If there is any day that deserves to be declared a holiday, it is this day, for on this day 135 years ago, uMntwana uDabulamanzi kaMpande and Ntshingwayo kaMahole kaKhoza, led what was undoubtedly one of the most important revolutionary moments of our liberation history: the Battle of iSandlwana. On this day in 1879, a major confrontation took place in the rolling green hills of KwaZulu Natal, a confrontation between the British Empire and warriors of the Zulu Kingdom. This confrontation was a result of the invasion of our country by settlers who arrogated themselves the right to determine the destiny of natives. The British suffered humiliating defeat in the hands of the Zulu army. The Battle of iSandlwana is important for many reasons, chief among them being that it inspired the birth of national liberation movements in the century following it. It served as an important reference for the importance not only of waging the struggle for the repossession of land that to this day remains in the hands of a settler minority, but also as an important example on how military tactics can be employed in guerilla warfare or an armed struggle, because despite the arsenal that was in disposal for the British army, it was defeated by an army that had no machinery, an army that relied solely on discipline and tactic. The Battle of iSandlwana also rewrites the popular narrative about natives, a narrative that suggests that Black people have known nothing but defeat in the hands of White settlers. The liberation struggle of occupied Azania began long before 1912. It began on the foothills of iSandlwana and to this day, continues. Let that battle serve as a reminder of a history that we carry on our backs and of a struggle that must necessarily continue, the struggle for land and economic freedom. Long live the memory of fighter Ntshingwayo kaMahole kaKhoza and the brave fighters he led!
Posted on: Wed, 22 Jan 2014 08:15:08 +0000
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