Pan-Africanism

[This Mangaliso Robert Sobukwe memorial lecture was delivered at the Methodist Black Consultation Springs Gauteng, South Africa, 12 July 2014.">

DON'T AGONISE, ORGANISE!

For ten years the death toll of African migrants has been endless. In the Atlantic Ocean or the Indian Ocean, in the Sahara desert or the Mediterranean, the dramas of emigration play a scenario where woes are never ending.

In late 2002, living in Nairobi, Kenya, my husband and I made what, for me, a descendant of Africa's slave trades, was a pilgrimage to Kenya's Indian Ocean coast. During our time in Kenya, we made about three trips to the coast.

On 30 April 2014, the High Court of Ouagadougou declared that it was not competent to order that DNA expertise be used in the identification of the bodies buried at Dagnoen.

The South African struggle spawned an illustrious list of revolutionary leaders.

25 May 2014 was the 56th anniversary of African Liberation Day (ALD) and it should be observed as more than a commemorative event. ALD was institutionalised by the emerging independent states in Africa to give focus, direction and resources to the struggle against colonial domination.

We especially note the worsening social and economic conditions of those who have been dispossessed of dignity and autonomy over their lives, bodies, lands and natural resources, and denied rights to access shelter, food, water, education & healthcare.

The Pan African Institute for Development is horrified and saddened by the abduction of school going girls in Nigeria. We are even more saddened by the reaction of the Federal Government of Nigeria.

African Liberation Day (ALD) is one beacon of unity for the African struggle worldwide. It is a permanent mass institution in the worldwide Pan African Movement and is celebrated in some African Countries as a national holiday.