Amina Cachalia

Amina Cachalia, OLB (née Asvat; 28 June 1930 – 31 January 2013) was a South African anti-Apartheid activist, women's rights activist, and politician. She was a longtime friend and ally of former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela. Her late husband was political activist Yusuf Cachalia.

Amina Cachalia

OLB
Personal details
Born(1930-06-28)28 June 1930
Died31 January 2013(2013-01-31) (aged 82)
Spouse(s)Yusuf Cachalia
ChildrenGhaleb Cachalia, Coco Cachalia

Early life

Cachalia was born Amina Asvat, the ninth of eleven children[1] in Vereeniging, Transvaal, South Africa, on 28 June 1930.[2] Her parents were political activists Ebrahim Ismail Asvat and Fatima Asvat.[1] Ebrahim was a close friend of Mahatma Gandhi and he was also chair person of Transvaal British Indian Association which later goes by the name of Transvaal Indian Congress (TIC).[3] Her sister, Zainab Asvat, was an activist.[4]

At first, Cachalia doesn't realize her racially prejudiced environment in South Africa. Under the influence of her tutor, Mervy Thandray, a communist teacher teacher who belonged to the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA). Cachalia grows her awareness about condition on South Africa [5] Later, she was transferred to the Durban Indian Girls’ High School. She returned to Fordsburg and decided not to continue her formal education. She began to learn shorthand and typing to get a job and became politically active.[3]She began campaigning against Apartheid and racial discrimination as a teenager. She became a women's rights activist, often focusing on economic issues, such as financial independence for women.[6]

Political involvement

Her first political involvement start when she wanted to take part on women’s passive resistance campaign, but rejected cause she was too young and frail to go to prison.[7]Then , she join Transvaal Indian Youth Congress (TIYC) as an active member. TIYC actively doing task such as distributing leaflets, putting up posters, selling TIC's newspaper, and mobilising Indian community to support the movement.[8] She met his future husband, Yusuf Cachalia, secretary of TIC through her political activity. Cachalia was a volunteer for the Peace Council and a founding member of Women’s Progressive Union which was affiliated to the Institute of Race Relations in 1948. The Union taught women literacy, dress-making, secretarial skills, baby care, and basic skills in nursing in order to help them became economically independent.[9]

Defiance campaign

In the early 1950s, she joined ANC and worked hard to help Defiance Campaign become a successful movement by distributing leaflets, making home visits and recruiting volunteers to join the movement.[10]On 26 August 1952, Cachalia participate on Germiston march batch led by Ida Mtwana. The Germiston march consist of twenty-nine women in all: eleven Indian, one Coloured (Susan Naude), and seventeen African women. All participator of the march was arrested and sentenced to 14 days in Boksburg Prison[3]

On 17 April 1954, Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW or FSAW) was founded in Johannesburg from the idea of Rachel Simons to found women’s organisation which was included all woman from all race and colour. The organisation was led by Helen Joseph, Lillian Ngoyi and Amina Cachalia as the steering committee for the organisation. [11]Cachalia was the treasurer of the Federation of South African Women (Fedsaw) and a leading supporter of the Federation of Transvaal Women.[12] FEDSAW decided to organise women’s march to Pretoria on the Union Building on 9 August 1955 to protest against the pass law. At that time, Amina was pregnant with his son, Ghaleb . Amina becames one of the 20,000 marchers.[9]

During the treason trial in Johannesburg on 1956, she helps her sister, Zainab Asvat, to support the trialists and their families which had been left impoverished by the loss of their main wage earner by collecting food an money for them.[9] Amina Cachalia and Yusuf Cachalia were friends of Nelson Mandela before his imprisonment at Robben Island in 1962. She became a staunch anti-apartheid activist. After the treason trial, Cachalia spent fifteen years under house arrest throughout the 1960s and 1970s[13]

The period after house arrest

After her house arrest ended, Cachalia immediately join to oppose government's plan to allow Indians to elect their own representative without giving the same right to black South Africans by forming Anti-SAIC committees to oppose the sham election. Though, the majority of Indians boycotted the election, government still keep on to their plan by proposing Tricameral Parliament system. The controversy resulted in the formation of the United Democratic Front (UDF) and she became one of active member of this organisation. In the 1990s, Cachalia served as the committee of PWV (Union of Pretoria, Greater Johannesburg (Witwatersrand) and Vaal Triangle (Vereeniging)] region on African National Congress Women’s League (ANCWL) after the organisation was resuscitated.[3]

In 1995, Mandela asked Cachalia to marry him. At that time, he had been separated from his wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. Cachalia turned down Mandela's proposal because she said that "I'm my own person and that I had just recently lost my husband whom I had enormous regard for". Mandela divorced Madikizela-Mandela a year later and married Graça Machel in 1998.[14]

Cachalia was elected to the National Assembly of South Africa in the 1994 South African general election, the country's first with universal suffrage.[12]

Death and funeral

Cachalia died at Milpark Hospital in Parktown West, Johannesburg, on 31 January 2013, aged 82.[13] The cause of death was complications due to a perforated ulcer.[15]

Her funeral was held in her home in Parkview, Johannesburg, according to traditional Muslim customs. It was attended by South African President Jacob Zuma, former Presidents Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe, ANC Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, former First Lady Graça Machel, former Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, and fellow activist Ahmed Kathrada, among others.

Honor and Legacy

In 2004, she was awarded the Order of Luthuli in Bronze for her contributions to gender and racial equality and democracy.[13] On the same year, she was also conferred by University of the Witwatersrand with a Doctor of Laws degree, honoris causa.[3]

After her death, in March 2013, her autobiography When Hope and History Rhyme was published.[14][16]

References
  1. "When Hope and History Rhyme – Amina Cachalia's autobiography". Polity. 27 March 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  2. "Honorary Degree Citation: Amina Cachalia". University of the Witwatersrand. Archived from the original on 19 February 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
  3. "Amina Cachalia | South African History Online". www.sahistory.org.za. 17 February 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  4. "Zainab Asvat". South African History Online. 17 February 2011. Archived from the original on 18 July 2018. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
  5. "Obituary – We'll miss you, Amina". News24. 3 February 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  6. "Age of Reason: Amina Cachalia interview". BBC World Service. 23 December 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
  7. "Tribute to Amina Cachalia from Wits University". www.ru.ac.za. 7 October 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  8. Pahad, Aziz (2014). Insurgent diplomat : a civil talks or civil war?. Johannesburg, South Africa: Penguin Random House. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-14-353885-1. OCLC 896684787.
  9. Vahed G (2008). Muslim portraits : the anti-apartheid struggle (PDF). Durban, South Africa: Madiba Publishers. pp. 51–52. ISBN 1-874945-25-X. OCLC 858966865.
  10. "Hamba kahle Amina". www.ru.ac.za. 15 July 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  11. "Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW) | South African History Online". www.sahistory.org.za. 31 March 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  12. Mafika (1 February 2013). "SA pays tribute to Amina Cachalia". Brand South Africa. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  13. "Struggle stalwart Amina Cachalia dies". News24. 31 January 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
  14. Leonard, Charles (28 March 2013). "Amina Cachalia: The woman who said 'no' to Mandela". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
  15. "Amina Cachalia: A story of struggle, triumph and love". The Mail & Guardian. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  16. "Amina Cachalia: The poetry of her hope and history". Daily Maverick. 11 March 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
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