Page 18 - September Issue

"Tell my people that I love them and that they must continue the fight, my blood will nourish
the tree that will bear the fruits of freedom, Aluta continua."

Solomon Kalushi Mahlangu

10 July 1956-6 April 1979

The Story of Solomon Mahlangu

Solomon was born in Mamelodi, Pretoria, formally known as Transvaal. He was the second
son of Martha Mahlangu, who raised him as a single parent. His schooling journey ended
when he was in Grade 10 when the school he was studying at closed down due to constant
riots such as the Soweto Uprising.

In 1976 September, he joined the African National Congress (ANC) which led to him being
trained as Umkhonto We Sizwe which took place in Angola and Mozambique. He did this in
hopes of fighting against the apartheid government. He spent time in a refugee camp near Xai
Xai, a training camp called ‘Engineering and lastly Funda Camp. He returned back to South
Africa as a Cadre in the year 1977.

Two days after his return, he was arrested in the city of Johannesburg, along with one of his
companions, Mondy Johannes Motloung. Motloung was unable to stand trial due to severe
brain damaged from being brutally beaten up whilst under custody. Solomon Mahlangu’s
st
th
trial began on the 7 of November 1977 and continued up to the 1 of March 1978 with
charges of murder.
nd
Mahlangu was found guilty and was sentenced to the death penalty on the 2 of March 1978.
th
He was hanged at the Pretoria Central Prison on the 6 of April 1979 at the age of 23. This is
where 133 other political prisoners’ lives were also ended under the apartheid government.
th
In the words of Phumla Williams in an article she wrote on the 5 of April 2019, ‘The
“crime” that 23-year-old Solomon Mahlangu committed was standing in defiance against a
ruthless regime and fighting for equal rights and freedoms for all South Africans. He refused
to cower under tyranny or be a mere bystander to history.
Although a young man at the time, Mahlangu was relentless and even unto death proclaimed
his hope for our country.
His life story is vital in reminding the youth of the critical role they can play in taking
forward the vision of Solomon and many others.
Mahlangu’s life should embolden our generation of young people to rise up and take their
rightful place in our society.’

18