SOWETO, South Africa, July 16, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A black and white photo
of Nelson Mandela in boxing attire greets visitors to the gym where the
liberation hero trained in the 1950s before delivering the knock-out blow to
apartheid decades later.
“He used to train here, I feel strong… Physically and mentally I get
some strength,” said gym-goer Kgotso Phali, 18.
The red and white walls of the gym, located in South Africa’s Soweto
township, smell of fresh paint.
The Donaldson Orlando Community Centre (DOCC) has been restored to its
former glory to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Mandela’s birth.
Mandela, South Africa’s first black president known locally by his clan
name “Madiba”, died in 2013.
“People had to carry passes — all these things are gone now. We are
free,” thanks to him, said Andy Zameko, who said he was proud to work out in
the same gym as Mandela.
Mandela would visit the gym several times a week to train and forget the
ordeal that was the fight against the white supremacist regime.
“The walls of… the DOCC are drenched with sweet memories that will
delight me for years,” Mandela wrote to his daughter Zindzi from his cell on
Robben Island where he was imprisoned for 18 years.
A copy of the letter, dated December 9, 1979, is displayed on a wall in
the gym. Nearby, young musicians seek to catch the attention of passing
tourists in front of Mandela’s former home which has been transformed into a
museum.
“(He) makes us united. Now we are all united. (Blacks) can perform in
theatres like the Joburg Theatre now — it was not the case before,” said
guitarist Vincent Ncabashe, 49.
– ‘Not living his dream’ –
Others recognise the achievement but are disappointed in the post-
apartheid reality.
“Madiba is so inspiring for me,” said hip-hop singer Thobane Mkhize who
sported a striking bouffant haircut.
“But we are not living his dream,” said the 24-year-old musician.
“The parliament is like a (sitcom), it is no longer a parliament because
politicians are busy with corruption. Instead of being united, we are busy
looking at the colours of the skin,” he added.
“There was need for a figure to reconcile black and whites,” said
Genevieve Assamoi, a 45-year-old from Ivory Coast.
“He was crucial in ensuring that blacks did not take revenge on whites
and to allow the whites to feel safe.”
“Without him, we would still be stuck in the same place,” said policeman
and father-of-three Mpho Ngobeni.
– ‘He did his best’ –
At a nearby petrol station in Soweto, two white men in khaki outfits
completed the purchase of a car from two young black men — an unusual scene
in the sprawling black-majority township.
“The white people also got a chance (to stay in South Africa),” said
Kaelen Viljoen as he struggled to hide the handgun clipped to his belt.
The 22-year-old had also brought along a baseball bat, perched on the
front seat of his 4X4.
“I always have a weapon with me and I would not have left it at home when
I came here,” said Viljoen, visiting Soweto for the first time in his life.
“We called a lot of guys and we were very worried to come here, because
he said there are a lot of black people here, and white people driving around
here, is going to be a big problem.
“(But) after we met the guys we bought the car from, we actually love it,
they are very friendly.”
Maxwell Huis, 44, a homeless father-of-two said the reality delivered by
Mandela was starkly different to that which he had promised. “He sold the
black people to the whites. There should have been a civil war — it would
have changed things,” he added as he foraged for wood to burn.
Mtate Phakela, 19, sees Mandela’s legacy very differently.
“He gave us a revolution without a war. He gave us the idea of freedom
through peace,” said the teenager.
“But we are not economically free.”
Economic divisions still plague the country with the median monthly
salary for whites at around 10,000 rands ($753, 638 euros) but just 2,800 for
the black community.
“He did his best,” continued Mtate. “The people who came after could
have done better to free us economically.”