The Motshabi Commission Report
The Motshabi Commission Report On 2 May 1975, the Motshabi Commission delivered an interim report on the condition of the African National Congress’s (ANC’s) existing People’s Army abroad. The “Commission on the State of Affairs in Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) in East Africa” was established by the ANC Revolutionary Council on 17 April 1975, with a mandate to investigate the causes of and possible remedies for the “deterioration of the standard of military life and…
Joe Gqabi: The Exceptional Revolutionary Remembered 45 Years On
Joe Gqabi: The Exceptional Revolutionary Remembered 45 Years On 45 years ago, on the evening of 31 July 1981, while driving out of his residence in Eves Crescent, which was in Salisbury’s (now Harare) Ashdown Park suburb, in Zimbabwe, the African National Congress’s (ANC) Chief Representative to Zimbabwe, Joe Gqabi was shot dead by allegedly three assailants. The assailants opened fire at close range into the head and body of Gqabi who died immediately. This…
The Communist Party is Founded: Still A Force for the Revolution
The Communist Party is Founded: Still A Force for the Revolution On 29 – 30 July 1921, 105 years ago, the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) was founded in Cape Town. However, the founding conference of the Party took place from 30 July to 1 August 1921, mainly initiated by radical White workers and socialists who had experienced workers’ struggles in Europe and were inspired by the first workers’ state which was founded in…
Joe Mamasela Uncovered Apartheid Agent
Joe Mamasela Uncovered Apartheid Agent Forty-five years ago, on 28 July 1981, Joe Mamasela and his adopted brother, Chief Montampede (aka “Monde”), were driven between Selibe-Phikwe and Gaborone in a convoy of two cars containing African National Congress (ANC) personnel. In Gaborone, Mamasela and Monde were split up, with Mamasela being taken to Okavango Flats and his brother to Gaborone’s Broadhurst suburb. Towards the evening, Mamasela began insisting on being taken to see Monde, as…
The Rabkin-Cronin Case: The Underground Propaganda Machinery
The Rabkin-Cronin Case: The Underground Propaganda Machinery During the evening of 27 July 1976, at approximately 22:40, a squad of apartheid Security Branch policemen took up positions outside a house in Wynberg, Cape Town. After knocking on the door, Anthony Holiday opened, and apartheid police Major van Tonder told him that he had information that Holiday had been engaged in communist, in fact terrorist, activities. Anthony Holiday was then arrested. At around 07:30, the following…
Lt Gen Mkhwanazi Revolution: The Unprecedented Press Conference and the Domino Rupture
Lt Gen Mkhwanazi Revolution: The Unprecedented Press Conference and the Domino Rupture Whether Lieutenant General Nhlanhla “Lucky” Sibusiso Mkhwanazi’s actions can be termed “revolutionary” depends on the definition used: while it was not a literal overthrow of the state, his unprecedented public rebellion against political superiors to expose systemic corruption can be considered institutional and culturally revolutionary for South African law enforcement. In a deeply hierarchical system, on Sunday, 6 July 2025, Mkhwanazi took the…
“Inkathagate” or “Gatshagate” Again
“Inkathagate” or “Gatshagate” Again On 25 July 1991, the ‘Weekly Mail’ newspaper claimed it had obtained copies of Security Branch documents from Brian Morrow, a former Warrant Officer in the Security Branch, relating to extensive discussions between Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) President Mangosuthu Gatsha Buthelezi and Major Louis Botha, who was a senior apartheid Security Branch officer in Durban, about how the African National Congress (ANC) could be prevented from eroding Inkatha’s support in Natal.…