Introduction
This book tells the story of Frances Baard, a black South African woman
who was a trade unionist, political activist and a women's leader both
in the Eastern Cape and in national campaigns. It covers a period of nearly
80 years, from her birth until the 1980s. This period can be divided into
four interlinked and yet different aspects. The first of these covers her
childhood, early working life and marriage, and the birth of her children.
The second section spans about 15 years, and forms the major portion of
the book. It deals with her involvement in the African Food and Canning
Workers Union (AFCWU) and the federation of trade unions, the South African
Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU); with her involvement in the African National
Congress (ANC); and with her involvement in the organization of women through
the ANC Women's League and the Federation of South African Women (FSAW).
Her work in these areas led to harassment and police interference, culminating
in a jail sentence for furthering the aims of a banned organisation, and
banishment from Port Elizabeth to Pretoria. These experiences are recounted
in the third section of the book, while the last section gives a brief
survey of her present life and her hopes for the future.
On 31 May 1910, after negotiations between the white Boer Republics and
Britain, an act passed in the British Parliament created the Union of South
Africa, a self-governed country, as opposed to a colony controlled by a
foreign power. At this time there were certain black and coloured adults
in the Cape who were entitled to vote in parliamentary elections. In the
Act of Union, the non-racial franchise of the Cape was maintained, but
voting in the Transvaal, the Free State and Natal was restricted to whites
only. Thus the majority of South Africans were still denied full political
and citizenship rights in their own country, but now by a minority group
living in South Africa, not by a foreign power. The South African Constitution
Act of 1910 laid the basis for the racism that has characterized South
Africa's political life and favoured the development of capitalism in the
country in a specific way. From the moment of Union on, the white government
acted to protect the interests of the white voters and so to ensure their
continued support. Legalized discrimination against blacks became the order
of the day with laws such as the 1913 Land Act, which removed most black
people's right to own land; the Native Labour Regulation Act, which made
it a criminal offence for an African to refuse to obey an order, or break
a contract, effectively removing the right to strike; and the 1926 Mines
and Works Act, notorious for entrenching job reservation, which prohibited
Africans from being employed in certain skilled jobs.
By 1912 there was a
growing black population moving to "the urban
areas, seeking waged employment in the white-controlled industries and
mines. Although this population was still to a large extent migrant and
temporary, there were signs of the development of a more permanent black
urban population. It was within this environment that the ANC was formed
by a group of liberal, mainly professional, well-educated black men, worried
by the racial discrimination that was rising round them. They attempted
to negotiate with the white government, to establish a basis of goodwill
and understanding, and to win reforms from the government in this way.
At this stage, the ANC seems to have had little concern with the daily
problems of the black working class.
During the 1940s, as a result of World War II and severe conditions of
poverty and hardship in the rural areas, more and more blacks began to
move from these areas to the towns and cities. The number of blacks living
in and around urban areas and working in industry or mines, or seeking
jobs, rose rapidly. These people faced different problems from those facing
people in the rural areas. City life carried its own specific set of problems:
high food costs, high rent, shortage of housing and transport costs, all
made worse by low wages. The trade union movement grew extensively during
this period. At the same time a new generation of young leaders, willing
to confront the government directly and uncompromisingly, rose to positions
of power in the ANC. Their influence led the ANC to adopt a Programme of
Action in 1949, which called for the use of boycotts, civil disobedience
and strikes against the Nationalist government. The Nationalists had been
voted into power in 1948, and the process of white political control and
legalized exploitation and oppression of blacks was firmly entrenched.
The tactics of the government became more aggressive, and it began to use
violence more and more widely to suppress opposition. Resistance followed
a similar pattern, and became more militant. The Programme of Action committed
the ANC to the idea of mass action, and also called for the building of
a non-racial alliance with organizations such as the Natal Indian Congress.
Frances Baard first became involved in trade unions and politics in the
late 1940s. As political action increased in the 1950s, so too did Baard's
involvement. The Defiance Campaign was the first in a series of campaigns
by the ANC that put into action the ideas laid out in the Programme of
Action, and involved the people of South Africa in nation-wide organized
resistance. There was a huge surge of campaigns, protests and demonstrations
during this period, and action from African women was especially strong
and militant, particularly in campaigns such as the anti-pass campaign.
It is probably fair to say that the mass action by women in 1955 and 1956
showed the ANC the way forward. The 1958 ANC conference opened with a bright
red banner, 'Malibongwe Makhosikazi' ('Let the women be praised'). This
banner echoed the message of the 1955 ANC National Executive Committee
report:
'The women have been active in those major issues that most keenly affect
them: Bantu Education, the threat of passes for women, the home, the children
and the family. They have administered to us all a lesson on how the people's
daily needs can become the kernel of a united protest campaign so that
even those not previously active in political affairs, feel compelled to
join in.'
The period of the late 1950s was characterized by the strength of the
women of South Africa. This strength, determination and courage is embodied
in Frances Baard, a representative of the living history of the working
women of South Africa.
In 1960 the apartheid regime responded to the wave of resistance by murdering
69 unarmed people at a peaceful anti-pass protest. Protest swelled throughout
South Africa, and the government declared a State of Emergency, which gave
the police, extended powers to imprison and intimidate opponents of government
policies. The government banned the ANC including the Women's League and
the Youth League, and the Pan-African Congress (PAC).
Thousands of activists were detained during the State of Emergency, and
banned, house-arrested and harassed on their release. The police began
to use new methods of torture and interrogation on suspected activists.
There were many political trials of activists who had continued the work
of the ANC through tightly knit underground structures. Along with other
leaders, Frances Baard was banned, jailed and finally banished.
In 1961 South Africa became a republic, after a referendum conducted among
white voters only. The ANC called for a stay-away in protest against the
creation of the white republic, in which the majority of people, the black
population, had no political rights. The state refused to meet with the
people's leaders, and met the protests with savage violence. The ANC was
forced to change its strategy and adopt the armed struggle as part of the
path to national liberation. On 16 December 1961, Umkhonto we Sizwe (the
Spear of the Nation) launched the armed struggle with the first acts of
sabotage. The nature of opposition to the apartheid regime had been forced
onto a new path.
In the 1970s mass action began again, involving an increasing level of
violence and confrontation, and involving all sections of the community,
from school children to workers.
The South African government was forced into a position of crisis. Its
response was to introduce various minor reforms and to increase the level
of violent and political repression against organizations and individuals.
In the mid-1980s, mass action reached an unprecedented level1, and in July
1985 the Nationalist government once again declared a State of Emergency.
This granted far-reaching powers to the police and the South African Defence
Force who had been called in an attempt to crush the uprisings in the black
areas.
This State of Emergency, which lasted for eight months, mirrored the State
of Emergency in 1960, with the detention of thousands of activists, and
the banning of meetings and organizations. But the spirit of resistance
was not crushed then, and it will not be crushed now.
Frances Baard has been deeply involved in the struggle for liberation
since the 1940s. She is still actively involved. This book does not only
tell her story. It tells part of our history. It is a story that needs
to be heard. The South African regime would like the leaders, the demands,
the sacrifices and the victories that are a powerful part of our history,
to be buried and forgotten. But they are alive in our struggle today.
The story, based on hours of interviews and discussions, is told in the
words of Frances Baard herself. It is one person's view, the story of a
woman deeply and sincerely involved in the daily events of a nation's struggle
for freedom. It is a particularly important story because Frances Baard's
involvement spans three diverse yet complimentary front's: the trade unions,
the ANC and the Federation of South African Women.
The story is told from her perspective as an activist. It does not aim
to give a complete political history of South Africa over the past 80 years
but, rather, to be a personal account of living and working through an
important period of that history. The Nationalist government has attempted
to suppress the truth and keep from us the real story of the people's struggle
for liberation. I hope that this book goes some way towards filling the
gap.
In the nearly 80 years of her life so far, Frances Baard has seen South
Africa change in many ways. She has seen leaders, laws and battles come
and go. But the central struggle has remained the same, and she is still
fighting. I hope you enjoy her story. It is a remarkable record of the
struggle for freedom and democracy, a record of the successes and failures,
the hopes and expectations of the South African people.
I wish to thank all the people who have contributed to this book and made
it possible: Frances Baard for her warmth and co-operation, and for her
patience with my endless questions; Helen Joseph for her knowledge and
help; Tom Lodge for the loan of an unpublished interview with Frances Baard;
Jenny Schreiner for her unwavering' support and advice; Hilary Strathern
for the photographs; my family for their financial and emotional support;
and all those who encouraged me to keep going.
The
struggle continues.
B.S. March 1986
