Historic Rivonia Treason Trial commemorated

Wednesday marked the 60th anniversary of the Rivonia Treason Trial and family members experienced a day of deep reflection at Court C at the Palace of Justice in Pretoria. EWN reports that they took their seats in the dock where Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki, Ahmed Kathrada, Denis Goldberg, Raymond Mhlaba, Elias Motsoaledi, Andrew Mlangeni and others were sentenced to life in prison on Robben Island for sabotage. The purpose of the commemoration, organised by the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, was to reflect on the enormity of what happened in that courtroom 60 years ago, and the importance the Rivonia Trial holds for where SA is today, said Neeshan Balton, the executive director of the foundation. The Daily Maverick reports that Gauteng Judge President Dunstan Mlambo said that the significance of historic events like the Rivonia Trial was being eroded, to the detriment of the youth. ‘That trial was one of the building blocks that led to us having a Constitution. The Rivonia Trial was very important and very poignant,’ Mlambo said. Constitutional Court Judge Jody Kollapen said the courtroom is deeply steeped in SA history. ‘The pain and the anguish of those who sat in this court is probably reflected in this formidable building. In many respects, we are required to do more than simply gather here from time to time because it is part of the DNA of our society,’ Kollapen said.

DM notes that Kollapen recalled the day when Mandela and his co-accused were sentenced to life imprisonment for treason. Seven-years-old at the time, he said he had no inkling that what would happen in the courtroom would shape his life and many others in the country. ‘I was then unaware of the heroic tasks of men and women who fought for my freedom and all our freedoms. Later, in the fullness of time, I would come to know them, I would come to respect them, I would come to admire them, and I would have the enormous privilege of being given the opportunity to make a contribution in the smallest of ways to the freedom and liberation of my country,’ Kollapen said. Mlangeni's son, Sello, remembered how the arrest of his father forced him into exile when he was just six. ‘I call it involuntary exile. We were sent to live with my grandmother in Botswana. She could not take care of us. She often had to make her way into Rhodesia to find food for us,’ he said. Other family members recalled their memories of the trial which saw them separated from their loved ones for decades.

Full EWN report

Full Daily Maverick report

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