Leaving South Africa

Arm in Arm in Africa: Our Final Day

Our final day in South Africa started early, packing the vans and preparing for our trip to Johannesburg International Airport. Leaving early meant that most of us would have opportunity to visit Soweto before the long trip home.

Soweto Boy

Soweto (short for South Western Townships) covers about 58 square miles of land just outside of Johannesburg. Like other townships we visited, there is no population census. Depending on who you talk to, there are between 1.5 and 4.5 million people living in the settlement. It is, however, considered the largest and most well known township in South Africa. It is in Soweto that violence erupted in 1976, when more than 10,000 school children took to the streets in protest of apartheid. Police responded and riots ensued. The "Soweto Uprising" was the bloodiest conflict since the early sixties, and more than a thousand died in the months that followed. It was also a turning point in the Anti-Apartheid movement. In his 1994 speech on the anniversary of the uprising, President Nelson Mandela called for remembrance and continued vigilance:

"Our message of reconciliation is inspired by a genuine love for our country. When we call for the truth we do so in order to ensure that all of us come to terms with the past. So that we can bury those evil experiences secure in the knowledge that future generations will recoil from any temptation to repeat them. Let us all rise to the challenge of the freedom that we have won. That challenge is to create a better life for all South Africans."

We toured the home where Nelson and Winnie Mandela lived prior to his incarceration in 1964. Not far away was the home of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who headed the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We also toured Regina Mundi Church which was used by the political organizations during the uprisings. At that time, people were not allowed to meet in groups of more than three or four. The only place where they could meet in numbers was in church. Regina Mundi Church was the target of gunfire and tear gas attacks during the uprising.

Trouble at Regina Mundi Church

Our time short, we re-boarded the vans one last time and made our way to Johannesburg International Airport. We had said our good-byes to Rev. Spiwo Xapile when we left Malengeni a few days earlier. At the airport, we parted with Professors Jan Du Toit and Johan Augustyn. The three of them have been our guides and companions throughout the trip. While we were looking forward to being home, we knew we would miss the beautiful people and surroundings of South Africa. After 21 hours in the air, we were greeted at MSP by a small group of family and friends.

While our travel has concluded, our journey continues. Each of us returned with memories and perspectives that must be connected with the reality of "our" worlds. You’ll learn more about this as members of our group submit their reflections on the trip to be posted on www.stjoan.com. You can also learn more by checking www.ArmInArmInAfrica.org for updates and an expanded photo gallery that will be posted.

Jeff and Rita Nohner have volunteered to act as scribe and shutterbug for this journey to South Africa. Jeff is also the designer of the www.ArmInArmInAfrica.org website which we encourage you to visit.