Elizabeth Mafekeng

Elizabeth Mafekeng (September 18, 1918 – May 28, 2009)[1] was a trade union political leader who fought against the injustices suffered by the working class and against the racial segregation laws imposed by the apartheid system.

Biography

Mafekeng was born in a small town near Queenstown, Eastern Cape. Like many African families, Mafekeng's family struggled to make a living. At the age of 14, Mafekeng left her hometown for Paarl situated in the Western Cape Province where she arrived in 1927.[2] In 1939, Mafekeng was employed at the H Jones and Co, a canning factory where she endured long working hours and poor working conditions.[3] Mafekeng became involved in the Canning Union in 1941.[3] She was eventually elected president of the A-17CW1J union.[3]

In 1952, she was a participant in the Defiance Campaign and "went to jail carrying her child on her back."[3] She was the representative of the South African Food Workers at a conference in Sofia, where she secretly left South Africa "disguised as a servant," with no passport.[3] In Sofia, she said that she "tasted for the first time real human treatment with no discrimination whatsoever."[3] On her return to South Africa, she faced police brutality and questioning about her business in Sofia.[4]

On the 11th of November 1959, the apartheid regime served Mafekeng with a deportation (banning) order shortly after she had led a huge demonstration in Paarl against an attempt to issue passes to African women.[5] She was the first African woman to be banned.[6] She fled to Lesotho where she endured harsh conditions as well as the heartbreak of being away from her children and husband; however, she continued working relentlessly to bring down apartheid rule.[7]

In 1990, Mafekeng returned to South Africa where she continued her involvement in the trade union movement until her retirement due to ill-health.[4] A home was built for her by the Food and Canning Workers Union (FCWU) in Mbekweni Township in Paarl.[4] She died on May 28, 2009.[4]

Mafekeng In honour of all the work she did, Elizabeth Mafekeng was awarded with Meritorious Service Posthumously.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Elizabeth Mafekeng Room, FAWU celebrates FAWU Veterans Elizabeth Mafikeng "Rocky" and Liz Abrahams " Nanna" birthdays.
  2. ↑ Sibeko, Archie (2008). , Archie Sibeko's Roll of Honour: Western Cape Comrades 1953-1963. University of the Western Cape & Diana Ferrus Publishers. ISBN 978-0-620-40512-6.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Women Play a Leading Role". South African History Online. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Elizabeth Mafekeng". South African History Online. 17 February 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  5. ↑ Elizabeth Mafekeng. , FAWU Tributes Elizabeth Mafekeng. Retrieved 29 October 2010 from http://www.fawu.org.za/index.php?include=veterans/mafikeng.html.
  6. ↑ "She's Trouble Without Precedent". The Kansas City Tijmes. 8 December 1959. Retrieved 13 September 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Myrna, Blumberg (1959). , The Lonely Exile of Elizabeth Mafekeng, Contact, 2(3), 14 November.
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