Afrique du Sud: Steve Biko, reste la "Conscience noire" 30 ans après sa mort

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) — Steve Biko reste une figure populaire en Afrique du Sud, trente ans après sa mort dans les geôles du régime d'apartheid, même si les idées du père du "Mouvement de la Conscience noire" ne pèsent plus directement sur la scène politique.

"Dans la culture populaire, il est un puissant symbole d'espoir, une figure du changement", déclare son fils, Nkosinathi Biko, président de la Fondation Steve Biko.

Pour marquer les 30 ans de la disparition du militant anti-apartheid, la Fondation organise depuis juin une série d'évènements qui doivent culminer mercredi au Cap (sud-ouest) avec un discours du président Thabo Mbeki.

"Il nous a aidés à comprendre et à construire notre identité, et cela parle toujours aux jeunes Sud-Africains", poursuit Nkosinathi Biko, assurant que l'influence de son père reste réelle.

"Steve Biko est sur les T-shirts, dans des chansons, dans les journaux (...) Il attire toujours beaucoup de considération mais ses idées n'ont plus d'influence dans l'élaboration de la politique, ni au parlement", relativise Kopano Ratele, professeur à l'Université d'Afrique du Sud (Unisa).

Biko, selon lui, "est bien plus influent dans la culture populaire que dans la politique au sens strict."

Arrêté par la police du régime ségrégationniste le 18 août 1977, Steve Biko alors âgé de 30 ans, était retrouvé sans vie dans sa cellule le 12 septembre.

Dans un premier temps, le pouvoir a soutenu qu'il n'avait pas résisté à une grève de la faim mais des journalistes ont réussi à prouver que sa mort avait été provoquée par des traumatismes crâniens.

Interrogé, le ministre de la Justice de l'époque, Jimmy Kruger avait déclaré que la mort de Biko le laissait "froid". Indignée, la communauté internationale avait adopté pour la première fois des sanctions contre le régime d'apartheid.

L'écho international de cette mort tragique a fait de Steve Biko un héros de la lutte pour la libération. Les hommages se sont multipliés: films, livres, chansons. "Oh Biko, Biko... Yehla Moya, The man is dead..." (Oh Biko, Biko, esprits calmez-vous, l'homme est mort), chante le Britannique Peter Gabriel.

Trente ans plus tard, cette chanson fait toujours pleurer un autre héros de la lutte anti-apartheid, l'archevêque Desmond Tutu, qui s'est effondré quand Peter Gabriel l'a entonnée en juillet, pour le 89e anniversaire de Nelson Mandela.

"Ce morceau me touche beaucoup", confie Premesh Lalu, professeur à l'Université du Western Cap (UWC), qui estime indispensable de commémorer la mort de Steve Biko.

"Mais on doit tirer plus de ses idées", note-il. "Aujourd'hui on a tendance à mettre dans le même pot tous les opposants à l'apartheid et à oublier qu'il y avait des visions différentes".

Steve Biko s'était distingué en créant en 1969 le premier syndicat étudiant exclusivement noir, l'Organisation des Etudiants sud-africains (SASO). Contrairement aux autres mouvements de libération, la SASO refusait l'aide des libéraux blancs.

Pour Biko, la lutte devait commencer sur le terrain psychologique: "la Conscience Noire est la prise de conscience par l'homme noir de la nécessité de faire front commun avec ses frères contre l'oppression (...). Elle vise à communiquer à la communauté noire une nouvelle fierté", expliquait-il en 1971.

Treize ans après la chute de l'apartheid, ses idées restent "pertinentes", estime son fils. Pour lui, à cause du chômage et de la pauvreté, "les noirs courent toujours le risque d'être spectateurs d'un jeu auquel ils devraient participer".

Monstres de la mer: Une aventure préhistorique

v.f. de Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Story

Date de sortie en salle : 03 octobre 2007
Genre :Documentaire
Durée : 0h40

Synopsis : La découverte d’un fossile inusité déclenche une enquête paléontologique passionnante! Faisant appel aux recherches effectuées aux quatre coins du globe, des scientifiques reconstruisent l’extraordinaire et terrible univers des océans de l’ère Crétacée : suivez Dolly, un de ces monstres des profondeurs, au cours des péripéties de son existence, recrées sur écran géant et en 3D. Un film de National Geographic et une musique originale composée par Peter Gabriel.

30 years on Biko maintains his appeal

Former president Nelson Mandela adressed a gathering to celebrate National Heritage Day, on Robben Island, on 24 September 1997. The then-president is dwarfed by a mural of three leaders representing the three main streams of political consciousness in the country. From left to right: Nelson Mandela, leader of the African National Congress (ANC), prior to his 27-year period of imprisonment; Steve Biko, a leading figure in the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM), prior to his death in detention in the 70s; and Robert Sobukwe, head of the Pan-African Congress (PAC), prior to his imprisonment on Robben Island in the 60s.

Thirty years after dying in prison in apartheid South Africa, Steve Biko remains a historical icon, even if his "Black Consciousness Movement" no longer carries political weight. A fervent anti-apartheid and freedom activist, Biko's popularity in the new South Africa is rooted in culture, providing ideas for the shaping of the identity of young blacks rather than formal politics. "Steve Biko is on T-shirts, in music, in the newspapers," said Kopano Ratele, a researcher with the University of South Africa's Institute of Social and Health Sciences. "People who were teenagers or in their 20s in the 1970s still remember Biko with nostalgia and they credit him for giving them a sense of pride in themselves."

In 1971, Biko explained that Black Consciousness was the realisation that blacks should rally together against the cause of their oppression. "... It seeks to infuse the black community with a new-found pride in themselves, their efforts, their value systems, their culture, their religion and their outlook to life." To mark the 30th anniversary of his death on Wednesday, the Steve Biko Foundation has put on a series of events across the country since June which will culminate in a lecture by President Thabo Mbeki in Cape Town.

"In popular culture, he is a very powerful symbol of hope... an icon of change. He helped to articulate our understanding, our own identity that continues to resonate in young South Africans to this day," said Biko's son Nkosinathi, who manages the foundation. "His ideas have a real influence well beyond the political field, in cultural organisations, in research organisations and in churches..."

Ratele said if Biko were still alive he would be disappointed to see his ideas compromised by poverty and inequality still evident in South African society 13 years after the demise of apartheid. "If you are unemployed and poorly-paid and you see the rich blacks, of what use is your pride?" However the younger Biko feels his father's ideas are still relevant to black South Africans, and should be used by leaders to propel the country forward. "People who are entrusted (to) a position of power do not recognise the extent to which they can give direction to change in this country," he said. "In that extent his ideas are still relevant, there is a need to link consciousness of self to development programmes".

On 18 August 1977, 30-year-old Biko was arrested by police under the white minority apartheid government, and taken to a prison in the coastal city of Port Elizabeth. He was transferred to the capital Pretoria on 11 September, and was found dead in his cell the following day, becoming the 20th person to die in the prison in 18 months. While authorities said that he died after going on a hunger strike, South African newspapers did extensive investigations, revealing he had died from brain injuries.

At the time, justice minister Jimmy Kruger told Parliament: "The death of Biko left me cold." The explanations of Biko's death were not convincing to the international community who, for the first time, adopted sanctions against the apartheid regime. Biko's tragic death turned him into a liberation struggle hero, with his memory praised in flims, books and song. "You can blow out a candle/ But you can't blow out a fire/ Once the flames begin to catch/ The wind will blow it higher," sang British artist Peter Gabriel in his 1980 song about the activist.

Thirty years after Biko's death, the song moved another liberation hero, Nobel laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu to tears, when Gabriel sang it during the July celebrations of former president Nelson Mandela's 89th birthday. Premesh Lalu, an associate professor at the University of Western Cape, said it was important to commemorate Biko's death, but not enough was being done with his legacy in modern South Africa. "I personally think there is much more to be said about Biko and done with Biko's thoughts."

Charlotte Plantive AFP

Black pride leader revived as fashion icon for South Africa's youth

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa: T-shirts bearing the image of Steve Biko, the symbol of black resistance worldwide who was killed by apartheid police, can be found for sale at flea market stalls and exclusive boutiques across South Africa. The question is whether the latest fashion is a sign the post-apartheid youth culture is embracing Biko's message of racial pride and African unity, or just crass commercialization of one of the most important figures in South African history. Biko, 30, died of a brain injury in a cell in Pretoria Central Prison on Sept. 12 1977, after being beaten and tortured by apartheid police. The 30th anniversary of his death was to be commemorated in South Africa this week with events that include a speech by President Thabo Mbeki.

At 22, Kenneth Mulaudzi was born after Biko's death, and was still a boy when apartheid ended in 1994. In a trendy Johannesburg store over the weekend, Mulaudzi eyed a US$28 T-shirt bearing Biko's image, the bearded face dominated by eyes under a wide brow. "It's not just a fashion statement. It is also a political statement," Mulaudzi said defiantly. "Young people are proud of him. He is a hero. He fought for us." Mulaudzi, an aspiring journalist with a stud in his chin, knew quite a bit about Biko, but hasn't read "I Write What I Like," Biko's seminal collection of essays.

He does have a poster of Biko in his home and can sing the lyrics to Haitian-American rapper Wyclef Jean's song "Diallo," which draws parallels between the 1999 shooting of an African immigrant by New York police and the murder of the South African activist. "I was surprised when I heard that song. It means Biko has gone far," Mulaudzi said, adding that he thinks it is the disturbing nature of the activist's death that affected so many. Biko's message of black pride appealed to many people in South Africa's townships. His death made him a martyr in the anti-apartheid movement and inspired films such as "Cry Freedom," starring Denzel Washington and British musician Peter Gabriel's anthem "Biko."

The end of white rule in 1994 saw Biko's appeal wane as South Africa's black majority reveled in new political and economic freedoms. The black consciousness movement in South Africa is in disarray and a recent wave of defections has decimated its main political party, the Pan African Congress. However, today there is a growing disenchantment among young people who see the country's leaders embroiled in scandal and a new black elite growing richer while most blacks find it harder and harder to keep up with inflation. Some observers see a stronger black consciousness message emerging in popular culture as young people develop their own sense of what it means to be African in today's world. A look around, Sowearto, the Afrochic store where Mulaudzi was browsing, supports that argument.

Dresses and tops celebrate singer Miriam Makeba as a "Great African" and carry the slogans of the black pride movement such as "The color of my skin is beautiful" and "Africa Must Unite." Jackie Radebe, 23, bought a Biko T-shirt after reading "I Write What I Like." He sees Biko as a selfless leader whose politics of brotherhood are still relevant to South Africa. "He had genuine compassion for the plight of the people, genuine concern about poverty, crime and loss of pride," Radebe said. While Biko would celebrate the "breakthroughs this young democracy has achieved," Radebe believes his hero would be disappointed in the country's leaders. "As far as morals, integrity and principles ... contemporary political leaders seem to be driven by money and self-interest," he says. Radebe hangs out at the African-focused Xarra Books in Johannesburg's Newtown Cultural Precinct.

June Josephs-Langa, managing director of the African-focused Xarra, says South Africa's younger generation are more assertive and "proudly African". The ones wearing Biko T-shirts may not all be like Radebe, but they are making a statement, she says. "In the same way many don't know much about Cuban politics, the revolutionary status of Che Guevara is someone they want to identify with, want to parade," she said.

But Johannesburg-based academic and cultural commentator Achille Mbembe, who is delivering a lecture in Biko's honor this week, doesn't see fashion as a fitting tribute to a man whose "death and life dramatically embodies the idea of freedom. I think South Africa could commemorate Biko's contribution to black emancipation in more powerful ways," he says.

Nkosinathi Biko, who was six when his father died, takes a more reconciliatory tone. He points to the tradition in the anti-apartheid movement of using T-shirts to spread political messages or pay tribute to fallen comrades. He also acknowledges the wealth of artistic material created in his father's name has been important in keeping the memory of Biko alive. "He is one of the attractive symbols of popular culture. Not just here but on the streets of New York, Brasilia and Liverpool, he is someone who resonates well," he says. However, as head of the Steve Biko Foundation, he is mindful of ensuring his father's name and image are not abused. The foundation has been running a nationwide commemorative program this year which includes a young writers competition whose sponsors include the Biko Foundation and the Xarra bookstore, films festivals and music concerts.

President Thabo Mbeki will also present the 8th annual Steve Biko Memorial Lecture on Wednesday in Cape Town. The speech will conclude an international conference examining Biko's politics and their role in South Africa today, touching on issues such as the transfer of land and black economic empowerment. Biko spoke of a time when Africans could stand proud and take their place in a society that transcended race and was based on equality. Quoting his father, Nkosinathi Biko says this "glittering prize" was still on "the distant horizon" for South Africa. Perhaps those young people wearing the hero's face on their chests will be inspired to find it.

The Associated Press

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba enthral audiences and critics across UK & Europe

Earlier this year Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba from Mali released their debut album 'Segu Blue' to exceptional critical acclaim. This summer they toured Europe for the first time and have no doubt established themselves as one of the most exciting live acts of the moment - and not only within the World Music genre. Amongst their many performances in Europe was the famous Roskilde Festival. Whilst performing at the La Mar de Musicas Festival in Spain, Senegalese superstar Youssou N'Dour joined them on stage. From El Pais, one of Spain's biggest newspapers:

"During Bassekou Kouyate's performance, Youssou N'Dour made a surprise appearance on stage, paying compliments to the Malian. He put the headphones of adiscman on Bassekou to remind him of a piece they hadrecorded together for Youssou's forthcoming album, andthen off they went with an impromptu version of thesong. It was one of those moments that no one canpredict, no promoter can guarantee and no festival canprogramme beforehand. Spontaneous. Unique.Unrepeatable. ... Bassekou plays the ngoni with thevirtuosity of a Jeff Beck or Jimi Hendrix."

In the UK they made their debut performance at Jamie Renton's Chilli Fried night at Darbucka on 11 July 2007 which The Guardian gave four stars in their review ("He gave an exhilarating display of what the ngoni can do.").This was followed by a gig in Brighton and an appearance at theLord

Mayor's Appeal Fiesta in London. Then, on24 July, the group played at a packed out Kemia Bar at MOMO's to a mainly industry crowd - this turned out to be one of the highlights of the tour. You can read the five star review from The Independent here

Their debut at the WOMAD Festival started with a headlining performance on the BBC Radio 3Stage on the Friday night. You can listen to their full set here

On the Saturday they performed again, this time in the Siam Tent. Charlie Gillett notes in his Sound of the World forum: "The Siam Tent hosted a fantastic performance by Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba - at times they brought to mind Scotty Moore and Bill Black, backing Elvis, and at other times they were closer to Muddy Waters or Magic Sam, Chicago blues at its most introverted." Praise also came from The Guardian ("Every good Womad has to have a great African newcomer, and Bassekou Kouyate proved once again that his extraordinary n'goni playing echoes anything from blues to jazz improvisation."),The Daily Telegraph ("Malian lute master Bassekou Kouyate and his group, Ngoni Ba, were belting out their densely percussive music to a clearly enchanted audience.") andFly.co.uk ("Like an ngoni junky I slipped in to see Bassekous set in the larger, Siam tent and if anything he topped the previous nights performance with more exceptional and deeply bluesy solos while his wife Amis voice cut through the air with a power not yet seen on record.") and many more.

Check out these images on the BBC Wiltshire website (use the 'next' button to view the 6 images of the group)

In between live shows they found time for various press interviews (there is a piece in the current issue of Echoes) as well as radio interviews on the African and French Service of BBC World Service and Open Air Radio (African Essence). Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba also recorded a live session for Charlie Gillett's World of Music programme which was broadcast on 24 August on the BBC World Service. You can listen again onlineuntil tomorrow, Friday, 31 August 2007 here

Charlie Gillett's annual 'Sound of the World' compilation album, released during Bassekou's time in the UK, features the group'strack 'Ngoni Fola' which was highlighted in several reviews such as The Guardian ("Then there's a reminder of the instrumental brilliance of Bassekou Kouyate, the African, newcomer of the year.") At the album launch party Bassekou Kouyate and his wife, the group's vocalist, Ami Sacko played an intimate set that showed a different side to the more rocking performances with the full band.

The next UK and European tour is currently being planned for November. UK dates include 4 November at Cargo in Londonand on 22 November at theNorwich Arts Centre. Full details to be announced soon.

In other related news, Dee Dee Bridgewater's latest album 'Red Earth' which features Bassekou Kouyate has just beennominated in the 'Best Jazz' category a the MOBO 2007 Awards. Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba's track 'Banani' which features Lobi Traore is included on the covermount CD of the current issue of Uncut celebrating 20 years of World Music. Bassekou's label, the Munich-based Out Here Records, has come 7th in the annual list of Top World Music Labels Award Winners, presented by WOMEX and the World Music Charts Europe (WMCE), whilst the album 'Segu Blue' has come 4th in their Top 15 World Music CDs of the Year.

For all UK press, radio, TV, online enquiries regarding Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba and Out Here Records please contact: Ilka Schlockermann (ilkamedia),PO Box 31876, London SE17 2ZB, UK T: +44 (0)79 3206 6624 | E: ilka@ilkamedia.com | Skype: ilkamedia http://www.ilkamedia.com | http://www.myspace.com/ilkamedia

Q & A with Storm Thorgerson

John Mackie's interview with album designer Storm Thorgerson, Sept. 5, 2007 at the Oh My Godard Gallery in Vancouver. Thorgerson's work will be displayed there until Sept. 30.

(....)

Sun: There's a Peter Gabriel album cover you did, the one that I think was just called Peter Gabriel...

Thorgerson: Yes, he was clever with his titles. The record company were furious. They kept saying 'Can you put your name on the front?' And he kept saying 'No.' He didn't even want his name on the front. Well...when Pink Floyd did Atom Heart Mother, which is a cow, there's no name on it. Nothing. The record company went berserk, absolutely berserk, with me. As if I were responsible. I mean I was in favour of it, I thought it was better not to have any name, it makes it more mysterious. And Pete Gabriel also wanted not to put any name on. So then he put the plainest name in he could, Peter Gabriel I. Peter Gabriel II. Great.

Sun: That was just a photo of him in a car...

Thorgerson: No no no, excuse me John. Maybe you are like the English Sun. This print which is here as well, looks great. It's not just a photo of him in a car, although he is in a car. But it's not just a photo. Well, to me it's not. Maybe to you it is. To me the car has been dotted with rain drops, and it's about the rain drops. This felt special to me. I agree, it's a simple thing. Some things are very complicated. Pink Floyd's Momentary Lapse of Reason is really complicated, 700 beds on a beach. That was a real nightmare to do.

Sun: You actually put 700 beds on a beach?

Thorgerson: Yeah. And they're Victorian, they're made of wrought iron and f-----g heavy.

Sun: Where did you get 700 Victorian beds?
Thorgerson: I don't know. I hired somebody to find them [chuckles]. So when we did Pete Gabriel, it's the other end, if you like, on the scale of complexity and difficulty. But to me it doesn't make any difference, it's still as much a design, contrived if you like, artful. Still trying to say and be something. It was trying to say something about Pete Gabriel. And I think he always liked it. He's been very friendly. Although I did three covers with him and he said that was enough. 'Nothing personal,' he said.

Sun: Is there anybody you want to do an album cover for?

Thorgerson: Oh yeah. Bob Dylan. I nearly worked with Bob Dylan recently, but it fell through. Not because of him, I think the manager was a bit conservative. We are a bit left field.

Sun: I've always wondered why hipgnosis was spelled hipgnosis [and is pronounced hypnosis].

Thorgerson: Now you're going to be educated. It was actually scrolled on our door by some passing narcotic person in the middle of the night. It was scratched on the door of our apartment, and it appealed to us. It's a nice word, but it was spelled on the door like that. So it was a mixture of 'hip,' which is new, and 'gnostic,' as is old. So it was old and new, a nice mixture, whilst being hypnotic, and therefore inducing trances. It felt like a really good name. In fact, I think it was a good name. I don't use it anymore, but I'm not unhappy with it.

John Mackie/Vancouver Sun