Reburial of 9 East Cape anti-apartheid activists

Nine reburials of former antiapartheid activists who died in the struggle will take place across the Eastern Cape on Saturday.

Six of the activists had been affiliated to the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), the party’s provincial secretary Phumzile Nomnga said on Tuesday.

Eastern Cape department of arts & culture spokesperson Andile Nduna said the bodies had been exhumed in Pretoria last year. He said the other three had been executed for their role in the Pondo revolt of 1964.

Mokushane, co-ordinator of the Gallows Exhumation Project in the department of justice, said the department and the province last year exhumed the remains of three Pondo revolt activists Mute Yawa, Mphithizeli Zoya and Katyana Zoya.

PAC Eastern Cape spokesperson Ndiyakholwa Nqulu said the six Azanian People’s Liberation Army members – Meyi Zenzile, Goli Sonazi, Mhlaba Siqwayi, Katsekile Philaphi, Bizo Modi and Galo Nkosinam – were based in a task team in Cape Town and had returned home to defend their families against the government of the day.

The PAC has been working closely with the department of justice in the handover and reburial programme.

Nduna said the PAC activists, originally from Cofimvaba and executed in Pretoria between 1960 and 1990, were also exhumed last year.

They will be reburied on

March 23.

“The department of justice has written to my office to confirm that minister of justice Mr Mike Masutha and the pro- vincial leadership will hand over the remains to families at Cofimvaba,” Nduna said.

In November, the Vuso family repatriated and buried, with the help of the provincial arts & culture department, the remains of uMkhonto Wesizwe soldier Mathemba Vuso from Peelton in Buffalo City to Kei Road in Amahlathi municipality.

Vuso had been killed in combat with Ciskei police and soldiers in Mdantsane in 1987.

MEC Bulelwa Tunyiswa said: “It will not be possible to bring back the remains of all fallen cadres, as in some instances it will be impossible to locate the graves, particularly in countries that have been the theatre of fierce wars and battles.

“The department will in partnership with other roleplayers embark on spiritual repatriation to ensure families are able to come to terms with what happened to their loved ones.”