‘You killed a hero of the Struggle’
ONE OF the sons of the slain Rosalie Bloch, 84, lashed out at the killers of his mother and her partner, Aubrey Jackson, 94,at a memorial service held for the couple at the Baxter Theatre in Rondebosch yesterday.
The pair were murdered in their Mowbray, Cape Town, home a few weeks ago.
Lance Bloch said: “I want to speak to the ones who did it. It was in the same living room that was also the home for UDF (United Democratic Front) activists, that my mother was killed in.
“They walked past the same dining room table around which we as a family came together around, and killed Aubrey.
“You took away a hero of the Struggle. Our hearts are broken but we will not break. My mom was committed to building a caring society. Before the funeral we went to view their bodies wrapped in satin. They were legends and that is how we will remember them.”
Rosalie Bloch was an active member of the University of the Third Age, Black Sash, the Women’s Peace Movement and the Detainees Parents Support Committee in the 1970s and 1980s.
Another son, Shaun Bloch, said: “During the dark days of apartheid, she assisted Graeme and Cheryl (Carolus), as well as other political activists and detainees, by offering her home as a refuge and meeting place.”
Aubrey was a retired engineer who worked for the South African and Royal Navies and was also stationed on Robben Island.
Among the dignitaries at the memorial service were former president Thabo Mbeki’s wife Zanele, Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Trevor Manuel, Struggle stalwart Denis Goldberg, Jonathan Shapiro and Carolus, who is married to Graeme Bloch, an education specialist.
Carolus gave a moving tribute, recalling the Saturday before Bloch was killed. “We went for a girlie lunch and afterwards we went for a stroll in the harbour.
“We talked about the grandchildren. Rosalie and Aubrey led their lives by example and their lives were brutally taken away from them.
“We are sad and angry that their lives came to an end like that. It shows what they (the killers) have in them to kill like that. And that they have killed before.
“Last Friday, we went back to the house. We reclaimed the space where they were killed. And as we stood outside an eagle landed on the tree outside. Afterwards he took off with his wings spread out. That eagle came to fetch their spirits. Aubrey and Rosalie you are our spirits,” she said.
In his tribute, Manuel said he remembered how as a political activist he used to visit the house of the Blochs. “Aubrey and Rosalie were not rich and did not spend their lives gathering material stuff. They worked with youth on the Cape Flats.
“They are defined by the exemplary lives they led. These were heinous acts and we call for justice to be done,” he said.
Goldberg said the couple lived great lives and believed in ubuntu. “They lived a life of giving to others, through service,” he said.
Shaun Bloch also described his mother as a rock and tower of strength. “She put six sons through university. And she raised seven children while being a practising attorney. I remember the gruesome discovery of their bodies. It is such a senseless killing,” he said.
Police were investigating the murders. No arrests have been made yet.
OUR HEARTS ARE BROKEN BUT WE WILL NOT BREAK. MY MOTHER WAS COMMITTED TO BUILDING A CARING SOCIETY