Honour for Nokutela

JL Dube’s wife was shining light

Nokutela Mdima Dube may not have given birth to her own offspring, but she produced “spiritual children” through the thousands she educated at Ohlange Institute, which she co-founded 117 years ago.

Chérif Keïta, the William H Laird Professor of French and the Liberal Arts in the French and Francophone Studies Department in Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, US, described the ANC’s founding president John Langalibalele Dube’s widow as his “adoptive spiritual ancestor”.

Keïta said his discovery of Nokutela’s grave and her honour with the Order of the Baobab in Gold during President Jacob Zuma’s annual national orders ceremony on Friday was a culmination of 17 years of engagement with South African history, a period ranging from the 1850s to the present.

Nokutela was buried at the Brixton cemetery in a grave marked “CK9763” (CK stood for Christian Kaffir). She died 100 years ago in January 1917.

Keïta said he was pleased that Nokutela, the “poster-girl for the marginalisation of women”, was finally being honoured.

According to Keïta, he was party to Nokutela’s posthumous nomination for the order with her grandniece Joyce Siwani, other family members and Freedom Park, where a symbolic ceremony to welcome her spirit was held at Isivivane.

The United Congregational Church of Southern Africa is also among the backers of Nokutela’s recognition.

Keïta will be in the country for Friday’s ceremony at the request of Nokutela’s family.