War veterans biking to Angola
Angola war veterans to take a trip to the country and relive their experiences
Known as the Forgotten War, four former South African Defence Forces soldiers will ride their motorbikes to Angola and relive their experiences in the country.
Cobus Botes, Steve Prinsloo, Wayne Allan Laatz and Johan Booysen will be joined by daughter Tammy Leigh Booysen and former Umkhonto We Sizwe fighter Patrick Ricketts as their guide into the country.
“In the olden days, we did not fly to the country when we entered it and we did not go through customs so for the first time our passports will be stamped. This is also a personal challenge to ourselves and more bonding time between friends. It’s been a dream of mine to travel by bike to Angola so last year I made a decision and started the planning,” said Johan.
The 10 day trip will start from Johannesburg, where they will travel by car with their Kawasaki KLR650 motorbikes in trailers into Maun, Botswana to pick up Patrick. From Maun, they will get onto their bikes for more than 1000 kilometers into neighbouring Windhoek, Namibia then travel onto Angola. Once they reach their destination of Cuito Cuanavale, they will spend a week in the country. Along the way, they will be sleeping in camp sites where they will build tents around a fire.
“For a lot of us its closure in our lives and other personal issues, it’s not only about the war. We will visit battle sites and relive, retell and reach out to convey our history to the next generation. The Angolan war is known as the Forgotten War but we were there and we want to share our story. We also want to spend time with the youth and visit the different places in the area,” they said.
The team are also collecting educational aids as the community in Cuito Cuanavale has one teacher teaching both the adults as well as the children in the area. One pen is shared between 10 students and they want to collect more so each student has their own educational stationary. The team plans to arrange a meeting with the Halo trust and visit mine clearance sites.
“The damage caused by the war which carried on for more than 20 years is still visible today. Our mission is to give back to the community of Cuito Cuanavale by donating educational aids to help them build a future and rebuild their war stricken areas which today is still haunted by land mines. Farming cannot be implemented to create a developing community as landmines are strewn all over,” they said.
Community members who want to donate any educational materials can find their drop-off box at Total garage in Helderkruin or visit their website www.angolaonabike.com for more information.
