STUDENTS AND REVOLUTIONIN SOUTH AFRICA+ R Wekaza S. Muk andala++ "Of all the classes that stand face to face with the bourgeoisie today, the Proletariat alone is a really revolutionary class" • The CommunistManifesto. "The revolutionary role, traditionally that of the industrial working class, has fallen to the Youth••. " Rowntree. 1. INTRODUCTION: Students have always been an important social force in history, ve~y often acting as catalysts of change. They were a frequent source of tension in the middle ages in Bologna and Paris. They played an important role in Martin Luther's battles against the Pope and the BOLlyRoman Emperor. In F. Engels' words, "they formed the nucleus, the real strength, of the revolutionary force" during the 1848 revolution in Vienna (H. Chrismas 1960 p. 40). In the twentieth century, they have helped in the removal from office of the dynasty in China in 1911; Juan Peron in Argentina in 1955; Perez Jimerez in Venezuela in 1958; Kishi government in Japan in 1960; Sukarno in Indonesia in 1966; Ayub Khan in Pakistan in 1969; General De Gaulle in France in 1969; (Lipset and Altbach 1969 p. 4) Masamba Debat in the Congo in 1966; and even Emperor Bokassa in the Central African Republic in 1979. . In a way~ therefore, the Soweto student movementwas not unique in history. + .- An. earlier version of this paper was presented to the Southern Afric~ Universities-Social Science Conference, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, June 23-27 1979. The present version benefited from valuable commeI)tsby Professor A.G. Ishumi and Dr. Dan O'meara. ++A'SS1stant Lecturer, P0lIS itica cience Department,. University ~f Dar es Salaam. 161 Yet, when considered in the specific circumstanl.'CS of South Africa it was phenomenal in a number of ways. First, South Africa, at least since 1910, had never experienced fln uprising of Soweto's magnitude. Within two months of the fateful June 15, 1976, when more than one hundred students were murdered by the racist police, not 'less than eighty black communities all over the R epu blic had joined in the struggle. Within four months, the number had doubled to 160, by conservative estimates. (J. Kane- Berman 1979 p. 2). Indeed the protest activity spread into the Bantustans as well as into Namibia. This mass rising was to continue, up until the beginning of 1978. Second(y, the movement was also phenomenal in its effects. The things destroyed in the country included more than 100 buildings belonging to the Boards of Bantu administration, 250 bottle- stores and beerhalls, 170 shops, 25 clinics, 8 banks, a dozen libraries, and a score of post offices, hotels, cinemas, clinics, churches, community halls, magistrate's courts, petrol filling stations; several hundred police vehicles, as well as about a third of the Pu blie Utility Transport Corporation's fleet of 926 vehicles. More to this, millions of rand were lost through the workers' strikes and mass boycott of white shops; South African Western sympathisers and backers were embarrassed and forced to diSsociate themselves al beit only in words, from the mass killings; and white South Africans were forced to serambl e into their "Laager" having emptied ali shops of firearms. Generally, l he S oweto revolt sparked off a wave of mass activity which a lesser state machinery couldn't have survived. It was a wave which as Nkosi (977) very well puts it, South Africa had never known since 1910. 1t shook the white power apparatus in South Africa as nothing else had ever done before. In view of the above, it is no wonder t hat it has sparked off heated debates among revolutionary circles centred on such issues as the role of organisation as opposed to spontaneity, the utility of mass demonstrations in view of the high casuality figures, as well as the possibility of an insurrection in South Africa. Very important for our purpose, however, has been the issue of the role of students in Social Revolution in South Africa. To some the Soweto revolt has demonstrated their long argued view that students are now the I eadin~ revolutionary force in the struggle against capitalism fer socialism, ~ la Herbert 162 Marcuse (1964); (1965). Indeed some have gone further to talk about the "Youth Class" replacing the working class as the leading force of the revolution. (Rowntree 1968). The tendency of the mass media (Western especially) of giving student activities more coverage than the workers', to the extent of sensationalising the former has consolidated this trend. . 23). Not only had the question of languages of instruction in African Schools been a recurring source of contention for almost twenty years, (Kane Berman Opecit. p. 11); the use of Afrikaans was acfually 'lifted in early July 1976, but it did not stop the protests which indeed t hereafter moved to a qualitatively higher level as we shall SOOR.>see. We are no'" caayingit was of 10 importance at all, all we are sayin~ is thal.;it-must be seen within a wider context. To use Kane Berman's words, for the Afrikaans issue to have been the last, there had to have-been cOuntlesl'lother straws laid upon the camel's back before. The students' revolt vas to use Lenin's words (1908), "A political s.YIIlPtom ••• of the whole present sit~ation I. 218). 172 Put in this per spective, the failure to locate the student revolt within the overall mass revolt in South Africa is a serious shortcoming. Indeed the Soweto revolt, was but a culmination of a series of struggles which had re-emerged after the "lul,l" of the sixties when African political organisations were banned, many of their militants killed or sent to jail, and others forced to leave the country. Beginning in late 1960's, a series of strikes had been staged by the workers; South African Studen~s Organisation (SASO) and the Black People Con- vention (EPe) had been formed; while outside the country, the Liberation movements had activated international pressure against the South African regime. The Soweto Revolt was a culmination of all these events. Indeed the student struggle cannot be understood without this perspective. Other social groups especially the working class had been part and parcel of this process. To leave them out of any explanation is inevitably a serious omission. Having discussed the causes of the revolt, let us now turn to its course. 3.2 COURSE OF THE REVOLT. Actually, the student action began in April 1976 with boycotts and strikes at several schools in Soweto and around Johannes burg, although June 1976 is taken as the landmark, largely because this was when the massacre of students by South Mrica police enlllass began. The revolt was sustained throughout the year and calm was not really restored to the townships until the beginning of 1978. Two general phases can be distinguished in the movement. These are: a more or less student revolt and a more generalised revol- utionary struggle, a la Heinz Lubasz - (mentioned in section two). The demarcation is by no means rigid and of course there 'i'ere a lot uf elements which were common throughout- the struggle. All the same, a rough distinction can be made based on five variables. These are the le.ading agents in the struggle; the demands and targets of the struggle; the nature and tactics of the struggle; forms of leadership and organisation of the struggle; and lastly, the government response to the struggle. While it is true that it is the students who sparked off the struggle and sustained it through rebellion and boycotts to the end, they soon realised their blows were not only "light". but were aimed at "un- 173 important" targets in the systen;t. In the words of three of them, they realised that among other things: "What .happens in Soweto affects no one outside, in the 'white' areas. We want to do what will hit the enemy hardest- the people have recognised their econ- .omic power". (Kane Berman p. 133). They thus turned to the wielders of this economic power - the masses in general, and the black workers in particular. From this moment onwards, the momentum and power of the struggle emanated from the working class, as they flexed their muscles through the numerous strikes and boycQ.ttof 'white' goods. This fact had a bearing on the course and effect of the s~ruggle as a whole, and'indeed provide4~the fundamental demarcation between'the first and second phases. Demands at first had been centred on the Bantu Educa"tion system and the target had oeen the schools. This later on evolved into an assault on the total systeIP-of oppression as Railway installations, Government buildings, etc. were attacked, a fact which may have contributed to the entry. of the working class into the struggle as the demand and scope of the struggle widened to include their intere~ts. With the coming in of the working class however, the targets were further refined. While the general system of oppression remained the target, there was now a pointed attack on the system of production, with the workers' refusal to avail the system of their labour power; the burning of farms; and the refusal to shoulder any rent increase. Commented the President of South Africa's Association of Engineering employers: "the emphasis ••• had switched from being anti-government to being anti-business". (RAPE No.7 p. 108). What had.begun a:> a specific attack on the particular aspects of the system: its Bantu education system,. had grown into an attack on the overall system, with sharp, pointed deep thrusts into its base - the economy. More to this, street demonstrations and mass groupings of people, very predominant in the first phase, gave' way to what Lenin (1971) called "the specifically proletarian weapon of struggle" (p. 173), namely strikes, stay at homes, and numerous other clandestine activities. While this ~ay have been due to the increasing casualties sustained in the earlier forms of struggles, the entry of the working !class was again a very important contributing factor - not only 174 because they were the hinge on which the new tactic depended upon, but may be also because of their accumulated experience of struggle and organization. Although spontaneity is one of the elements which marked the whole struggle, in the latter stages of the struggle, conscious merticulous organization was evident. Newsweek reported that: "There were indications that in their later stages, some of the riots were indeed organized. . . Identical slogans calling for more violence appeared on walls in various parts of the country simultaneously". (July-4, 1976). In a latter issue, we are informed that: "A well organised leaflet campaign by hundreds of school children in Soweto and other townships around Jonannesburg succeeded in achieving a nearly total strike by black workers that crippled Industry and commerce in Johannesbi^g" (September 6, 1976 p. 7). In the later stages of the struggle therefore, spontaneous action was blended with organised action. This organization as evident above is commonly attributed to students. While this is very true as students formed an underground in the townships to maintain contact with other regions, it is also true that other non-student bodies were involved in the organisation of the struggle. The call for the workers' strikes for example, originated simultaneously both from the Johannesburg students and from the African National Congress underground (RAPE No. 7. p. 122). Furthermore, workers in Natalspruit (Germiston) had made thousands of copies of strike leaflets on their bosses 1 office machines and then passed them to the students for distribution (Kane Berman 1979 p. 117). More to this, we are informed that Hostel men were among the active promoters of the third stay-away. 13th, 14th and 15th September 1976 (Kane Berman.p. 114). In any case, the strike-response, 100 percent in some cases, tends to suggest an effective worker participation in the organisation process. 175 Finally, the government re.sponse to the struggle, was generally marked by arrogance and a refusal to curve in to any of the demands, and often harsh reprisals against the participants characterised by massacres. Indeed the Government response in the early phase of the struggle, had been the appointment of Dr. Andries T reurnich, reknown for his extremely anti-African views, Deputy Minister in charge of African Education. The entry of the working class into the struggle changed the response dramatically. Nkosi (977) describes the change very well:- "The white establishment racists and Liberals alike, reacted either not at 3.11or with wild deprecation when school children were being shot down in cold blood in the townships. But when their workforce was removed during the two successful three-day strikes in S oweto which broug~t commerce and industry in Johannes- burg to a halt, the shots of alarm rose on all sides". (p. 33). The all-white associated chambers of commerce, the South African Federation of the Chambers of Industry, and the National Development and Management Foundation, all met after the crippling strikes and urged the abandonment of racial discrimination. To crown it all, Prime Minister J. Vorster summoned leaders of the ruling National Party to a summit conference in Pretoria for September 1976. As Newsweek c'ommented, this was:- "The first timer.such a meeting has been called since June 1960, when South Africa broke away from Great"Britain and proclaimed itself a Republic" (August 3, 1976, p. 26). A shopkeeper near Johannesburg for example lamented: "Soweto people are real~y showing us what they can do. One cannot ignore the buying power of a million people and its really hitting us hard now" (Kane Berman p. 122). Of course the cumulativ ~ effect of the struggle had something to do with this change in response. What we are empJ;1asizing i~ the 17.6 important role played by the working class in the process. As the South Africa:b. Congress of Trade Unions (1977) correctly observes:- "It was the strike action of the black workers which really shook the confidence of the regime and of the whole capitalist ruling class". (Workers' Unity No.9. 1977 p. 1). 4. CONCLUSION: At this juncture, we cannot but conclude that contrary to the commonly held view, the Soweto revolt was actually not a purely student affair. The working class played a very key role in the move- meni., and indeed as we have seen above, transformed it both quanti- tal.J.vely and qualitatively from a mere student revolt, into a generalised revolutionary movement by refining and sharpening its demands and targets; perfecting old tactics of protest while at the same time devising others which were safer and more effective; evolving new methods of organisation and leadership; and lastly, providing it with immense social power, thus greatly contributing to the overall effectiveness of the struggle. In restrospect, this was to be expected for as Lenin (1908) said:- "The proletariat will not be behindhand. It often yields the palm to the bourgeois democrats in speeches at banquets, in legal Unions within the walls of the Univer- sities, from the rostrum of representative institutions. It never ~eld8 the palm, and will not do so, in t e serious ana reat revolutionar. stru les of the masses" e t e oweto one - r emphasis p. 219). This is so, and objectively inevitable for a number of reasons. As mentioned in section two, a social revolution in a class society, is a class issue. And in a capitalist society, this role objectively falls squarely on the shoulders of the working class. A class with a definite and crucial place and role in the capitalist mode of production. As opposed to tl).is, the student body is a social category, composed of elements from vari,?us classes in society. As Lenin (1908) ably describes the phenomenon:- 177 " Thousands and millions of threads tie the student Youth with the middle and lower bourgeoisie, the petty officials,' certain groups of the peasantry, the clergy etc •.• " (p. 219) This among other things leads to students submitting to confused ideas and vascillating from the extreme left, through the center, to the extreme right of the political spectrum, a fact very evident during the Soweto struggles. When examination time approached in February 1977, ~ students who earlier on had been in the fore front enforcing the 'Azikhwelwa' (we don't ride) call, now wanted to sit for the examinations. They argued:- "It is our sincere wish that Bantu Education should be totally scrapped, but we cannot afford to foresake Bantu Education and be left with no relevant alternative at all .•• The bqycott of classes and examinations does not affect the oppressor. Instead he rejoices that we are defeating our own ends". (Our emphasis. Karne- Berman 1979 p. 135). The working class, as producers of surplus value, is strategically placed in the mode of production, both in terms of being ~t the core of the mode - the production process - as well as being dispersed throughout the society. The student body however, is not strategically placed. The society can shut its schools and Universities even for a year, as was the case in Soweto, which would be impossible with factories and industries. The working class also suffers from • continuous direct exploitation, oppression and alienation. Students however, do not, suffer directly from exploitation in the production process. It is significant that recently, when the state in the former Central African Empire of Bokassa required students to put on new uniforms, a student retorted: "pay my father first, I will then buy a uniform". It is because of all these reasons that the working class forms the backbone of all revolutionary struggles against the capitalist mode of production. Thus in the case of Southern Africa, Shamu- yarira (1974) who is a seasoned freedom flahter says:- 178 "From my own experience, most of the militants who form the backbone of the guerrilla wars are men and women who have had work experience in one or more of the major cities and mines of Southern Africa •••• Even among the peasantry scattered in the thousands of villages in Southern Africa, it is those who worked in the cities or mines at some point in their youth, who readily and willingly support the armed struggle". (p. 15). More to this, the working class struggle is a permanent one, their target, the entire mode of production as their grievances' can only he resolved with the complete overthrow of the existing social arrangement and thus organizationally, they aspire to include all the oppressed classes and sections in the mode of production. Thus, the South African Industrial and Commercial Workers' Union in the 1920's, "functioned as a Trade Union, political pressure group and mass movement" (L. D. Dekker etal. 1975. p. 212). As opposed to this, student struggles are sporadic, more often than not dir'ected a1: specific social ills until they adopt a working class position and thus join with the workers in their relentless struggles against the system. But as Jack Woddis (1977) well puts 1t:- "Once the heavy weight of the working class movement is thrown i1;1tobattle it quickly becomes clear as to which is the decisive force". (p. 345). This is the historical reality which the Soweto movement, contrary to misguided interpretations, confirms. A reality, which luckily enough has been clearly and correctly understood and its implications clearly apprecifltpd and accepted by the Liberation movement in South Africa. IIi the words of the South Mrican Congress of Trade Unions (1977):- "The events of the past six months have shown :that the road to victory is the road of the worker's st,ruggle. The task now is to build up the organis.ed strength of the working class". (p. 2). 179 REFERENCES. 1. Botha, R. F. In Newsweek, 'July 12, 1976. 2. Chrismas, H.M. (ed.) The American Journalism of Marx and Engels: New York, 1966. 3. Dekker, L.D., Hemson, D.; Kane Berman, J. S. Lever, J.; and Schlemer, L; "Case Studies in African Labour action in South Africa and Namibia" in Sandbrook R. and Cohen, R. (eds) The Develop- ment of an African Working Class. Longmans, London, 1~7:>. 4. 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