it. And sincewe are all here, we must seek away whereby we can realizedemocracy, so that we can livein peace and harmony in thisland of ours.’

Whatever we do, we mustnot fail his vision of a trulynon-racial democratic society.

This is quite relevant on thisspecial year, when we mark 150years of the arrival of Indianindentured labourers in SouthAfrica.

Chief Luthuli activelypromoted relations betweenthe ANC and the Natal Indian

Congress. He worked to ensure sound

relations between the twocommunities in Natal,sometimes under difficultconditions, given the apartheiddivisions.

This was truly, a remarkableleader of all the people of SouthAfrica, not just members of theAfrican National Congress. Hewas ahead of his time.

The co-chair of theAmerican Committee on Africa,Dr Martin Luther King Junior,could have referred to ChiefLuthuli in the book “Strengthto Love” published in 1963when he said, “The ultimatemeasure of a man is not wherehe stands in moments ofcomfort and convenience, butwhere he stands at times ofchallenge and controversy”.

This statement rings truewhen one thinks of theturbulent period of the 1950sinto the 60s.

The intensification ofapartheid brutality ignitedgrowing impatience with theapartheid government, and theneed to intensify the struggle indifferent ways.

The period called fordecisive leadership by ChiefLuthuli and the ANC. Some ofthe critical campaigns andevents which reflected theatmosphere of anger andimpatience, and which led to ahighly charged atmosphere inthe country included thefollowing:

The defiance Campaignagainst Unjust Laws in 1952

The 1957 Peasant Uprisingin Lehurutse, Zeerust in theNorth West province

The Peasant Revolt inSekhukhune, now known as“Motshabo” in the present dayLimpopo

The Cato Manor march inDurban where rioting broke outin 1959 in protest against thecity’s beerhalls or eMatsheni,and the destruction of dippingtanks by women

The Sharpeville Massacre of21 March 1960, in which 69people were killed and scoreswere injured

Another protest march on30 March 1960 by about 30 000people from the townships ofLanga and Nyanga in CapeTown

The Pondoland revolt in1960 at Ngquza Hill.

The ANC as a leader ofsociety had to appropriatelychannel people’s anger.

It had two choices – to takeleadership or allow thesituation to deteriorate leadingto some adventurists takingover and leading the country toanarchy. Leading from thefront, President-GeneralLuthuli articulated the letterand spirit of MK, using anisiZulu analogy that uma isithasikulandela size sifike emziniwakho, kufanele wenze njani

uma uyindoda? Uyasukumauhoshe umkhonto uzilwele.

(If an enemy follows you toyour home, what do you do asa man? You stand up, take yourspear and fight back).

This is the analogy thatChief Luthuli made to nameUmkhonto Wesizwe, the Spearof the Nation.

The situation led to thedecision taken by the structuresof the ANC clandestinely, totake up arms as an additionalpillar of struggle, withoutabandoning peaceful protestsand other forms of resistance.

Umkhonto Wesizwe wasborn.

This was to ensure that thestruggle is led responsiblywith leadership. Wecould not have asituation where theleadership tailedbehind the massesand did not lead.The armed strugglewas a well-thoughtout programme.This is why fromthe onset, themovement decidedthat in the course ofMK operations,there must be anavoidance of loss oflife, choosingsabotage andtargeting of strategicinstallations.

It is important tonote that ChiefLuthuli was nevermeant to becomethe face of MK.Comrade NelsonMandela was thenappointed to leadMK as its firstCommander-in-Chief.

As thecommander ofMK he had aduty to reportto theleadership, andamong thesewas thePresident-General.Thus, he was arrestedin Howick havinggone to report to thePresident-General.

Those who arguethat Chief Luthulimay have notsupported armedaction need toappreciate thepolicies, practicesand generaltraditions of theANC, especially thequest forconsensus.

Any member orleader of the ANChas a right to anyview. Howeveronce a decisionhas been taken andagreed to byconsensus, after

much debate and argument, itbecomes a collective decision ofthe ANC.

Chief Luthuli states as muchin an interview with Drummagazine conducted on 1 May1953: “Accepting thepresidency of congress, oneshould do so because hebelieves in the objectives ofcongress. Any man worthy ofbeing president by his abilityand prestige should make hisinfluence felt in theorganisation, so that what hesays is given due considerationby his colleagues.

“But the final decision in anymatter is the collective will ofthe executive or the nationalconference, as the case may be”.

Compatriots and friends,This statement indicates his

belief in the discipline of thecollective, and the need to takeresponsibility for decisions thatare taken in any organisation orinstitution.

From Chief Luthuli, we havelearned the importance ofhumility, commitment,compassion and willingness tolisten to others.

We have learned theimportance of discipline,consistency and steadfastnessin leadership.

We have also beenreminded that thedemocracy andfreedom we enjoytoday came atgreat cost tomany.

Therefore, we should guardour gains jealously, and commitourselves to continuouslypromote and consolidate ourhard won freedom anddemocracy. In only 16 years, wehave the type of democracyand systems of governance thathave been able to withstandmany tests.

We sail through smoothlysimply because our democracyis based on very sound andsolid foundations. It is based onthe teachings of our leaderssuch as Chief Albert Luthuli,from whom we learned thatSouth Africa and its peopleshould come first in everythingwe do.

In his honour, as SouthAfricans, we must serve withdignity and to the best of ourabilities wherever we arestationed, in the service of ourpeople.

The deep-seatedcommitment to the attainmentof freedom demonstrated byChief Luthuli, ComradesMandela, Sisulu, Dadoo and allour leaders should propel usforward always to ensure thatwe achieve what they foughtfor – a better life for all.

In closing, letus draw

inspiration from Chief Luthuli’sstatement in the famousspeech, The Road to Freedom isvia the Cross, when he said:“What the future has in storefor me, I do not know. It mightbe ridicule, imprisonment,concentration camp, flogging,banishment and even death. “Ionly pray to the Almighty tostrengthen my resolve so thatnone of these grim possibilitiesmay deter me from striving, forthe sake of the good name ofour beloved country, the Unionof South Africa, to make it atrue democracy and a trueunion in form and spirit of allthe communities in the land”.

Compatriots, indeed,nothing can be bigger and moreimportant than service to ournation, to the downtroddenand to humanity in general.

As Chief Luthuli did, heserved his people in education,business, sports, as a traditionalleader, as a preacher and as apolitical leader. Throughout hislife, he rendered service withdistinction, recognised by thepeople of South Africa asIsithwalandwe, and by theworld, through awarding himthe Nobel Peace Prize.

We salute him for hiscontribution to our nation andto humanity in general.

OkaMadlanduna wayibekainduku ebandla!

I thank you.

Source: The PresidencyIssued by: The Presidency

24 Nov 2010

Chief Albert Luthuli Memorial LectureDelivered by His Excellency President Jacob Zuma at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, Durban

President Jacob Zuma pass by University of KwaZulu-Natal vice chancellor Prof.MalegapuruMakgoba and KwaZulu-Natal premier and University of KwaZulu-Natal vice chancellor Dr. ZweliMkhize after president delivered his lecture at the 4th chief Albert Luthuli memorial lecture held atiNkosi Albert Luthuli international convention centre. PHOTO: SIYABONGA MOSUNKUTU

President Jacob Zuma received chief Albert Luthuli framed photo from daughter of Chief Luthuli Thandeka Luthuli-Gcabashe during the 4th chief Albert Luthuli memorial lecture held at iNkosi Albert Luthuli international convention centre.

PHOTO: SIYABONGA MOSUNKUTU