On this Day in History 28 August

Vasco Da Gama was of noble birth and was the son of an explorer, however little else is known about his early life. Da Gama was said to have been educated in the town of Evora, where he studied navigation and mathematics.

In 1497, he set out with a crew of 148 men on the Sao Gabriel, and headed for India. After reaching the coast of Sierra Leone, they sailed south and reached the coast of present day South Africa. Whereas previous explorers, such as Bartholomew Dias, had turned back after making landfall on the southern African coast, Da Gama and his crew sailed further along the east African shoreline.

They were the first Europeans to call at the port of Mombasa, but having been met with some hostility, sailed to the friendlier port of Malindi. Da Gama and his crew looted Arab ships on the East African coast and negotiations on arrival in India led to conflict.

In August 1498, Da Gama set out to return to Portugal. His crew was severely affected by scurvy and almost half had died when he reached Lisbon on 28 August 1499. Although Da Gama was the first European to navigate a route to India by sea, his voyage did not bring the prestige he had hoped for.

The consequences of Da Gama’s voyage to India include the development of the spice trade and the Portuguese colonisation of Mozambique. It also created competition between European powers, which resulted in the need for and subsequent development of a half way station in South Africa.

Wednesday, 28 August 1844

Victoria West is a small town in the Western Cape. In 1844 the Dutch Reformed Church bought a farm in the area and named it Victoria, after Queen Victoria. It was renamed Victoria West in 1855, to distinguish it from the district of the same name in the Eastern Cape.

Today, the town has a population of just over 11 000. It is a thriving small town with a booming sheep farming industry. The town boasts many attractions that include a nature reserve, museum and a print shop that has remained untouched since it was built in 1876

Friday, 28 August 1970

Malawi officially replaced the Malawian pound with the Kwacha on 28 August 1970. The country had circulated the Pound sterling, the Rhodesian Dollar and the South African Rand at different stages. The Kwacha is divided into hundred Tambala.

The word kwacha means “dawn”? in the Nyanja and Bemba languages and Tambala means “rooster”?. Since its introduction, notes of higher denominations including the 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 note have been gradually added to the Kwacha.

Friday, 28 August 1987

Faced with increasing resistance and an increasingly ungovernable country, the government introduced wider press restrictions under the 1986 state of emergency. The state of emergency gave the president powers to rule by decree and to introduce any measures deemed necessary to curb resistance. As a result of these powers, the Minister of Home Affairs and Communication, Stoffel Botha introduced more press restrictions to censor the media from reporting about incidents relating to unrest and police activities.

Botha also labelled the alternative media, which were free from government control, “media terrorists” for publicising violence and proclaiming revolutionary messages against the state. He also said “Freedom of expression will not be allowed to such an extent that it fosters chaos and revolt in South Africa” (Williams 1998).

Some of the alternative media targeted by the government were:

• The Weekly Mail

• The New Nation

• “South” in Cape Town

• Umafrika

• Capital Radio

• Vryeweekblad

Wednesday, 28 August 1996

In South Africa’s largest Black economic empowerment deal, Anglo American and the National Empowerment Consortium (NEC) signed an agreement for Anglo to sell almost 48 percent shareholding in Johnnic (an investment holding company with interests in entertainment, media, casino, exhibitions and property) to the NEC over the following eighteen months. It was agreed that the first tranche of shares – at least 20% of Johnnic’s 30,4 million shares – would be sold at R50, a 7% discount to the prevailing prices on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Johnnic’s board would be enlarged to twenty members, of which the NEC would appoint ten, including the chairman. The decision to sell was interpreted as a response to political pressure to transfer economic power to the Black community.

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