FULL ARTICLE: University of Fort Hare is a Missionary Station, always was.

The history and background of the University College of Fort Hare, as it was known as on erection, has its roots embedded in the missionary efforts of the envoys of the Glasgow Missionary Society (GMS). This collective was commissioned by the British monarchy and was established purely as a measure to infiltrate basic day to day local or ‘Native’ life. The reasons for this move demand another critical study all together. I will focus on the infiltration and results thereof that informed what was to come. It’s evident that the monarchy had a standard plan for its colonies internationally. This is blatantly visible in the colonial development of modern day India, Australia and New Zealand. The move to establish a settler community in the modern day eastern cape is testimony. Never before, had a colonial force in Africa, been able to impose itself culturally than in Southern Africa in the early nineteenth century. They were so effective that they were able to inculcate a settler community in the middle of war ridden terrains. How? The assassination of dominant monarchs and destruction of sovereign rule, the translation of the Bible into isiXhosa and the establishment of schools fashioned in settler pedagogy, with an emphasis civilizing the locals. Locals were to become an economic commodity to sustain the colony without even knowing it. As some might differ, the truth is that the eventual discovery on minerals in the Southern African region in the late nineteenth century was not a discovery, but a plot. It led to over 200 000(subject to correction) of locals to be subjugated to a mass slavery effort that saw them work on mines, farms and domestic enterprises owned by the settler community. They would never do this willingly, the frontier wars are testimony, but eventually the pressure from the British in particular was like a curse. It cumulated into the two particular incidents: first the exaggeration of the migrant movement triggered by changing climatological conditions and verily competition for resources known to most as iMfecane and king Shakas doing; and then verily Ingqawule/Cattle killing, of which for the better half of modern history was blamed on a young Xhosa teenage girl . The aftermath of these incidents left locals perpetually dispersed and further disunited. It allowed the monarchy to unleash its most potent weapon to date: Civilization of the wild African through systematic dehumanization. The logic here is, how were a mere 5000 settlers going to subjugate a multi nation that was Southern Africa, to their will and power? This would come in the in the guise of formal education for the uncivilised ‘infidels’. In the advent of missionary stations or ‘formal education’ being set up in colonial corners of the Cape region over the better half of the nineteenth century, two notable products of the missionary effort are Tiyo Soga and Walter Rubusana. Even though they were notably clergymen, their legacy is intensely politically charged up. The establishment of Lovedale is significant as well. In the aftermath of the genocide that was known as ingqawule, certain philanthropists/missionaries played the role of shepard to the masses who were scattered by death and hunger. John Ayliff and Dr John Love were that principle acts. Each given the task of establishing what was to be the most progressive missionary station ever. The same one that station that would mint, print and translate the first bible into an African tongue, from British text. Lovedale was formed in 1824 by the already mentioned Love. Oringinaly established in Ncera , it eventually was fully established on the banks of the Tyhume river. A certain John Bennie, who was instrumental in the bible translation process, was one of the founding fathers. John Ayliff would later, after leading the amamfengu across the Kei, establish a junior high school of sorts that would work as a feeder to Lovedale, Healdtown. These were the kraals that would mould our ‘leaders’. And these were the shepherds that would herd them. Tiyo Soga, probably the first recognised ‘Native’ journalist, was educated at Lovedale from 1844-46 until Imfazwe Yezembe broke out. Subsequently, because of how ‘diligent’ he was, he ended up in Scotland on scholarship in Glasgow, to study theology. On his return, not only was he the first ordained native, but he was also to be involved special mission to translate the Bible into his native tongue, and publish it. Rubusana was graduated at Lovedale in 1878 .He was tutored by the notorious James ‘Somgxada’ Stewart. He led the revision process of what Soga had worked on in the 1850, under the ordinance of king Edward the VII in 1904. He happens to be the same man that was a significant part of the formation of what was known South African National Native Congress, and eventually the ANC under the watch of the Thembu King Jongilizwe Sampu Dalindyebo and his motley crew of chiefs in 1912. The British Monarchy understood the power relations that went into colonial expansion. Testimony to this is the deliberate set up of missions stations within the royal kraals of local; chiefs and verily Kings. This meant converting the royals, which would open an evangelic window into the people .Today, in the Cape Province we see a lot of missionary stations situated in royal kraals of yester-year. Along the Tyume and Keiskamma rivers where the frontier borders established, was where this colonial expansion took major formation. Chief Ngqika and Kama of the Xhosa amaRharhabe took into this Christian conversion very keenly even setting up schools in their kraals. This development led to factions amongst the ‘converted’ and ‘non-believers’ amongst the locals. Those who kept tradition and custom, amaqaba, and those who took up new western ideals, amagqobhoka (literally meaning the penetrated ones). At the turn of the century, twentieth century that is, the colonial government set up structures of the then Parliament of South Africa that would allow Africans to participate in general diplomacy of cabinet. The converted Africans who were endorsed by their various chiefs would be the representatives of the African majority. This would put into motion the standoff between what was the true voice/representation of the African. By the time the South African National Native Congress, and eventually the ANC was formed, various factions amongst leading African clergymen/academics took centre stage, leading to what then became known the True Africanist faction that criticised the voice of the likes of Walter Rubusana and John Tengo Jabavu and in later years Chief Albert Luthili.Critique was simple. The voice of ‘penetrated Africans’ diminished the true Africa voice in diplomatic matters. A political stance then that would seek to being true to African values was emergent. The Society of Young African in the early 1940’s was a significant collective in this regard. They were former students of already mentioned missionary stations in the Cape region and verily were graduates of Fort Hare. The likes of Sastri Mda, Mda Mda, and Livingstone Mqotsi; in later years Phumi Giyose were instrumental in informing this collective. They would in time be political mouthpieces for the then Unity Movement. They would challenge the colonial government favoured ANC in as far as being true to the African agenda of pan Africanism and liberation, without collaboration. This was a counter attack directly at colonial government and their maintenance of an unjust status quo using African liberal as a yardstick to African values systems. The current nature of liberalism in South Africa, especially amongst those with a rich missionary and academic background is a manifestation of the deliberate the agenda of penetration and conversion of Africans into gatekeepers, civilized kaffirs and ‘Uncle Toms’ who go about the business of liberation with the assistance or influence of former colonial masters and evangelists. This was highly flawed, still is, and well calculated. Slaves have just merely swapped their shackles for ties and suites. More recently, those who were linked with former president Thabo Mbeki, are often labelled by the ANC stalwarts as clever blacks, who are too educated for their own liking. The threat obviously leaning towards a true Africanist stance. The ‘I am an African’ speech is a point of departure here. It set the tone for what the twenty-first century ANC aligned diplomat would aspire to. An African renaissance that takes into account that we come from a missionary background thus the need to re-visit our true identity, in an attempt to become world citizens. The future of this country is in the hands now of neo liberal culture and this is a symptom of being converted by missionary folk in to civilized citizens. The notion of non-collaboration fell away with advent of democracy. It is thus safe to conclude that the formation of Fort Hare and verily other missionary stations that supported the British colonial expansion has fulfilled its purpose of breeding a generation of sell-outs and collaborators who are then celebrated as black academic pioneers, or the champions of Africa intelligentsia when we all can see that we are still subject to Lancaster House and the remnants of the Glasgow missionary order. In the light of the above and taking into perspective the centenary celebration of this institution that is Fort Hare and its significant history, what is it that we are celebrating? Julius Garvey, Marcus Garveys’ youngest son recently delivered the memorial lecture of a stalwart of the broader Pan-African and non-collaboration movement. This was the Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe memorial lecture at this university during the centenary month celebrations. He highlighted that Africans were heavily conscientized and civilised prior to colonial expansion. This is not rocket science really. Then the question arises, are celebrating a true Africanist order or detached and marginalising second wave of human slavery through the mind? Fort Hare might have been the training ground of anticolonial superheroes, but the fact remains, all their tools of resistance were borrowed from the masters’ toolbox