ANC veterans led by the party’s secretary-general Gwede Mantashe will be in the Eastern Cape on Saturday to collect a symbolic set of keys left years ago in the care of the Hashe family from Regu, in Middledrift.
Moses Kotane, a former member of the then Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), received the keys in Moscow from his fellow comrade Sukwini “Old-man” Hashe.
Hashe’s Alexandra home in Johannesburg served as a safe house for those who wanted to join Umkhonto weSizwe from 1961 until he went into exile in the mid-60s.
ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane said Hashe had handed the keys to Kotane in Moscow as a symbol of freedom.
They were then sneaked into the country and given to the Hashe family in Middledrift.
“One of the siblings contacted the ANC recently and informed them that they are still keeping the keys Moses Kotane left with them back then. Only when the ANC visits this family will we get a clear picture of what happened in detail,” said Mabuyane.
Mantashe confirmed to the Daily Dispatch this week that he would be leading the delegation of ANC veterans to visit Regu.
“The event will start at 9am and there will be a lot of activities to mark this important event in the ANC’s calendar,” said Mantashe.
When the Dispatch contacted Fort Hare University’s National Heritage and Cultural Studies department, where some of the ANC’s historical material is housed, archivist Masoabuli Maamoe said it was the first time he had heard about the keys.
He appealed for more information “so that we can conduct our own research on it and archive it here too”.
Kotane was born in 1905 in Rustenburg. He was elected as CPSA general secretary in 1939, and elected onto the ANC’s national executive committee in 1946.
He appeared alongside Nelson Mandela and Walter Sisulu as one of the Treason Trialists of the 1950s but charges against him were dropped.
He left for exile in Tanzania in 1963 where he operated along with JB Marks and later became the ANC’s treasurer-general in exile. He suffered a stroke and moved to Moscow and eventually died on May 9 1978.
His and Mark’s remains were returned to his birthplace in Pelle in March this year.
ANC to receive historic set of keys
Moses Kotane, a former member of the then Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), received the keys in Moscow from his fellow comrade Sukwini “Old-man” Hashe.
Hashe’s Alexandra home in Johannesburg served as a safe house for those who wanted to join Umkhonto weSizwe from 1961 until he went into exile in the mid-60s.
ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane said Hashe had handed the keys to Kotane in Moscow as a symbol of freedom.
They were then sneaked into the country and given to the Hashe family in Middledrift.
“One of the siblings contacted the ANC recently and informed them that they are still keeping the keys Moses Kotane left with them back then. Only when the ANC visits this family will we get a clear picture of what happened in detail,” said Mabuyane.
Mantashe confirmed to the Daily Dispatch this week that he would be leading the delegation of ANC veterans to visit Regu.
“The event will start at 9am and there will be a lot of activities to mark this important event in the ANC’s calendar,” said Mantashe.
When the Dispatch contacted Fort Hare University’s National Heritage and Cultural Studies department, where some of the ANC’s historical material is housed, archivist Masoabuli Maamoe said it was the first time he had heard about the keys.
He appealed for more information “so that we can conduct our own research on it and archive it here too”.
Kotane was born in 1905 in Rustenburg. He was elected as CPSA general secretary in 1939, and elected onto the ANC’s national executive committee in 1946.
He appeared alongside Nelson Mandela and Walter Sisulu as one of the Treason Trialists of the 1950s but charges against him were dropped.
He left for exile in Tanzania in 1963 where he operated along with JB Marks and later became the ANC’s treasurer-general in exile. He suffered a stroke and moved to Moscow and eventually died on May 9 1978.
His and Mark’s remains were returned to his birthplace in Pelle in March this year.
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