Rastafarians in South Africa want freedom of religion and the right to smoke ganja, writes Zebulon Dread
Arthur Molisiwa is doing a masters degree in mathematics and his father is chair of a corporate giant; Moses Mlangeni holds a BSc in economics and is doing a postgraduate training course in business journalism sponsored by New Africa Investments Limited; Gareth Prince is a qualified lawyer. They are all Rastafarians and pillars of their community
Prince was recently refused entry into his career by the Law Society of South Africa, which cited Minister of Justice Dullah Omar and Minister of Health Nkosazana Zuma as co-respondents in their Cape High Court application against him.
This is happening in a country protected by a Bill of Rights that claims freedom of religion is a right of every South African. Prince is now making a plea to the Constitutional Court.
South African Rastafarians are bemused by the government’s revivalist campaign under the auspices of the “African renaissance”, for they believe they started a renaissance quite a while back and the government would do well to approach them for enlightenment.
Rasta intellectuals want a structured campaign aligned with Black Consciousness capable of attacking the continued cultural imperialism of the United States – known by Rastafarians as the Whore of Babylon.
They want a campaign of defiance where Africanism – sans racism – becomes the hallmark of personal development for people battered by Western ideologues who continually denigrate Africa to Third World status.
Babylon – the government – sees fit to fraternise with the old stalwarts of apartheid in the name of reconciliation, yet will not meet the Rastafarian community to negotiate the arrests, harassment and general vilification every member of that community suffers.
Many Rastas attest to the fact that they are now told by policemen who hate the idea of anything Africanist that the government has given them the right to arrest them. They are arbitrarily plucked from the streets, subjected to public body searches, verbal abuse in the form of blasphemy towards Jah (God), or face threats to cut off their dreadlocks.
Brothers I-G and I-T grew up on the sprawling badlands of the Cape Flats and broke the grip of gangsterism by becoming Rastas in the early 1980s. Battle-scarred, they have an average of 60 arrests on dagga-related charges between them.
I-T’s case is pending before the Constitutional Court because, as he puts it, he’s never going to give up his beloved ganja (dagga), is sick and tired of all the arrests, and he has instructed his attorney to take the matter to the highest court.
During the drafting of the democratic Constitution, a group of mandated Rastafarians got together to submit proposals to the Constitutional Assembly. Their package included videos, books, reference material and everything they thought the government needed to get a clear idea of the ideals and lifestyles of Rastafarians.
Consitutional Assembly chair Cyril Ramaphosa did not even deem it fit to include this matter on the agenda for discussion. This remains the position of the government today.
The Marcus Garvey Rastafari Retreat in Phillipi, in the heart of the Cape Flats, served for many years as a central point for cultural, philosophical and social meetings. It was destroyed last year because of infighting between Rastas who were divided over how to respond to a sustained campaign of harassment by the internal stability unit.
Ras Garvey, a mild and peaceful person, is still shell-shocked after a harrowing night last year, when police came storming into the Phillipi camp on the pretext that weapons were being held there and Rastas were planting copious amounts of ganja nearby. It is claimed that police beat the Rastas with rifle butts and forcibly cut their dreadlocks.
“People think we are speaking nonsense when we tell them this, telling us about the new South Africa and all that, but how long can we tolerate this low-level war against our religion?” asks Ras Garvey.
“How long before we get utterly tired and fight back? I tell you now, I am ready for war. Truly, I am ready for war. It cannot continue like this. I still see those policemen in my mind. I still see their hatred and I hear their words, that it is [Nelson] Mandela who has given them the right to attack us because ganja is illegal.
“I can say that Mandela does not care for the children of Africa. I can say that because nothing has changed for us. We’ve marched, delivered memorandums, had meetings, everything, but still the war continues.
“It’s time for Rastafarians to change strategy and to realise that talks of peace must sometimes be preceded by acts of war. This cannot continue. We must prepare for the unavoidable.”
In 1994, after the last marches on the government, there were rumblings about the formation of a radical wing to fight back to bring the government to the negotiating table, but many Rastas believed the new dispensation should be given a chance.
The frustration is explained by Ras Levi, a strong advocate of radical action: “I and I was part of the radical politics that brought our fathers to the seat of government and placed my life on the line many times for the freedom of the land.
“Today, they sit in Parliament enjoying the fruits of our struggle while we are engaged in daily battles with an inconsistent police force. One is always held in a state of stress because, as a smoker of ganja, there is a good chance that one of us might be carrying the herb, thus opening oneself to either arrest or harassment.
“To live under this continual state of subliminal war is taking its toll on our families, our structures and our lives. We have tried every means to find a peaceful solution, but we are faced with a government more interested in satisfying the so-called drug treaties and international monetary partners than in upholding the Bill of Rights.”
Many Rastas believe the government is acting in a cowardly manner because of its fear of upsetting its Western masters, who make Africans sign treaties to obtain aid.
This aid is of no use to Rastas, who remain mired in the same abject poverty as before. Their children are growing up and asking questions. The fathers are becoming frustrated because they have no answers.
Ras Ruben explains: “Thabo Mbeki and his partners are forever overseas looking to solve their problems, but they don’t take notice of the grassroots. One day, very soon, they are going to get a very rude awakening. I and I must stand and fight for our rights.”
Adds Prince: “There are reams of documents proving as a scientific fact that dagga is not the demon the West makes it out to be. This is the information age, but when itcomes to Rastafari it becomes the disinformtion age.”
It is safe to say that the Rastas are angry. I have seen guns bulging from underneath clothing, and have been shown firepower by radical Rastas tired of the police and their blatant use of them as soft targets. But the government remains intransigent while a minority bleeds.