‘We were kids and fearless’

SHOTS VS PEACE SIGNS

Much has been written about the killing of black pupils by apartheid police on June 16, 1976. Tomorrow marks 41 years since the June 16 uprising. The Citizen spoke to two people who had taken part in the protest as pupils.

Phillip Mahlaba, 64, a former pupil at Sekano Ntoane Secondary in Senaoane who had also led the protest, said pupils went around to other schools in Soweto mobilising their peers against Afrikaans-medium instruction.

“Police pointed guns at us and fired shots into the sky. Instead we stood there and showed them a peace sign […] We only ran away when they threw tear gas at us. We were kids and did not see that our lives were in danger.”

Mahlaba added that after June 16, pupils went to John Vorster Square [police headquarters] disguised in workers’ overalls.

“But underneath we wore our school uniforms. On arrival, we took off the overalls. An officer gave us just five minutes to disperse, but we hurled insults at him.

His wife, Makhidi Mahlaba, 59, said: “Students from other schools arrived. They told us to do a braaivleis with the [text]books.”

Eventually all hell broke loose when they heard Hector Pieterson had been killed. “We started throwing stones at any car driven by a white person,” said Makhidi. –