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Oliver Tambo and the Challenges of the ANC's Military Camps

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Oliver Tambo and the Challenges of the ANC's Military Camps POLITICS Oliver Tambo and the challenges of the ANC’s military camps Oliver Tambo was able to maintain the admiration and respect required of a leader whose central task was to sustain the unity of purpose of the liberation movement and to pursue the struggle, relentlessly, both at home and internationally. By Gregory Houston here is a perception among many the extremely difficult conditions of movement. It is for this reason that I in the liberation movement that 30 years of exile. In large part, many chose to explore Tambo’s relationship Tthe late President-General of people see his leadership style as being with the ordinary members of the the African National Congress (ANC), the main factor behind the relative ANC’s military wing, Umkhonto we Oliver Reginald ‘OR’ Tambo, has not success he had in maintaining cohesion Sizwe (MK) in the military camps been given sufficient recognition for within the movement. abroad. The focus is on three distinct the role he played in the liberation One of the most important ways situations or episodes: the MK camp struggle. They credit Tambo above to examine the leadership style of an at Kongwa in Tanzania; the ‘Hani all else with the role he played in individual is to look at the relationship Memorandum’; and the 1983/84 holding the movement together under with the rank-and-file members of the mutinies in the MK camps in Angola. 20 THE THINKER POLITICS Czechoslovakia. Tambo would address abandoned dilapidated railway station. Tanzania each group that was on its way for The MK group that was charged with The starting point is the period training. On their return OR would developing the camp started from immediately before the turn to armed once again meet with them. Chris scratch, collecting supplies, organising struggle in the early 1960s. Oliver recalls that: services, and sleeping in tents for a few Tambo, then Deputy President of the For Tambo, our well-being was years. They dug trenches and chopped African National Congress, was sent always important. Not well-being down trees, and eventually developed out of the country in the wake of the in terms of getting our food every a huge vegetable garden after laying Sharpeville massacre in March 1960 to day. But Tambo wanted us to feel an water pipes to obtain water from a establish contacts for the ANC abroad important part of the organisation. We source about 10 kilometres from the and to promote international support were ordinary cadres. We were not camp5. for the ANC’s cause. However, the important names. But Tambo paid this Initially, morale was high in the banning of the liberation movements in attention to us regularly. Visiting us, camp, and the highly trained and April of that year, the wave of repression asking us about our experiences in the well equipped cadres were eager to that followed, the life sentences meted Soviet Union, about our courses, and take on the apartheid security forces. out to several prominent leaders of the also briefing us on what was happening However, some cadres who lived at ANC, and the wave of arrests after the during our absence in the country: the the camp equated life at Kongwa to Rivonia trial decimated the leadership Rivonia arrests, the conviction of our imprisonment. They draw attention of the movement inside the country. leaders, the need for us to go back to to the difficulties the camp leadership In 1965, a decision was taken to had in obtaining food for the cadres, transfer leadership of the movement and the fact that the only clothes they to Oliver Tambo and others in exile. The MK group had were combat clothes. There were Thus, by the middle of the 1960s the that was charged with very few women in the camp, as well tasks of the exiled leadership had been as in the nearby village. Most of the dramatically expanded to include, developing the camp women they came into contact with among other things, providing training started from scratch, were prostitutes6. to young recruits of the ANC’s military collecting supplies, The most serious problem the wing, and waging the liberation ANC faced in the camps at the time, struggle. organising services, however, was that ‘people wanted During the early 1960s, large and sleeping in tents to go home, and they just did not numbers of young men and a smaller want to sit in Kongwa’. There was number of women were forced into for a few years. also a perception that the leadership exile. Once they took this decision, was not doing enough to find a way they had to be taken to the ANC offices help rebuild the organisation2. home for the cadres – that they were in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where Simon Senna recalls that when his busy ‘living it up’ in Dar es Salaam7. they were met by the ANC leadership group returned from training in the At one point, after their hopes had in exile. It is this first meeting with the Soviet Union, Tambo cried when he been dashed several times, a group of leadership that provides one significant met them. ‘Seeing the type of army of cadres from Natal stole a military truck insight into OR’s style of leadership. the future South Africa which he was from the camp and drove to the ANC Chris Hani recalls such an episode in part of building, he cried. He was so headquarters in Morogoro to discuss the following terms: happy and excited and pleased’3. their grievances with the leadership. We were received by him. We were In 1965, the ANC established The group was arrested by Tanzanian addressed by him. We were inspired its main military camp in Kongwa, soldiers, and some ANC leaders wanted by him. Sort of quite convincing style Tanzania. By the end of the year the them to be punished as deserters. But of OR. He comes to see us whenever number of cadres based at the camp OR was among those who opposed he had time and to discuss with us, had grown to 500. There were a sanctioning them in any way. He was and to listen to us. To listen to our number of difficulties cadres faced one of the leaders who regularly visited own experiences; what we thought with the establishment of the camp: the camps, and he understood the were insignificant experiences. We shortages of food, clothes, medicines, frustrations they were facing because never thought they were important. But doctors, and proper accommodation. he listened to them. Tambo would come and listen to those The ANC had very limited resources, At the outset of the Wankie experiences1. and very little support was forthcoming Campaign, OR demonstrated another New recruits arriving in Dar es from other countries. Kongwa was a key characteristic of his style of Salaam at the time were given the dry, hot and dusty place plagued with leadership: to undergo some of the opportunity to join the military wing or disease. It was near a small village, experiences of the rank and file opt for further education. Most chose and the camp had to be prepared members of the movement. He joined to join MK. Hundreds of cadres were for the arrival of the large number the MK cadres who had been selected sent from Dar es Salaam to Morocco, of cadres who had been training at for the mission just prior to their Egypt, the Soviet Union, China and Odessa4. The only building was an departure, and slept with them in the Volume 58 / 2013 21 POLITICS bush near the crossing point. According changed to confining them to a bush to Chris Hani: He was one of camp to the east of Lusaka12. MK cadre We spent a few days on the banks of the leaders who Isaac Makopo recalls that: the Zambezi River, about two kilometres For a start then, everybody was from the river and Tambo stayed with regularly visited ordered out of town and back to the us, slept there with us, in the open, not the camps, and Bush, a few miles out of Lusaka, on your even in tents. We were just sleeping in way to Malawi. Then OR Tambo says: the bush. And this convinced us again he understood the “I'm going to operate from here, going of the type of leader that Tambo was. frustrations they were to be with the people in the camp, in A practical leader, an exemplary leader, the tents, in the Bush.” The area was and one who was prepared to share facing because he actually a game reserve. He would go the hardness of this very difficult and listened to them. to Lusaka only when he needed to – for demanding task with his soldiers8. example, on some diplomatic mission Justice Mpanza recalls that they tensions between supporters of the to meet some government officials13. used a rope to get to the bank of two had still not been resolved. Hani’s In this respect, Tambo felt that he the Zambezi River. He adds that: supporters were mainly from the Cape, had to experience camp life to better ‘the person who gave us a lot of and appeared to be unwilling to accept appreciate and understand the issues the encouragement was Tambo. Tambo the authority of Modise10. cadres were facing. This was something was the first person to cross using the On the other hand, the so-called he was to do again and again. rope, and he was in front of Modise. ‘Transvaal group’, supporters of Joe He went down the terrain and waited Modise, were angry that Hani and The 1983/84 Mutinies in Angola for us below – to lead us to our boat.’ others had been re-instated and that Another serious challenge to the Tambo and Modise remained on the Chris had been promoted to the ANC as a whole emanating from Zambian side of the river until all the political commissariat.
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