The ANC Veterans league is deeply saddened by the untimely death of Comrade Eric Mtshali.

Dr Vanguard Mkosana, former NEC member of South African Congress of Trade Unions reflects on the life and times of the late Eric Mtshali.

If moments of historical significance were marked by the blowing of horns and the jingling of bells SA would be standing still to observe the moment, for it has now come. The death of comrade Eric Mtshali and those of his generation mark the end of an era of a rare breed of freedom fighters who were groomed to be highly political, to be trade unionists, to be Umkhonto we Sizwe combatants, be organic intellectuals and above all to be patriotic. All these Comrade Mtshali grew to be.

Comrade Eric Mtshali was born and bred in Durban. He went to school and after Matric he was absorbed into the politics of the country. The ground was very fertile for him to grow fast politically. He was surrounded by powerful leaders both in the African National Congress, South African Communist Party (underground) and in the trade unions. These were leaders, like Chief Albert Luthuli, the then President General

of the ANC, veteran trade unionists like Stephen Dlamini, MP Naicker, Harry Gwala, George Poonen, Moses Mabhida, Dorothy Nyembe and many others. He became active mainly in the trade union movement in the roaring 1950s of the Defiance Campaign 1952, the creation of the first non-racial trade union federation, South African Congress Trade Unions 1955, the adoption of the Freedom Charter 1955, the historic women’s march to the Union Buildings 1956 and the Treason Trial 1956. As a young trade unionist he would carry the membership forms from the unorganized workers while on the other hand he collected the people’s demands for inclusion in the making of the Freedom Charter. Mtshali’s trade union activities started with organizing the dockworkers in the early fifties. When organizing the unorganized workers he encountered a practical challenge of workers who were ready to join the union of their industry while the industrial unions were mostly non-existent. The General Workers Unions were the easy route to solve the problem yet this was a direct challenge to the long established principle of organizing workers according to the industry in which they work. When SACTU was formed in 1955 it embraced the industrial principle but in its fifth Conference it passed a resolution endorsing the formation of General Workers Unions as a temporary home while the industrial unions were in the making. SACTU Local Committees were tasked to give leadership to transition the GWUs to industrial unions and Cde Mtshali played no small role in this.

Comrade Mtshali’s trade union work earned him the honour of being one of the founding members of the SACTU, the first non-racial trade union federation in SA. He attended as the leader of the delegation of African Milling WU.

When Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) was formed in 1961 Cde Eric was tasked with the delicate work of being part of those in charge of the Command structure of MK in Natal. He did his work with distinction until circumstances forced him to go into exile in 1962. It was then that he went for military training in the then Soviet Union and Cuba. He received intelligence training as well. On his return he went to Kongwa the first ANC base in Tanzania. It was here that he rubbed shoulders with the great leaders of our Movement like uncle JB Marks, Moses Kotane, Archie Sibeko (Cde Zola Zembe), Mark Shope, Aaron Pemba (Cde BB), Chris Hani and many others under the able leadership of OR Tambo.

When Wankie and Sepolilo 1967 campaign was conceived to return as trained cadres to confront the enemy, Cde Eric’s intelligence training was put into full use.

In exile Cde Eric’s leadership skills allowed him to be given sensitive assignments without fear of failure. It was in 1971 that he was elected to the Central Committee of the SACP. His theoretical grounding was used to develop young comrades especially after 1976 when oqiniselani flooded the ranks of the ANC in exile. Cde Eric used his training in dialectics to tackle any challenge he encountered. This made him renown as one who would not jump to conclusions but consider all angles of the problem before he aired his views.

The ANC assigned him the responsibility to be the Chief Representative (Ambassador equivalent) in Tanzania where he served until 1976. SACTU deployed him to the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) in Prague to relieve Cde Moses Mabhida who was needed for other responsibilities back in Africa. Before him the same office was serviced by comrades Wilton Mkwayi, Mark Shope, Moses Mabhida then Eric Mtshali who was followed by Joe Molokeng the last SACTU representative at WFTU.

Ray Alexander arguably the mother of progressive trade unionism in SA, working with ILO, linked up with the WFTU Prague based comrades listed above to reignite the trade union movement after the so-called political lull, which followed repression and the banning of the political organisations in 1960. Cde Eric used the broad international network of friends and supporters to mobilise resources necessary to pursue the SA struggle for freedom.

On his return from Prague to Lusaka in 1982, Cde Eric who was a National Executive Committee member of SACTU was charged with the responsibility of Head of Propaganda, Information & Publicity Department of SACTU. This responsibility also meant that he would be the editor of Workers Unity –the SACTU journal. SACTU offices in Western Europe and in Africa flooded SA with literature on progressive trade unionism. Similarly Radio Freedom broadcasting from different Frontline States had a slot, Workers Front which was dedicated to trade union mobilization and education.

At this stage SACTU was under the leadership of comrades John Nkadimeng as General Secretary, Mark Shope as Head of Education, Aaron Pemba/BB as Head of International, Mhleli Mgwayi/Cde Gazi as Head of Internal Department of SACTU, Cde Kay Moonsamy as Treasurer and Cde Stephen Dlamini as President. These are luminaries of trade unionism in South Africa. They consciously built the next generation of leaders. They would say give young people space to work, to explore and commit mistakes so that they could learn from them.

In the 1988 SACTU conference they handed over leadership to the younger comrades and remained as mentors until SACTU resolved to phase out in favour of COSATU in 1990 after the unbanning of political organisations and return of the exiles.

The Movement can pride itself for having produced one of the refined organic intellectuals in the person of Cde Eric whose ideas found expression in the development of dynamic young trade union leaders of the late 1970s and 1980s who are the current leaders of SA.

From
Snuki Zikalala
President of the ANC Veterans League

It was with a deep sense of shock and sadness when I was informed that Page had passed away. I had been to his house the previous month to see him, but it never crossed my mind that today we would be gathered in this venue to bid farewell to this gallant fighter and a veteran of our struggle.

I got to know Page when he arrived in Botswana in 1976 together with Moss Mothupi Malaka and Zenzo-who passed on when were studying in Bulgaria- may His Soul Rest in Peace. By then I was based in Botswana and with comrades Keith Mokoape and Isaac Makopo. We were responsible for setting up an ANC underground office, recruiting, training and infiltrating ANC combatants into South Africa.

But then I really got close to him when, after we had been made prohibited immigrants in Botswana. We were instructed to leave for Lusaka, Zambia, where the ANC Head Quarters was based, and after a time, I proceeded to Sofia, Bulgaria where I studied Journalism.

It is here that we developed a close bond of friendship with Page. It was especially so because we got to study the same course at the University of Sofia.

A serious student, Page was always immersed in books. He believed that education was the best investment and read voraciously, from Gorky to Baldwin, from Alex La Guma to Kgositsile and Mazizi Kunene, from Karl

Marx,Lenin to Breytenbach – books, political, poetical and aesthetical. He had even read James Hadley Chase, especially his “No Orchids for Miss Blandish”.

But above all he liked his music and was haughty, and jealously guarded his rare LP’s. Yes, he compiled these and we would enjoy them with him as and when we visited him. Page Bluesman was always with Blues.

Page was a snazzy dresser and quality clothes simply fitted him like they were made specially for him. Nobody can deny the fact that he was neat and tidy and was finicky when it came to disorder.

He was one of those comrades who would not miss the annual brigada, a voluntary exercise undertaken by ANC students in Bulgaria. Every year, without fail, he would be part of the ANC Youth that volunteered during school vacation to work under the sweltering sun from dawn to dusk. From the proceeds of this toil, we would buy the necessary paraphernalia like sowing machines, powerful radios from the then Soviet Union, underwear and the like. These would be shipped to forward countries in Southern Africa where our ANC- Umkhonto we Sizwe combatants resided like Angola, Lusaka, Tanzania and Mozambique.

Our friendship blossomed when we came back home in the early nineties. We would meet occasionally during those testing times and we never forgot where we came from and what our mantra was, for we were moulded by the likes of Oliver Tambo.

We never lost sight of the fact that the struggle did not end with the political power we had attained. As former students from Bulgaria, we regularly met and still meet to further strengthen the bond of yesteryear.

In 2005, when I left the Department of Labour after a three year successful and exciting stint, Page took the baton and ran with it. He worked at the Department of Labour until last year, when his illness forced him to take leave of the department.

We, members of the ANC Veterans League and of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the spear and shield of the struggling masses of our people ,say with firm conviction, we shall always strive for unity of our organisation, even in times of stark adversity and seeming phase of near helplessness.

Lastly, death do not be proud, as you robbed us one of our own. Till we meet again dear comrade, dear brother, dear friend.

To your wife Nkwadi and children, be comforted by the fact that your husband and dad was one of a kind.

He will forever be remembered as a member of a generation of young people who took upon themselves to fight the apartheid regime and build a better life for all our people in South Africa.

Rest in peace Paigeno as we fondly called him. Robala ka kagiso..

SNUKI ZIKALALA PRESIDENT OF THE ANC VETERANS LEAGU