60 years on, we reflect on Imam Haron’s legacy to SA
Towering figure in struggle against apartheid paid the supreme sacrifice
ON SUNDAY, we shall be commemorating the 46th anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Abdullah Haron, who was killed in an apartheid prison in 1969. Imam Haron was a towering figure in the struggle against apartheid. He paid the supreme sacrifice for his witness to justice.
This year’s commemoration of Imam Haron’s martyrdom is significant since it also marks the 60th year since the appointment of Abdullah Haron in October 1955 as the official Imam of the Al-Jaamia Masjid in Stegman Road, Claremont.
At the time of his appointment, Abdullah Haron was 31 years old and he became the youngest Imam in the Cape. His appointment as an Imam marked the birth of a new era in the history of Islam in South Africa.
During the 14-year period of his Imamat at the Stegman Road Masjid, from 1955-1969, Imam Haron forged a close relationship with the Claremont youth.
These young students were politically conscientised at their schools by teachers who belonged to the Teachers League of South Africa, and they were looking for spiritual guidance that resonated with their anti-apartheid political conscientisation.
They shared their political literature with the Imam and thus developed a symbiotic relationship between Imam Haron and the youth.
Imam Haron revitalised their faith in Islam by teaching them a more dynamic and socially responsive understanding of Islam, and he in turn learnt from their political activism and involvement in anti-apartheid struggles.
The socially responsive vision of Islam that was formulated by Imam Haron in collaboration with the Claremont Muslim Youth Association was articulated in their newsletter The Islamic Mirror in the late ’50s and throughout the ’60s.
It featured articles focusing on “Bantu Education”, “Exploitation of Farm and Mine Workers”, “Hajj and Equality” and “300 Years of Oppression”.
The highpoint of Imam Haron and his youth allies was reached in March 1960 when they launched “The Call of Islam” which declared apartheid a heresy.
Imam Haron was one of the first Muslim leaders to regularly frequent black townships such as Langa, Nyanga and Gugulethu. For Imam Haron the primary motivation for his interactions with these communities was to show solidarity with fellow oppressed compatriots.
In doing so, he sought to break down racial and cultural barriers that kept communities apart during the apartheid era, and stubbornly persist today. Among the many activities Imam Haron had been engaged in, was looking after the financial needs of families of anti-apartheid activists who had been incarcerated or driven into exile.
The funds for his relief work had been obtained largely from the Defence and Aid League, which in turn was strongly supported by Christian Churches internationally.
The fact that these international Christian Churches trusted a Muslim Imam to channel relief funds to families of anti-apartheid activists speaks volumes about the strong interfaith connections that Imam Haron had forged.
On Wednesday, May 28 1969, Imam Haron was detained under Section Six of the Terrorism Act of 1967. After being held by the state security for 123 days incommunicado, Imam Haron died while in prison on September 27, 1969.
According to police reports the Imam’s death had been caused by a fall from a flight of stairs at the Maitland police station.
A subsequent autopsy report revealed 28 bruises on the Imam’s body, mostly on the legs. His stomach was empty and his 7th rib was broken. The Muslim community never believed the apartheid police version of the cause of Imam Haron’s death. More than 30 000 mourners coming from all sectors of Cape Town’s diverse population turned his funeral into a ritualised form of defiance against the apartheid regime.
In a eulogy delivered at the funeral, the late anti-apartheid activist, Victor Wessels, captured the mission of the Imam when he said: “Imam Haron’s mission was the mission of the people, but he died not only for the Muslims. He died for his cause – the cause of the oppressed people, and for that he will be remembered.”
An interfaith service, paying tribute to Imam Haron’s contribution to the anti-apartheid struggle was also held in the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral in central London on October 6 1969.
It was the first time in the history of the Cathedral that a service had been held there to commemorate a Muslim.
Since the 1980s a number of youth groups including the Claremont Main Road Mosque has sought to build on the legacy of Imam Abdullah Haron by critically reflecting on and engaging with issues that affect us as citizens, locally and globally.
To mark the milestone of the 60th year since Abdullah Haron’s appointment as Imam, the Claremont Main Road Mosque has invited Imam Haron’s grandson, Khalid Shamis to reflect on the legacy of Imam Haron at its Friday congregational service today. In addition, The Imam Abdullah Haron Educational Trust will be hosting their 8th Annual Imam Haron Memorial Lecture on Wednesday September 30, at 7.30 pm at Community House in Salt River.
Professor Adam Habib, vice-chancellor and principal of the University of Witwatersrand will deliver the lecture. His lecture is called “Transcending the Past and Reimagining the Future of the South African University”.
Reflecting on Imam Haron’s legacy allows us to ponder how we too can live our lives in the service of others, without prejudice and judgement, and how we can take forward the social justice vision Imam Abdullah Haron espoused and ultimately gave his life for.
Dr A Rashied Omar is imam of the Claremont Main Road Mosque.
The editor is away. Friday Files will return next week.
IMAM HARON’S MISSION WAS THE MISSION OF THE PEOPLE, BUT HE DIED NOT ONLY FOR MUSLIMS. HE DIED FOR HIS CAUSE – THE CAUSE OF THE OPPRESSED PEOPLE, AND FOR THAT HE WILL BE REMEMBERED