Note: The following letter was written to Ayanda Kota of the Unemployed People's Movement from Mavuso Dingani, a Zimbabwean writer and activist now living in New York. In 2006 he was living, without papers, in Durban. In the email below he explains that when he supported Abahlali baseMjondolo against Patrick Bond's NGO, the Centre for Civil Society when AbM asserted their independence as a movement, Bohmke threatened to report him to the police and have him deported. There are many people who will say privately that they have been threatened and harassed by Bohmke and his associates. Most are not willing to speak about this publicly because of fear. Some people even say that they have also been harassed at work; that even their families have been threatened and harassed. However Mavuso now lives in New York and has said that this information can be made public.
31 March 2013
Comrade Ayanda,
Revolutionary Greetings
I am proud of your work and many comrades here in NYC know of your work and how you are fighting for the rights of the poor in South Africa. In fact, this very afternoon I am meeting a group of young activists from Queens (My partner and I run a reading group for young activists and apparently from next month I am doing Fanon for a couple a black activists in Brooklyn). They talk about you, your organisation and ABM with curiosity and interest.
Anyway Bohmke threatened me too. It was in 2006, I believe it was a few days after ABM stormed into the SMI [Social Movements Indaba] meeting. I was at Howard College standing at the food truck near the park. I saw Bohmke and proceeded to start up a conversation with him. We talked about recent events at the SMI and he got to know of my position regarding ABM (I supported their position and actions). He hated it. He told me that I was now his enemy. He proceeded to tell me that he knew about my status and that he would see that appropriate measures were taken if I proceeded to oppose him. Now comrade if my status was "illegal", and it was, how would anyone take that not so veiled threat? I started to disengage myself from ABM because I now feared him. Furthermore, I told lots of friends about this threat including Joe Guy, Benard Dubbel, my wife of course because she came in 2007, Percy and many others.
He is man not to be underestimated.
Mavuso Dingani
31 March 2013
Comrade Ayanda,
Revolutionary Greetings
I am proud of your work and many comrades here in NYC know of your work and how you are fighting for the rights of the poor in South Africa. In fact, this very afternoon I am meeting a group of young activists from Queens (My partner and I run a reading group for young activists and apparently from next month I am doing Fanon for a couple a black activists in Brooklyn). They talk about you, your organisation and ABM with curiosity and interest.
Anyway Bohmke threatened me too. It was in 2006, I believe it was a few days after ABM stormed into the SMI [Social Movements Indaba] meeting. I was at Howard College standing at the food truck near the park. I saw Bohmke and proceeded to start up a conversation with him. We talked about recent events at the SMI and he got to know of my position regarding ABM (I supported their position and actions). He hated it. He told me that I was now his enemy. He proceeded to tell me that he knew about my status and that he would see that appropriate measures were taken if I proceeded to oppose him. Now comrade if my status was "illegal", and it was, how would anyone take that not so veiled threat? I started to disengage myself from ABM because I now feared him. Furthermore, I told lots of friends about this threat including Joe Guy, Benard Dubbel, my wife of course because she came in 2007, Percy and many others.
He is man not to be underestimated.
Mavuso Dingani