On 19 October 1986 a small village near where the borders of South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique converge called Mbuzini entered Southern Africas history books in the most tragic way possible after the Russian made Tupolev Tu-134 plane carrying Comrade Samora Machel crashed in the nearby Lebombo mountains. Only eight people survived the crash while 35 including Comrade Machel died. Today a monument of 35 steel tubes which wail with the rising wind reminds the locals of that sad day It is difficult to find a non-Zimbabwean who was as important to our struggle against colonialism as Comrade Samora Machel. He contributed to our cause selflessly and at great cost to himself, his country and the people of Mozambique. The support we received from Mozambique made Machel an unpopular figure to the racist regimes of Rhodesia and South Africa which bombed Mozambique and made Mozambicans casualties in a war that was not supposed to be their own. But Comrade Samora Machel remained firm and steadfast in his support. It is therefore not a surprise that one of the countrys biggest streets is named after this illustrious freedom fighter. Comrade Machel was as Zimbabwean as any of us. In Tanzania there is a street named in memory of this great man, a constituency in Namibia and a school at the University of Zambia. Even in Russia Samora has a street named after him. Machel was a world statesman who had been instrumental in shaping democratic Mozambique and pivotal in the struggle against colonialism on the African continent. Comrade Samora Machel was a man of the people- the people of South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and all Africa. He was committed to helping the poor of Mozambique, and Africa, hence his now famous quote: The rich mans dog gets more in the way of vaccination, medicine and medical care than do the workers upon whom the rich mans wealth is built. On the anniversary of his death we should examine whether any of his ideals have been achieved, and ask if our struggles have benefited all our people. Or has democracy bypassed the poor? We must ask whether the rich mans dogs are better off than the poor, upon whom his wealth is built. This should serve as a reminder to our governments that the benefits of independence are not supposed to be for them alone. The people must see and live the change. Whilst it is important to name our streets, hospitals and schools after Comrade Machel, it is more important to fulfill his dreams, to make those streets safe, to make the hospitals accessible to all and to fill the schools. Today as we remember Comrade Samora Machel let us also strive to make the bullets of our struggle flower for all our people. The struggle is not yet done, and to quote comrade Samora, “Personalities and fame pass; the revolution must remain.”
Posted on: Sat, 19 Oct 2013 04:52:54 +0000
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