OP-ED: A Moment in History — memories of when Katlehong was at war

On Saturday, 25 July 2026, Katlehong confronted its past. At an evening hosted by Spyland Jova Films, commemorating the events behind their upcoming documentary, A Moment in History (directed by Mphonyana Matelile and produced by Edward Ngomane), guests were brought back to a pivotal day in 1994.Thirty-two years ago, a delegation featuring Cyril Ramaphosa, Joe Slovo, Robert McBride, Carl Niehaus and approximately 50 foreign correspondents visited the area. While many survived the outbreak of violence, freelance photographer Abdul Shariff was killed, and SABC cameraman Charles Mokganyang, alongside residents, was left with life-altering wounds.In the run-up to the 1994 elections, war was being waged across South Africa, primarily in the townships of the then Transvaal and Natal. Thousands died in what was apocryphally termed black-on-black violence. And the media was omnipresent, broadcasting the horror to the world.On Sunday 9 January 1994, members of the media were alerted by pagers (only satellite phones were available then, no cellphones) of a proposed expedition with key ANC leaders to Katlehong to directly observe the wounded survivors of the devastation being endured by the community in the IFP-ANC violence.The Mazibuko Hoste in July 2026. (Photo: Kathy Berman) A sunny day, we geared up, leaving our heavy flak jackets behind, and headed out in a phalanx of fancy cars. Down Khumalo Street, the site of so many deadly conflagrations. We arrived at an abandoned cluster of homes abutted by an open veld. Self Defence Unit (SDU) leaders greeted us. The politicians alighted, preceded by their guards, and the media followed.Barely minutes into our walk through the burnt-out buildings, shots rang out. We ducked; chaos ensued; politicians were ushered away. Charles Mokganyang was shot in the back, and bundled into a car by journalist Jessica Pitchford. The entourage fled. Our crew remained behind to report from the scene. The women of the community made their way, undaunted, to the nearby ZCC church, clad in signature blue and white. A young man approached and handed over a camera “from the dead photographer”. We put out an alert on the satellite phone, and the message came through: The photographer was Abdul Shariff. IFP combatantsMany more civilians and journalists died before 28 April 1994. An investigation by the Goldstone Commission nine days after the Katlehong incident confirmed that IFP combatants had opened fire from a water tank attached to the Mazibuko Hostel. Unpublished footage given by Robert McBride to the filmmakers, for use in the documentary, shows not only the attack on the entourage, the chaos and the comments by the fleeing politicians, but also, vividly, Shariff being shot, and a fully armed SDU member alongside the cowering journalists instantly retaliating across the veld, in the direction of the hostel. Testimonies to Goldstone included IFP allegations that SDU members had shot at the hostels earlier in the day, prompting a response when the entourage arrived. Based on IFP and South African Police testimonies, which concurred with ANC and media depositions, Goldstone did not refute that shots emanated from the hostel, but chose not to opine on the source of the deadly shots. Fast-forward 32 years in Katlehong: Tarred roads, three dusty soccer fields, echoing with the cries of future Bafana Bafana hopefuls, and three neatly manicured parks — one of which houses a temporary marquee for our event.Kathy Berman and director Mphonyana Matelile in Katlehong in July 2026. (Photo: Kathy Berman) Jessica Pitchford. (Photo: Kathy Berman) We are greeted by the Spyland Jova team and embark on a tour with community member Papa Maputi through the paved streets, a relaxed suburban neighbourhood, with inhabitants engaged in weekend chores. Very few remnants of 1994 are visible: burnt-out houses have been upgraded and hide behind burnished walls — barring the last house on the block. The house is still abandoned; multiple bullet holes are a pockmarked testimony. The veld is gone now to make way for new housing.We stroll to the hostel and observe the passing trains — working again after they stopped running decades ago. The station has been upgraded, but the wounds remain. We are introduced to three families in just one street who lost their fathers/sons/brothers through the injuries they sustained. Caught in the crossfireThe story of the additional casualties — on that day and in the area — sends us reeling back to images of police Casspirs as we learn that Shariff’s was not the only death that day: 10-year-old Mthunzi Tinga was caught in the crossfire and, after the police arrived, SDU member Fanyana Banda was killed and three colleagues arrested. We return to the marquee filling up with community members — including Happy Xaba and Michael Mathe, who were incarcerated that day. The sensitively choreographed programme was directed by a consummate narrator of history and memory, Skhumbuzo Sithebe. Speakers included journalist Jessica Pitchford and Abdul Sharifs’s brother, Cassim Shariff, who was working then from Cosatu House on a project archiving exile media — including Eli Weinstein’s photographs and Radio Freedom archives.Thabo Xaba and Michael Mathe were among the SDU speakers. Brutal news footage, including the gruesome unpublished footage from McBride, played out on the screen. This bricolage of imperfect memory, but authentic history, culminated in a group photograph of the assembled audience, who erupted into the resonant chants of the SDUs of yesteryear. The forgotten combatants in the battle for democracy. Moments in History is currently seeking funding for editing. The Spyland Jova team envisages the documentary and promised monument as the start of a future living history hub, commemorating the many humble community heroes and luminaries of Katlehong, like Brenda Fassie, whose Weekend Special music video was filmed in the tavern where she had worked as a waiter. DMKathy Berman is a former journalist and broadcaster. A consultant in strategy, innovation and impact, she is currently completing a PhD in AI, Human Rights and International Law.