African Stories

The Reverend Eileen Lake

The department I worked for sent stories to various African TV stations. They wanted stories to do with Africa and I ended up looking for stories with African themes.

Reverend Eileen Lake already made history by becoming the first ever British black woman to be ordained a Deacon in the Church of England in 1988. In November 1992 the Church of England decided to allow female priests. It took a change of Church of England legislation before Eileen Lake could be ordained in St. Paul’s Cathedral in 1994. That was year the first ordination of women in the Church of England took place.

Black Women in Puerto Limón Costa Rica

In Puerto Limón on the east coast of Costa Rica live many people of Afro Caribbean heritage. Most came over to work the banana plantations. When I visited the place I spoke English with many of the Elders. I remember seeing a picture in pride of place of Queen Elizabeth the second in the home of Irene Jackson. Doing a report about another culture is not that easy. I told the ladies in question my report will eventually end up in Africa and let them more or less make the film. It was a great experience.

The Men in Puerto Limón

More or less the same approach with the men. Letting them talk the talk and make the report. The majority came originally to Costa Rica from Jamaica. There was a law that restricted the movement of African Caribbean’s to the coast line and it was not allowed to learn English at school. Today it’s different. The elders showed me with great pride ‘Liberty Hall’ a cultural centre with a great historical legacy. Marcus Garvey arrived in Limón from Jamaica in 1910 and began publishing a small newspaper. Later he moved onto Harlem New York. I saw written in the centre his words. “One God, One Aim, One Destiny.”

Panama Women’s movement

Panama’s government is one of the least representative in Latin America. Very few women are elected to the Panamanian parliament. Mariela Jiminez a legislator fights for the rights of women.

Zulu Piano Restorer

Am not always looking for sad stories. I read about Norman Mlungisi Mkhize and sensed a great story. A man brought up in a very traditional strict Zulu tradition. The youngest of six children of a Durban warehouseman, a black boy in apartheid South Africa who ended up becoming Britain’s leading piano restorer.

Norman grew up in poverty on the outskirts of Durban. Mlungisi means “The one who fixes things.” I visited him at his shop in London called Islington Piano Galleries where he is one of Britain’s leading piano restorers rebuilding pianos of famous pianists. It was a really great experience to meet Norman. A very kind and genuine man.

South Africa

The department I worked for made many stories about South Africa’s apartheid system. It just so happened a contact told me about Dr. Neville Alexander who studied in Germany and was imprisoned for ten years on Robben Island with Nelson Mandela. After filming Dr. Alexander I covered many stories about South Africa, mostly news items and a few reports.

Dr. Neville Alexander

Sankie Nkodo

I made an interview with Sanke Nkodo the ANC’s representative in Bonn. The date was June 1991.

Cyril Ramaphosa

Before he was President of South Africa, I interviewed him in 1992. It was my first major interview. The feeling after the interview was that the ANC will change South Africa. It’s going to work, especially with men like Mr Ramaphosa. For the interview I travelled to Bonn and met Mr Ramaphosa at the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung a foundation supporting social democracy. I did not know there would be an audience listening to us. At the end of our talk they applauded the man. He clearly impressed the audience with his words. The tape by the way was ‘rescued’, Andreas managed somehow to repair the magnetic tape and it played its last recording. This historic interview is now digitalised.

We all had so much hope for the new South Africa. The Rainbow Nation, so to speak. After 30 years in power the country still has profound inequality. Rich and the very poor. Nothing seems to have changed. To put it mildly, the citizens are dissatisfied with the incompetent service delivery meaning power cuts, rampant corruption and crime plagued black enclaves. On average over 70 people are murdered every day, in South Africa. The rate is rising, life is cheap. Kar Hao Teoh a consultant trauma and orthopaedic surgeon whilst holidaying in Cape Town drove by accident into Nyanga – known as the murder capital of South Africa where he was shot dead in a township in front of his wife and two-year-old son. As he lay dying the police did not come to his aid. Just one person among the many.

Hopes for a ‘new’ South Africa were high and it never happened. Years of corruption and incompetence has destroyed the party’s image. At some time there will be no absolute majority. The ANC will have to work with coalition partners.