Early life and training in exile 1956 - 1976
Solomon Kalushi Mahlangu was born in Pretoria on 10 July in 1956. He was the second son of Martha Mahlangu. His father left the family in 1962, and from then on Mahlangu only saw him infrequently. His mother was a domestic worker and took sole responsibility for his upbringing. He attended Mamelodi High School and was in standard eight (grade 10) at the time of the 1976 Soweto uprisings against Bantu Education. The protests spread throughout the country, and after being recruited by Thomas Masuku, Mahlangu joined the protests in his area, Mamelodi, near Pretoria.
Shortly after the uprising Mahlangu left the country to join the African National Congress (ANC), to be trained as an Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) cadre. Mahlangu was part of a new generation of MK recruits dubbed the June 16 Detachment, as the group was made up mainly of students who were part of the student uprisings of 1976.
“Boet Lucas, Boet Lucas, Boet Lucas, don’t look for me, I have left and you’ll never find me”.
Later, Temba Nkosi’s father, the young man Mahlangu left the country with, came to inform the family that their son had left to join the ANC in exile.
Mahlangu, Masuku, Temba Nkosi and Richard Chauke all left South Africa via Mozambique and spent six months at Xai Xai refugee camp. Later they were rescued and transported to an ANC training facility, called Engineering, in Angola. Mahlangu was reassigned to various cells within the training camp but he eventually joined a smaller unit of 10 men under Julius Mokoena, who reported to the commander in chief, Joe Modise. Amongst the 10 were George ‘Lucky’ Mahlangu and Mondy Motloung. The unit was trained at Funda Camp; they underwent crash courses in sabotage, military combat, scouting and political education.
