Chinese embassy honours struggle stalwart Dr Tlou Cholo

Anti-apartheid stalwart Dr Tlou Theophilus “Ranka” Cholo, 98, is the oldest war veteran trained by the Chinese People’s Army in 1965 – having been received by that country’s first president, Mao Zedong.

Cholo, was last Friday among South Africans honoured by the Chinese embassy in Pretoria at an event marking the 97th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

This coincided with the launch of the book, Forging Bonds, memoirs of South African military veterans who trained in China during the struggle against apartheid.

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In 1965, Cholo was among liberation movement cadres to be deployed to China – along with uMkhonto weSizwe commanders-in-chief Raymond Mhlaba and Wilton Mkwayi.

Reflecting on a meeting with Mao, Cholo said: “We were taken to a building off Tiananmen Square. Mao received us individually, with an interpreter, at the door of the modestly furnished lounge.

“He listened carefully to Raymond Mhlaba before saying that whatever they had to tell us was illustrative. He also said everything changed, including Marxism and communism.

“He said our policies should be formulated based on a study and understanding of our situation.

“Mao went on to say that our situation in South Africa had similarities with the struggle in Algeria and suggested that it might be worth studying that conflict.”

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Chinese ambassador to South Africa Wu Peng said the China-South Africa military cooperation had “only one goal – to safeguard world peace”.

“As an important component of our state-to-state relations, our military relations are now at their best in history, which provide crucial support to our overall relations,” said Wu.

“We started exchanges and cooperation from early1950s and built a profound ‘comrades plus brothers’ special bond.”

Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Angie Motshekga, said: “When the decision was made to form uMkhonto weSizwe in 1961, our leadership underwent their military training in China.

“Andrew Mlangeni, one of the first commanders of MK and a Rivonia treason triallist, was in that first group and had an occasion to engage with chairman Mao Zedong and exchanged ideas on strategies to fight the apartheid regime. ”