Nelson Mandela, an icon and as such the
only one of his kind second only to Jesus Christ as an earthling, is dead.
Madiba, as he is passionately called earned his heroic recognition after years
fighting for the liberation of South Africa from the racist apartheid regime
of South Africa
The movie Goodbye Bafana is the true story
of a young prison guard whom after constant interactions with Mandela changes
his racist views against the blacks and especially Mr Mandela and turns to not
only embrace the believes of a free South Africa but also to become one of
Mandela’s very few white friends at the time.
“Twenty million blacks are ruled by a
minority of four million Whites under the brutal Apartheid regime.
Blacks have no votes, no land rights, and
no freedom of movement or equitable opportunity to housing or education.
Determined to retain power, the government
bans all opposition organisations, forcing their leaders into exile, some for
life, in Robben Island.”: Reads the introduction caption to this film. This was
South Africa
Bafana means boys but basically in the movie seems to refer to a childhood friend to the young
prison wander, James Gregory whose character is played with excellence by actor
Joseph Fiennes. Gregory, even with Bafana, a black boy, as a best friend was
not spared racist indoctrination and after his family moves, grows believing
that the blacks have only evil intentions against the whites.
After his education, he takes up the job to
guard political prisoners, a job he carries out proudly and patriotically. But
he does not forget his childhood friend. It is through this job that he later
meets Mandela in prison.
He remembers playing the warrior games of
which, though he had mastered well, he lost to young Bafana every time. The
scene where they play the game is on a beautiful rural background, the hilly
green landscape and a village with grass thatched huts gives a taste of South
Africa’s (or Africa’s in general) virgin innocent fascination.
The game is played with four sticks and each
opponent uses them (two each) to hit the enemy and also to defend himself. The
game moves like a nicely choreographed dance, attacking, moving away from blows
sometimes in circles, only communicating with the sticks, the sound made by the
sticks the only against the soft rhythmic but also at times especially to the
end, explosive moves.
When Gregory meets Mandela for the first
time, he sees him through the eyes of the media and the apartheid propaganda
machine. A terrorist, a bloodthirsty black devil. When Mandela turns his charm
on him, Gregory who is still an ideological greenhorn is caught by surprise.
Mandela takes advantage of Gregory’s
curiosity and smoothly teaches the unaware young man the believes of his own
organisation, ANC. The first move is an unintended challenge to read the
Freedom Charter. Gregory tricks his wife, though she later follows him secretly
to the library where he lies to get access of the Charter which was at the time
top secret.
Gregory is least to say shocked when he discovers from the Freedom Charter that Mr Mandela, his political organisation and his co-accused were fighting not only for the rights of the black and coloured South Africans but for the entire South African population.
Part of the Freedom Charter reads;
“We, the People of South Africa, declare
for all our country and the world to know:
that South Africa
that our people have been robbed of their
birthright to land, liberty and peace by a form of government founded on
injustice and inequality;
that our country will never be prosperous
or free until all our people live in brotherhood, enjoying equal rights and opportunities;
that only a democratic state, based on the
will of all the people, can secure to all their birthright without distinction
of colour, race, sex or belief;
And therefore, we, the people of South Africa
And we pledge ourselves to strive together,
sparing neither strength nor courage, until the democratic changes here set in
have won.”
From the moment young Gregory reads these
he begins to change and eventually becomes closer to Mr Mandela than anybody
else during the prison time. He at one time sees Mandela playing his childhood
warrior game and jovially challenges him; needless to say, he looses to Mandela
too.
Their friendship extends to their families
and he occasionally sneaks in information. There is the time he sneaks out
chocolate as a present to Winnie Mandela from her husband, a gesture that
somehow gets to the media and backfires on him. His colleges accuse him of
being a kaffir lover, kaffir being the demeaning word used for the blacks.
He then asks to be transferred as the
working environment becomes unbearable for him and his family but not until he
threatens to resign does he get the transfer.
Because of his fluency in Mandela’s mother
tongue Xhosa, he is later given his job back as Mandela’s personal guard but at
a different location, Pollsmoor Prison, as Mandela is moved from Robben Island
Their friendship blossoms and they become
even closer after his son Brent is killed in a suspicious car accident similar
to that where Mandela’s eldest son Thembi died.
Mandela’s humility, kindness and profound
wisdom are portrayed throughout the movie. His character is perfectly played by
actor Dennis Haysbert.
When Mandela is finally released from prison,
Gregory is promoted, and as they bid each other goodbye he gives Mandela a
traditional skin wristband, a luck charm, that was given to him by his
childhood friend. They have an emotional farewell and Gregory escorts him to
the car.
As Mandela leaves, Gregory watches the
historic moment on the TV as Mandela is later welcomed by a mammoth of an enthusiastic
crowd. Gregory quietly reads the last part of the Freedom Charter;
“There shall be peace and friendship! Let
all people who love their people and their country now say, as we say here:
These freedoms we will fight for, side by side, throughout our lives, until we
have won our liberty.”
When he finishes reading, he utters the
words “Goodbye Bafana”.
Njoro.
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