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Franco Perna reports on the initiatives of the Quaker Peace Centre and recent political
and social events affecting the "new" South Africa.
South Africa
a land of hope and contrast
Franco Perna
An article in the Quaker weekly, The Friend, led me to travel to South Africa with the
prime motivation to volunteer and become acquainted with post-Apartheid peace-related
initiatives in general, and with the work of the Quaker Peace Centre (QPC) in particular.
An email exchange and phone call were enough to book a cheap one-month ticket. In
retrospect, I wished I had gone for longer.
On arrival I found a friendly welcome, a pleasant climate and easy going people all
around. During the first two days at the busy QPC, however, I felt confused, and was
wondering where I could fit in.
Given the circumstances, I talked with Asma Haywood – the director's secretary,
responsible for volunteers, and later with the director himself – Jeremy Routledge
(husband of the SA Deputy Defence Minister).
Getting "programmed in"
I felt I needed to clarify my motivations for travelling to South Africa. This resulted in
getting "programmed in" to visit and attend a number of places and events, in and around
Cape Town, and getting involved in some ongoing activities. I welcomed this
development and soon found myself in the midst of people's initiatives and
demonstrations. These included: a march to parliament to ask for military spending cuts
and more funds for social services (see PN 2442 p20-22); equal rights for AIDS sufferers;
reparations for victims of Apartheid; and, finally, the World Court of Women Against
War, for Peace. This last event brought together nearly 4000 women from the South,
many of whom were victims/survivors of repression, injustice and violence.
Apart from these large public events which happened to coincide with my visit, I often
joined the QPC staff and long-term volunteers in visiting specific projects which the
Centre is responsible for. These included community gardens where people are
encouraged to grow their own vegetables as an attempt to be self-sufficient; nonviolence
and conflict resolution programmes in schools; and community mediation schemes.
A trip to Swellendam
A trip to Swellendam (220 km east of Cape Town) with a Dutch volunteer revealed yet
another reality, only indirectly linked with QPC. We visited a convent farm with a retreat
centre belonging to the Catholic diocese of Oudtshoorn. The farm is a bit run down, but it
has great potential in that, if well managed, it could provide living space for over 100
people and also offer training facilities for rural development. The land here is very
fertile and there is plenty of water. International workcamps – like those organised by
QPC – could also be held here. The Bishop of Oudtshoorn is willing to give the property
on a 99-year lease – for a symbolic sum of 1 Rand per year – to a new and efficient
management team (for details of this project, email margriet@cybertrade.co.za).
The alternative tour
One last experience I had, just before returning to Italy – which confirmed my feelings
about South Africa as a land of beauty, hope and contrast – was an alternative tour of
townships. A journey into the heartland of resistance to Apartheid. These visits are
organised by a committed team of people who operate through Western Cape Action
Tours (WECAT). They believe that forgiveness does not mean forgetting and they take
you to places that ordinary tourists would never dream of visiting.
During my tour the WECAT driver and co-ordinator expressed appreciation for what the
government is trying to do to improve conditions within society, while pointing out that
big gaps still exist between the rich and the poor and dispossessed. WECAT puts
emphasis on transcultural dialogue and exchange in the hope that this can promote
positive social initiatives in the most impoverished townships. However, this type of
activity is not encouraged by the tourist board and so very few people ever hear about
WECAT.
Training for trauma
In addition to domestic problems such as high unemployment and crime (30 people are
murdered every day in SA), South Africa experiences large influxes of refugees from
countries in the Great Lakes region – notably Burundi. I heard from Burundian people
attending an Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP) and community mediation course
that refugees often experience difficulties with the domestic Black community –
particularly in areas where there is severe scarcity of jobs. Some of the Burundians on the
AVP course had come to SA in order to gain further training in trauma counselling. They
were returning to work for the Burundi Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Centre, a
project of the Burundi Quakers and the US Friends Peace Team (see PN 2440).
A catalyst within SA society
While most of the QPC outreach activities are limited to the Western Cape, it maintains
working relationships with similar initiatives – both Quaker and non-Quaker – across
Africa. For example, there are plans to establish a similar centre in Nairobi.
I consider myself privileged and fortunate to have been able to have a varied and
enriching experience in such a short time, largely thanks to the Quaker Peace Centre and
its staff. If my immediate impression on arrival was one of confusion, I soon realised that
the hectic atmosphere around the Centre was due to the fact that QPC serves a number of
purposes and field projects, acting as a catalyst within South African society.
Franco Perna is a Peace News reader.
QPC Support Committee (EUROPE), c/o 24 Farncombe Hill, Godalming, Surrey GU7
2AU, Britain (+44 1483 414849).
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