A testament of hope

Stephen “Steve” Bantu Biko, South African activist (1944-1977)

The truth about Biko's death was reported by the Daily Dispatch journalist Donald Woods, his friend and companion in battles against apartheid. The death was due to the ferocious beating in Pretoria prison - always denied by the government - by 5 police officers, who later escaped conviction thanks to the statute of limitations.

Persecuted, Woods and his family then had to leave the country to ask for political asylum in London. Born into a poor family, Biko, with great sacrifices, managed to study and attend the medical faculty of Na¬tal for a few years. At the same time he joined the National Union of South Africa Students, a student movement against apartheid. In 1970 he founded the Black Consciousness movement, with 70 associations. He had understood the need for the black community to conceive and assimilate an awareness of its own value by reclaiming a specific identity without resorting to violence against the white "masters". In '73 the government sent him into exile but the protests of Biko and his companions did not stop, culminating in what would later go down in history as the Soweto massacre (1973) carried out by the white police, in which around a thousand people lost their lives. people, including many minors. In September 1977, after two days of torture, Biko died. Not so the memory of him: Peter Gabriel of Genesis dedicated the song Biko (1980) to him and the British director Richard Attenborough the film Cry Freedom (1987). A beautiful book by Sara Carbone, Stephen Bantu Biko, was recently released. A testament of hope (Marsilio) which collects his writings.

Annamaria Gobbato
NP April 2024