Student-to-Student

For Part I of their series, the junior journalists from Mpontsheng Secondary School chose to tell the story of Hector Pieterson, who was shot and killed during the Soweto Riots, on 16 June 1976.

Before viewing their video, it is important to understand the history of Bantu Education and the Soweto Uprising. Bantu is a term referring to large groups of African languages and people. Bantu Education refers to the style of education for the black population during apartheid.

The aim of the Bantu Education Act (Act No. 47 of 1953) was to keep blacks from a decent and equal education.

The Nationalist (Apartheid) government used many tactics to make certain that blacks couldn’t learn properly, including:

- Textbooks were printed and distributed in Afrikaans (a language not native to black South Africans).

- Bantu schools were restricted from receiving government funding, which meant that black students had few resources.

- Bantu schools were instructed to train blacks for positions of servitude and manual labor.

By the mid-1970s, students began to fight back by protesting the unfair education system. The Soweto Riots began on 16 June 1976. What began as a peaceful protest march ended in violent clashes between the black youths and the South African authorities when police officers opened fire. The first person shot and killed was a 13-year old boy named Hector Pieterson, who died at Vilakazi Street in Soweto.

It is estimated that over 500 people were killed during the riots.

To learn more about 16 June 1976, we’ve also included ProjectExplorer’s video about the riots.

Cast & Crew
Presenter: Bafana Nhlapo
Director: Thelma Mdluli
Cinematography: Tshidiso Mabote & Thembisile Mabunda
Photography: Puleng Maledu

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