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RE: INVITATION TO PARTICPATE IN VAAL HEARINGS.

It is our pleasure in sharing our idea with you hoping that you will assist us in getting in touch with people who were activists or, with people who wish to share their experiences of Apartheid with us. We are the grade 10 pupils of RIS and a dedicated team of aspiring students who are part of the RIS Independent – the newspaper that your company advertised in. Please read the details below and should it interest you, please contact me. You do have my cell number.


The Independent always aims to emit the best for that which it serves and therefore we have decided to assist the Representative Council of Learners (RCL) of the Roshnee Islamic School in raising money for their needs at the same time using the opportunity to satisfy ours. This is a win-win situation for both organisations!
The Independent plans to have a fund raising dinner where we would have the Apartheid activists (comrades) as delegates as well as clerics, to share with us their views and insight on the past and the future of this fare land. The event will be hosted at a venue which is well accommodated for, with seats at sale subject to availability. Special invitations would be given to honourable Bishop of the TRC, Mr. Nelson Mandela and others unspoken heroes of the past from all racial backgrounds.

Aim:

The aim of The Independent is to put together a book which includes stories and interviews of activists (comrades) during the Apartheid-era. The book which would be compiled will be a legacy, so that the rich peaces of history involving the struggle within our communities are not lost, but rather preserved. The Vaal Triangle holds great prestige in the fight for democracy as places such as Vereeniging witnessed many historical events. The simple reasons for such a venture is to inevitably create awareness amongst those who were not present at that time, as the efforts of the many men and women who fought for what they believed in, makes living in a democratic society reality today. The shackles of Apartheid may have been broken but recognition and gratitude has to be given to the many unspoken heroes.


Goals

The Independent strongly believes in youth leadership and this is how we aim to make a difference for the people who sacrificed their time, wealth, blood, family, dignity and lives for this fair land. We feel that the struggle of the past seems to be fading with every passing day as the ignorance we show towards the struggle can only be as a result of the lack of which remains of it. We don’t wish to relive the sorrow and despicable nature of our history rather we are inspired to capture the best of it in our book, so that it can be a source of reflection for the generations down the line; when nothing of Apartheid will be found but the words and the memories of the many people whose voices will be heard in the Vaal Hearings.

It is with this that we The Independent, together with your assistance, can make the past not just ‘time gone by’ but rather a means of emulating the cliché “those who win the war, write the history”. The Vaal Hearings is the struggle of youth in memory of June the 16th 1976.


POINTS OF IMPORTANCE:
You must get the person’s name correct and a brief biographical data.
You must ensure proper protocol when you set up the interview with the person. Please be mindful of time and personal commitments of the person concerned.
Do not come across as rude or ‘pushy’ i.e. be polite.
Request if a photo can be taken or, if a DVD recording can be done and or, if the interview can be recorded on a audio appliance e.g. MP3, Cassette etc.
Ensure that all the information is gathered properly and then to writing of the transcript – save it on a flash drive and submit it to Mr.A.Sujee.




Plan of Action:

In January 2007 until June 2007 members of the RIS Independent will conduct interviews with members of the community and outlying communities – they will conduct at least 5 interviews and create awareness. The RIS Independent will have a feature article on the Vaal Hearings in the first publication of 2007.
Thereafter, the grade 10s who are being taught Cry, the Beloved Country, will continue the ‘hearings’ as part of their literature study.

In essence what you see evolve is the 3 Cs:
1. Content: you are covering the school work in a more creative and dynamic way.
2. Community: You are taking the lessons of the classroom and making it part of the community you are living in therefore, establishing bonds of understanding between you and the members of the community.
3. Collaboration: you will learn how to network with people beyond your social, economic and cultural domain and eventually establish new found friends.

In the third and fourth term of 2007 we would then ‘translate’ your stories into narratives i.e. you will write a narrative on the person’s story. The evidence you will have will allow you to write a narrative with great truth. Once we have that we hope to publish the stories in a book form. It seems very likely that we would publish the book in January 2008.

In January 2008 we would start collaborating with teachers in Palestine, Afghanistan, Iraq and other places and showcase our idea to them i.e. encourage them to get pupils to record the lives of those who fought against or experienced oppression or, has an interesting story to tell about oppressive regimes. It will be interesting to see how one will get a view on terrorism and terrorist states.

In 2008 we hope to have books published in various countries of the world. This is not our duty to see the actual printing of the books, but we will witness the process occurring. We would have to form links to see this happening. So you need to start making contacts with people in the countries above so that we can start the process in January 2008.

If you start the process of collaboration with other countries please inform me so that we can mail this memorandum to them. Once we have the contacts, we would set up our mailing list on the internet.



Here are some guideline questions that you can ask the people who were activists or, who you identified as having a real story to tell about the Apartheid era.

Tell us something about yourself – your childhood and how you got involved in politics or political resistance.

What was the most significant event which you can recall during your time as an apartheid activist?

Did you ever have a run in with the law at the time?

What was your attitude like towards policies after those run-ins or bad experiences?

Do you still have contact with any of your fellow activists that may be in the government at the moment and do you keep in touch with them?

Were you ever arrested or detained? Describe your experience?

Were you an MK (Imkonto-we-sizwe) i.e. a member of the Military wing of the ANC at the time? Describe your experiences.

Did you feel the efforts of your struggle were in vain?

How did you feel about those in power at the time i.e. what did you think of white supremacy at the time?

How did you react to the many different laws e.g. the pass law, group areas act etc?

Did you ever hear or see a neck lacing i.e. those people who spied for the Apartheid state were burnt alive by a tyre place over them?

What message would like to share with the people of South Africa today?

We don’t see i.e. in our community of Roshnee, Indians and Muslims in particular involved in politics and the civil service as they should be. Therefore, what are your feelings about this and is there any advice you would like to share regarding this. *** Depending on who you interview – do change the phrasing of the question or leave it out if it is not appropriate.

Finally – are you hopeful of South Africa today?


Thank you for the time, effort and consideration you will give this matter.

.

Shukran,

Mr.A.Sujee.Deputy Headmaster