On Thursday, the 19th of February, I participated in a lively march with about sixty or seventy other participants of all ages. This march was centered on the issue of a devastating event that occurred in the township of Nyanga last year. A respected man of the community, Mr. Langa, created a drama/dance club for the children of the town. Although this club seemed like a positive outlet for the children’s energy, it resulted in sexual abuse and even rape of a number of the children. This despicable behavior caused a great deal of controversy in the town. Rape and sexual abuse is often stigmatized in South African communities and consequently, many of the victims felt pressure to move elsewhere.
Mr. Langa was arrested and released soon after on R2000 bail (about $200). He was also court ordered to stay away from Nyanga. On these conditions, Mr. Langa was permitted to live freely until further notice. According to the accounts of numerous community members, Mr. Langa disobeyed this simple order and was seen a number of times back in Nyanga. A new court case was set for February 19th to address this issue.
Sonke has been following this case, in order to show support and demand justice for the children and to put legal pressure on the court to prosecute Mr. Langa for the terrible and unforgivable crimes he has committed. Sonke has been working with a legal advocacy group in order to find out what legal steps should be taken at this point. They have also been working alongside of South African Civil Organization (SANCO) and Treatment Action Campaign (TAC).
This endeavor for justice is directly aligned with Sonke’s “One Man Can” Campaign, in which social ideals of “femininity” and “masculinity” are deconstructed in order to educate men on how to take power over their lives and promote equality, while working to end the spread of HIV, AIDS, STIs and gender based violence. Sonke speaks out on behalf of men in order condemn homophobic, sexist, racist and violent behavior and to create a positive voice for men who wish to speak out against damaging “gender norms”.
On the day of the march, Steph and I woke up at five in the morning to find our rooms completely dark. We made our way to the train station and arrived at the Sonke office in Cape Town by 7:30 and waited for our coworker, Mzamo, to arrive. We walked a few blocks down and took a minibus headed to Nyanga. As we climbed onto minibus, the driver gave Mzamo a strange look and told him that we must be on the wrong bus. Mzamo chuckled and assured the driver that we knew where we were headed.
We were dropped off on the corner of, what seemed like a completely random street, and were told that we were near to our initial destination. Walking through the streets of Nyanga was a surreal experience. I had passed through the townships in our private traveling seminars bus during orientation week, however, walking among the shacks and poverty-ridden area was quite a different experience. Steph and I received a number of strange looks as we walked through the streets with a curious and bewildered look on our faces.
After a few minutes, we arrived at the town school, Mvulapp. The children seemed very high spirited and ready for action. It was also nice to see the faces of some of our other colleagues outside (Leo and Max). As posters were painted, we packed into three vans. On the ride to Wynberg, the entire van broke out into song. Steph and I clapped and tried to join in wherever we could, with intermittent translations from our coworker, Max. After a few songs, I was pleased to hear a song that I not only recognized, but could also sing along with (a song I had sung a few times at work). The lyrics are as follows:
“One man wants to teach
Wants to teach equality
(Then Max would yell out a number and we each would count down from that number)
Six men, five men, four men, three men, two men, one man wants to teach
Wants to teach equality”
We were dropped off in Wynberg, across the street from the Landdroskantoor Magistrate’s Court. All of the Sonke and SANCO members huddled with the students, parents and teachers of Nyanga and sang, clapped and danced as the banners were clearly displayed. Some of the messages on the banners included: “No Bail”, “We Demand Justice”, “There are no excuses for child abuse” and “Mr. Langa, you SUCK!”. The entire spectacle was caught on tape by a filmmaker, Billy, an activist who had just come from making a documentary in the Congo (and who new Dean through their activist work together). Our presence definitely caught the attention of passer-bys.
After being outside for about thirty minutes, we were told that the adults could enter the court and attend the hearing. The courtroom was packed and after about fifteen minutes, a man with a yellow shirt entered. I was informed that he was the perpetrator. I realized that this was the first time that encountered a person who I knew had raped someone. I felt a mix of emotions: confusion, anger, disgust and frustration. I thought to myself: how can any legal system allow a man who has raped children walk freely?
I was extremely disappointed that, when Mr. Langa was finally called to the stand and the court was called to order, the case was postponed until April 7th. Mr. Langa was accused of returning to Nyanga and denied the accusations. The community members we were sitting with were angry and told us that Mr. Langa was blatantly lying to the court.
Back outside, everyone was still lively and vocal. A few minutes later, Mr. Langa brazenly strolled by as shouts erupted from the group of students. Some children even ran into the street towards him, emphatically waving their signs at him. Steph told me that a few of the victims were actually in the crowd (something I was unaware of until that moment). I felt a rush of adrenaline myself and couldn’t begin to imagine how these children and their parents must have felt.
Although Mr. Langa walked free from the courtroom, I do not believe that our efforts were in vain. From this march, the children were given a feeling of support and solidarity, the court realized that there was a demand for justice, Mr. Langa was able to see that he is no longer welcome in Nyanga and will face strong anger if he chooses to go back, and hopefully the message of this march will carry on further than Wynberg and Nyanaga (by way of press and media).
