Ah... Life!

Winters in South Africa, as I know them in the Western Cape two hours North East of Capetown, is a mixed pleasure. Mornings the temperature is often 1 or 2 degrees, and houses being mostly unheated can be chilly and uncomfortable. However, the days are generally magnificent with temps regularly in the late teens to mid 20’s. One dresses in layers, then removes layer by layer as the day progresses, then sweaters donned again at evening time.

Cooking outdoors throughout the winter in the courtyard on the braai has not only culinary components but additionally keeping warm before the fire as the evening’s temperatures start to drop. I used to think as a Canadian that my culture grew up occasionally around the camp fire, that I was a campfire child, when camping. Here there is rarely a day passing without standing or sitting around the fire, whether at home or socializing.

The abundance of meat is quite astounding, and not just the meat but its quality and price. Coming from a vegetarian background I arrived here to find that all my new friends and acquaintances lounge around braais for socialized eating, but it is the stunning abundance of the meat itself both domestic and wild that is available and on the braai grill. I first thought ‘how will these few people eat all this meat?” I learned quickly. Rarely is there any left over at evening or afternoon’s end. Often rice or potatoes accompanies these choice slabs but the proportions between meat and non meat at the meal is staggering. And talk about family suppers, no hesitancy here for the children and young adults to make the evening meal.

Lamb, pork, beef, filet, sirloin, fish, calamari, all abound to delight the senses and appetite.

This week as once before I was asked to prepare the braai for a photo shoot. My dear friend Madelaine who I have lived next door to for 7 years, and known as the food journalist Nettie Pikeur, was doing a story for ‘Veg’ (not pronounced as in vegetable, more like ‘Vaq’) which is a glossy outward bound magazine. South Africa produces truly incredible magazines; I’ve always been impressed.

So there I am cutting up two and a half kilograms of top sirloin, each of them appearing like a raw roast when presented to me. After having set the braai (a real skill) I turned to the five person crew, all Afrikaners, and said: “I find this so unusual, here I am a Canadian in South Africa braai-ing again for Afrikaners”. They just laughed, knowing that their 3 hour shoot would end with the object of their lenses being jointly devoured with the wine.

And naturally, living in the middle of a major wine belt, the wine most certainly flows. With all the activity on the property I go through 10 or more litres of great wine weekly. It’s a given, when one visits one is offered wine. Those 10 litres, by the way cost me R110 which in Canadian funds today is $16. The two and a half kilos of top Sirloin at R170 resents $25. I’ve been away from Canada so long that I’m not sure of your prices there now, however I know it’s a deal, and the meat is great quality freshly sliced at the local butchery outlet (Slaghuis) as you watch, and comment.

I know these prices will have to climb considerably for the farmers and labourers to be sustainable. The exceedingly low farm wages produce these prices as well as the low wages in general amongst the working folk. The low wages giving us our privileged lifestyle continue to stimulate and worsen the poverty as everything the poor purchase is climbing rapidly in price. The change and growth which must come is difficult and challenging to all levels of society; the gap between privileged and disadvantaged is enormous. The majority of the coloured and black people I know only occasionally have good quality meat, and then minimally and on special occasions.

I wasn’t here very long before I realized that living the privileged life, with few funds in Canadian terms, nevertheless I needed to give something back. I suppose I actually felt guilty surrounded with so much poverty and yet finding myself living fairly grand, albeit in a small cottage, but with courtyard and gardens, river, mountains, wildlife and ceaseless beauty. I had to give something back, and that is when I accepted I was here to do community work. But more on that in later blogs.

On a final note to this posting, one cannot help but morn the people of Zimbabwe who are approaching a climax of descent into even greater chaos. For seven years I have watched Mad Bob Mugabe systematically transform the democratic country of Zimbabwe into a fascist state. In fact it can and likely is being studied as an example of a democracy being taken over by a populist revolutionary leader who at heart is fascist, and who then brutally destroys lives and country.

Mugabe has taken virtually all the steps of previous fascist states utilizing fear, oppression, hit squad murders by children and youth, genocide and absolute dictatorship over his people, and like all fascist leaders, blaming everyone else for the state of affairs, especially Blair and the UK. And he did it step by step, all perceivable, all understood by the educated and the compassionate as it unfolded, but ignored by our South African and other African governments due to black revolutionary loyalty. “You are my brother, we fought together, we brought democracy" (read 'Our Power'). "I will support you therefore in anything you do.” This has been the SA policy, and it has dire karma to answer for in this condonement since the Zimbabwean people supported South African blacks in their march to democracy. Ultimately, I believe, Mibeki’s greatest betrayal, larger even that his HIV denialism, will show represented by his policies towards Zimbabwe, called "Quiet Diplomacy".

Zimbabwe is our immediate neighbour. I know numerous Zimbabweans and I like them all. Comprised of two principal black tribes, like all tribes and cultures they have a distinctly emitted identity and interactive presence. Zimbabweans are in my experience a very pleasant and attractive black people, and are known for their intelligence and geniality under even the most distressing of situations, as has been the case for years in their beautiful country.

Mugabe is finished, the state almost totally in collapse. One third of all Zimbabweans now live in South Africa. Their flight to South Africa is being called a Human Tsunami. They have been rushing over the boarder wherever they can get through just to eat and survive, yet are still not officially recognized nationally or internationally as a new African refugee crisis. A third of Zimbabweans now live in South Africa, and most are in dire circumstances doing whatever they can to make desperately needed funds for family back home while anxiously evading the law as illegal aliens. The brothels are doing a roaring business.

If Mugabe lives to step down, I have no doubt the International Court has already completed the indictment for genocide against this monster and will issue it once he is removed. His massacre of 200,000 in Matebeleland utilizing North Korean troops will never be forgotten, nor his facist policies against his citizens. We await his day of removal and his day in Court. It will be a celebration for many of the people of South Africa, the democratic world, and unquestionably for the wonderful and incredibly patient people of Zimbabwe.

Till next month.
Solinus
Onder Blopunt