Trafford Publishing: Good Over Evil

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Good Over Evil

by Meche Okwesili

320 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-1172; ISBN 1-4120-0804-2; US$26.50, C$32.00, EUR21.00, £14.50

Good Over Evil in retrospect details the story of Africa's enslavement, subjugation and racial prejudice. It enumerates the various racial laws used to subjugate the people into obedience and Africa's instinct and sacrificial spirit to fight for dignity against all odds using South Africa as a case study.

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About the Book

Good Over Evil is a masterpiece of reality of life story, revealing unforgettable human agonies in the colonial racist enslavement in Southern Africa. It highlights racism in action and projects the atrocities of apartheid with vivid accounts of the plights of Africans as meted out by the oppressive system. It is the epitome of man's inhumanity to man and a crime against humanity in the cloak of religion. The outcome of years of research, it is a novel of impelling readability and a sweeping evocation of the South. Immensely powerful in depth and compelling and most of all a memorable history.
Being of personal interest to research and analysing the consequences of colonial and racial prejudices imbibed by the imperial racists in Africa, this book forms the first part of a two-part series of the atrocities of Apartheid in Africa. The second part is centered on the frontline states, the destabilization tactics of the racist state and Africa's revolution against the oppressive system. It is a work on its own perspective.

About the Author

Meche Okwesili is a freelance author on international affairs and publisher of many articles. He took to writing during his teaching career with the publication of The Prophecy of Bob Marley in 1987. He is a partisan member of Nigeria-Azania People's Friendship and Cultural Association and the Youth Solidarity for Peace and Progress. He is married with four children.

Excerpts

INTRODUCTION
Africa trembled under several colonial conquests resulting in the scramble and partition of the continent to suite the colonists interest. At the height of this era, Africans were battered with different strokes of mercenary volunteers and trade merchants clothed in the image of a civilising mission. Under these disguise they penetrated and flourished in the darkest heart of Africa where they were received sometimes with open arms and in some other engaged with fierce resistance. The African hospitality became truncated and the liberal life of the indigenous people of South became vulnerable to the worst colonial domination in the continent.
The colonist invasion became an omen as every segment of life were traumatised and the dignity of man trampled. During this period, the array of subjections, servitude and oppresssion metted on Africans projected unimaginable abomination. In order words, the kind of laws were such that are made in hell. It was really an epitome of man's inhumanity to man. In effect, the open mind Africans gave the colonist turned to a nightmare in their very eyes.
However, despite the odds encountered, it is a general knowledge that Africans fought political enslavement in the form of Apartheid. It is a story that went from barbarism to civilisation, from tyranny to democracy and from force to reason. A kind of story of misguided action, pride and selfish ambition of the racist. And before the Bantu could realise their situation, they were dominated by the muzzles of the colonial gunpower. The people saw dehumanisation, misery, cruelty, terror, wept, bled and shedded tears of pain from 1948 to the very dismantle of the obnoxious system. So for more than four decades the Bantu saw inhumanity, fought and conqured it. Their ordeals were no movie tales.They were real life stories.
In retrospect, this book provided in advance, a vivid account of human sufferings that can better be narrated than experienced. It is the recalling of suffering and degradation at extreme and more than necessary of man's survival and lasting patience against all odds. Besides, this book will open the minds of younger generations to the experiences and the sacrificial spirit of South African revolution, while reminding the older generation of horrible past.
-Meche Okwesili
CHAPTER ONE
APARTHEID
The aboriginal people of South Africa belong to two distinct ethno -linguistic stocks, the Khoisan (Bushmen and Hottentots) and the Bantu. A third small group are the Bergdama of South-West Africa who speak a Nama Hottentot dialect. The Bantu people are among the most important ethno-linguistic group in Africa. In South Africa there are four main ethno linguistic groups of Bantu peoples - Nguni, Sotho (or Suthu) Venda and Shangana - Tsonga.
The Nguni group includes the Zulu (Natal), Xhosa (Eastern Cape). Swazi (Swaziland and Eastern Transvaal) and two divisions of Ndebele in the Transvaal (Potgietersrust and Pretoria - Middleburg district). Also of Nguni stock are the Ndebele of Zimbabwe, and the Nguni tribes in Nyasaland.
The Sotho group includes the Southern Sotho of Basutoland, Eastern and Central Orange Free State and SouthernTransvaal, Northern (Pedi) of Central Transvaal, Tswana of Bechuana land Protectorate, Western Transvaal, Western Orange Free State and a number of small tribes in the northern and eastern Transvaal.
The Venda are a small group including the Lemba in the Louis Trichardt-Sibasa districts of the northern Transvaal.
The Shangana - Tsonga group includes the Shangaans of the eastern Transvaal and a number of tribes or tribal clusters in Southern Portuguese East Africa.
Among the immigrants group of languages is the Afrikaans. It originated from the Dutch dialect of the 17th centrury. As a matter of fact, there is hardly any trace of direct influence of another language on Afrikaans as it remained the dominant language adopted by all foreigners. Others are the English and Frisian. However, inspite of common use of English during so many years in administration, education and culture. English had very little influence on the Afrikaans.
Indeed, South Africa's population of almost 40 million comprised of many races. Black South Africans comprised about 70% of the population, white South Africans (persons of European descent) 17. 5%, coloured South Africans (persons of mixed origin) about 9. 5% and Asian South Africans about 3%. The black population consists of several ethnic groups, the largest of which are the Zulu and Xhosa. The whites who make up less than 18% of the population belong to two main groups. Afrikaners and English speaking people. The Afrikaners are descendants of the Dutch settlers who came to the area in the 17th century and make up about 60 percent forming the majority of the white population in every province except Natal. Their language is Afrikaans. The Afrikaners were referred to as Boers, a Dutch term meaning farmers, because almost all were engaged in agriculture and also formed the majority of South African's skilled workers.
The English speaking whites are predominantly of British origin and they have greater financial power than any other group.
The Cape coloured are South Africans of mixed origin. They descended from Hottentots and Bushmen who were among the original inhabitants of South Africa. Most coloureds live in Cape Province mainly in the western part and speak Afrikaans.
The Asian population is composed mainly of the descendants of people from Indian subcontinent who originally came to the country between 1860 and 1911 to work on the sugar plantation of Natal.
Naturally, the early life of the indigenous inhabitants was based on agriculture and hunting. Not long however, the white settlers from the Netherlands arrived in the extreme south west of the Cape of Good Hope. First of all was Jan Van Riebeeck in 1652, who led the Dutch East Indian Company (DEIC) party to establish an outpost at the Cape. The outpost was for the victualling of ships passing through Cape of Good Hope from India to Europe and from Europe to East Indian colonies. As expected, things fashioned out favourably and Riebeeck sought permission for Dutch East Indian Company to settle as independent colonists. This was motivated by the products of the indigenes which they exchanged for valuable objects, coupled with the fertile land for agriculture. In desperation one of the first things Van Riebeeck did was to plant a fence in order to separate the colonists from the Hottentots. It could be said that the first practice of this act of racism was initiated in 1660 when Riebeeck planted his hedge of bitter almonds to keep the Hottentots and free Burghers apart. This set off a row of other racial demarcations as it was soon followed by the establishment of discriminatory amenities. So it was, that as the Boers moved inland, borders between themselves and Black tribes became their main concern.
But truly, the Dutch actually had several wars with the mild Hottentots as they spread inland they came into contact with the Bantuspeaking people of Eastern Cape in the middle of the eighteenth century. In the process, British came and annexed the Cape in 1795, following the Napoleonic War. By 1830, large groups of whites left the colony because they were dissatisfied with the erratic policy that the British administration introduced from 1806, which embraced also the launching of anti-slavery campaign, making the Afrikaners lose most of their slaves. Life and possession along the borders were endangered and they felt their aspirations were not fulfilled. This led to the Great Trek of the 1830's. The aim of the trekkers was to establish independent republic in the hinterland.
In Natal, Andries Fretorius and Piet Retief made contact with the Zulus. In the Free State, Andries Hendrick Potgieter who crossed the Orange River in 1836, met the Barolong, a few Tswana tribes and Zulus who had fled from Natal as well as the Kwena in the Northeast Free State. Potgieter also moved northwards to establish Potchesfstroom between the Vet and Vaal rivers. There they met the Ndebele and a few Tswana tribes. When Potgieter moved in 1845 to Ohrigstad and Lydenburg, he came across the Pedi, Venda and Tsonga at the Southpansberg in the north, the Swazi in the east, the Zulu in south eastern Transvaal and the Ndebele in the central areas. They were disposed of land and livestocks by the settlers, who used superior armed force to crush resistance. In the conflict that ensured many were killed. As a result many were forced into being labourers for the settlers or were driven from the area. The settler society expanded and spread. Its intrusive and aggressive policies led to conflicts as the people defended their land. That notwithstanding the settlers advance was slow and was checked by successive wars of resistance that climaxed between 1870's and 1880's. These were shooting wars launched one after another with violent and sudden attacks on Africans who were then organised into small and separate chiefdoms.

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