« WE HAVE CLIMBED A GREAT MOUNTAIN – MANY MORE ARE TO BE CLIMBED ».

Nelson Mandela 1994 

1652 the Cape province was settled by the Huguenots, followed by the British.

300 years awash with blood with the merciless conquest and subjugation of the country – between Zulu warriors & British soldiers – Boers & British in the bitter Boer War.

1950 – 1994 Apartheid a Nazi inspired evil system of Separate but never Equal development, that turned South Africa into an open prison: Group Areas, Bantu Education, Pass Laws, Job Reservation, Immorality Act.

1977 Torture and murder of Stephen Biko by SA Police.

1963 – 1990 Incarceration of Nelson Mandela with his black, indian and white comrades in harsh conditions on Robben Island, a bleak rocky outcrop overlooked by the Cape of Good Hope – a bitter irony.

11th february 1990 – besieged by growing violence, student mass protests, world condemnation  and sanctions, the white government turned to Mandela to save the Nation. He agreed to his release on the non-negotiable condition of the immediate repeal of Apartheid.

10th may 1994 the ANC is voted into power by universal franchise, with Nelson Mandela as President. In his 5 years in office Mandela changed hearts and minds to heal the Nation and avert latent coups d’états by White extremists. « Truth & Reconciliation » hearings, presided by Archbishop Desmond Tutu cooled passions and set the united country on its democratic path.

1999 Nelson Mandela stood down and the presidency was passed thro’ election to Thabo Mbeke and subsequently Jacob Zuma the current incumbent, giving proof again of true democratic process.

2015 South Africa today faces mountainous challenges, including Land Reform (whites possess a vastly disproportionate 79% of all land), HIV/AIDS (affecting 6+ million souls), Massive Unemployment with I in 4 workless adults, Crime – murder/robbery/rape rates among the highest par capita in the world, Wealth Inequality increasing between the HAVES and the HAVE NOTS. Finally growing disillusionment with the African National Congress and its ability to inspire hope for a better future – the horrific Xenophobic attacks on immigrant African citizens by Zulu men are to a large part evidence of this desperation.

SOUTH AFRICANS WILL NOT BE FREE UNTIL ALL CITIZENS CAN SHARE IN THE GROWING WEALTH OF THE NATION.

 Richard Beardsley, writer and photographer, has borne witness to South Africa’s evolution thro’ the Apartheid years, with his studies of the Zulu language, weekends visiting and photographing the mums and kids in KwaZulu’s Valley of 1000 Hills. Finally this testimony of his photo journal « CHILDREN OF APARTHEID » – the proceeds of which will go to his NGO http://www.Zen4Zulu.org for improving the health and welfare of the valley and for building a better future. A disciple of Madiba he tries to live up to the spirit of love and respect for his fellow citizen, as expressed in the traditional philosophy of Ubuntu.

UBUNTU – I AM BECAUSE YOU ARE.